Seventy-nine years ago today, on August 6, 1945, the United States dropped an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima – causing unfathomable devastation and suffering. This horrendous act ushered in the nuclear age. Three days later our government dropped a second bomb on Nagasaki, vastly increasing the damage.

Although nuclear weapons aren't in the headlines often these days, the threat remains extreme, and the ongoing, daily consequences of maintaining nuclear arsenals causes ongoing damage. With the prospects of escalating war in the Middle East, with nuclear-armed Israel in the center of it, are again at a very dangerous moment.

But the human spirit remains strong – a spirit exemplified by Sadako Sasaki the young Japanese girl who folded peace cranes in hopes of overcoming the ravages of leukemia caused by her exposure to the Hiroshima bomb. May her courage inspire us to act for the young people who face a frightening future and desperately need our support and solidarity.

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