Today, August 6, 2020 is the 75th anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. It’s also the 55th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1965, which was signed on August 6, 1965.

There’s no stamp commemorating the former and the stamp commemorating the latter came well after my father stopped collecting stamps. So, today’s #stampoftheday is a 3-cent stamp, issued in July 1955 honoring President Dwight D. Eisenhower “Atoms for Peace” speech, which was given at the United Nations in December 1953.

In that speech, Eisenhower said “I feel impelled to speak today in a language that in a sense is new – one which I, who have spent so much of my life in the military profession, would have preferred never to use. That new language is the language of atomic warfare.” He went on to announce a new “Atoms for Peace” program that would provide non-military atomic equipment and information to schools, hospitals, and research institutions within the U.S. and throughout the world.

The rationale behind – and execution of -this effort have been the subject of much debate. Some historians believe the speech was the beginning of a significant shift in discourse and action about nuclear issues that had previously not been publicly discussed because the US and other governments had agreed to keep those discussions secret. Other believe it really was a PR stunt aimed at assuaging people’s anxiety about nuclear weapons. And still others contend that it primarily was done to reassure European allies concerned that a shift in NATO strategy from an emphasis on conventional weapons to cheaper nuclear weapons meant the US would rely on nuclear weapons to defend its allies from a Soviet attack.

I want to put those debates aside and focus instead on a few things that Eisenhower said in the speech that bear repeating, regardless of why he said them. After acknowledging the threat of nuclear war, the president said, “let no one think that the expenditure of vast sums for weapons and systems of defense can guarantee absolute safety for the cities and citizens of any nation. The awful arithmetic of the atomic bomb does not permit of any such easy solution.”

He then described the devastation that nuclear war would entail and observed: “Surely no sane member of the human race could discover victory in such desolation. Could anyone wish his name to be coupled by history with such human degradation and destruction. Occasional pages of history do record the faces of the ‘Great Destroyers’ but the whole book of history reveals mankind’s never-ending quest for peace, and mankind’s God-given capacity to build.”

He continued: “It is with the book of history, and not with isolated pages, that the United States will ever wish to be identified. My country wants to be constructive, not destructive. It wants agreements, not wars, among nations. It wants itself to live in freedom, and in the confidence that the people of every other nation enjoy equally the right of choosing their own way of life. So my country’s purpose is to help us move out of the dark chamber of horrors into the light, to find a way by which the minds of men, the hopes of men, the souls of men everywhere, can move forward toward peace and happiness and wellbeing.”

Then he powerfully said, “In this quest, I know that we must not lack patience. I know that in a world divided, such as ours today, salvation cannot be attained by one dramatic act. I know that many steps will have to be taken over many months before the world can look at itself one day and truly realize that a new climate of mutually peaceful confidence is abroad in the world. But I know, above all else, that we must start to take these steps–now.”

He concluded by noting that in addition to controlling nuclear weapons, the US wanted to turn towards encouraging peaceful uses of nuclear power, a process that, we know in hindsight, has produced some successes and many dangerous results.
Nevertheless, it’s worth looking again at the aspirations expressed near his closing, when he said: “To the making of these fateful decisions, the United States pledges before you-and therefore before the world its determination to help solve the fearful atomic dilemma-to devote its entire heart and mind to find the way by which the miraculous inventiveness of man shall not be dedicated to his death, but consecrated to his life.”

The Dalai Lama echoes Eisenhower’s words in a statement on the 75th anniversary of Hiroshima that was issued today. He observed that, “despite many great developments that also took place, the 20th century was an era of violence in which some 200 million people were killed, including the horrific use of nuclear weapons. Now, in our increasingly interdependent world, we have a chance to make this a more peaceful century.”

He went on to urge that “when conflicts arise they should be settled through dialogue, not the use of force. We need to eliminate the threat of nuclear weapons, with the ultimate aim of a demilitarized world. War means killing. Violence leads to counter violence. We need to put an end to combat and the production of weapons and construct a more peaceful world.”

And then he concluded by observing, “we human beings have created many of the problems in today’s world. As long as we have strong negative emotions and we view our fellow beings in terms of ‘us’ and ‘them’, there will be a tendency to try to destroy them. We must recognize the oneness of humanity, and understand that we will not achieve peace merely through prayer; we need to take action.”

So today, on the anniversary of both Hiroshima and the Voting Rights Act, I urge you to be well, stay safe, fight for justice, and “take action” for peace.