Atomic Bomb Dome, the Hiroshima Peace Memorial. The ruin of the hall serves as a memorial to the people who were killed in the atomic bombing of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. *Photo from Wikipedia
August 6 is the day Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony is held.
On Monday, August 6, 1945, at 8:15 a.m., the nuclear weapon “Little Boy” was dropped on Hiroshima by an American B-29 bomber, the Enola Gay, directly killing an estimated 70,000 people, including 20,000 Japanese combatants and 2,000 Korean slave laborers. By the end of the year, injury and radiation brought the total number of deaths to 90,000 – 166,000. The population before the bombing was around 340,000 to 350,000. About 70% of the city’s buildings were destroyed, and another 7% severely damaged.
Hiroshima was proclaimed a City of Peace by the Japanese parliament in 1949, at the initiative of its mayor, Shinzo Hamai (1905–1968). Hiroshima is the president of Mayors for Peace, an international mayoral organization mobilizing cities and citizens worldwide to abolish and eliminate nuclear weapons by the year 2020. On May 27, 2016, Barack Obama visited Hiroshima, being the first sitting president of the United States to visit since the drop of the atomic bomb.
Every August 6, “A-Bomb Day”, the city of Hiroshima holds the Peace Memorial Ceremony to console the victims of the atomic bombs and to pray for the realization of lasting world peace. The ceremony is held in front of the Memorial Cenotaph in the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park. Participants include the families of the deceased and people from all over the world.
In commemoration of the day, we introduce you to those who have contributed to the world peace in their own way. Click the link below and meet the great peacemakers.
*Click a photo below to see their stories!
“Rakugo might prevent conflicts. I’ll try to achieve peace through it.” – Kimie Oshima, English-Rakugo Performer
*Reference: Wikipedia
