September 99

Views expressed are those of the authors, not necessarily of the AFSC.

Peacewalk, Massachusetts

Massachusetts peace advocates joined a three-day, August walk from Nuclear Metals Inc. (Starmet)-manufacturer of depleted uranium-in Concord, through the landscape of Emerson and Thoreau, to the Raytheon plant in Andover where 6000 workers assemble the Tomahawk missile. Carrying banners, chanting, vigiling and rallying along the way, the walkers marked the anniversaries of the first atomic bombings, at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and protested the continuing production of weapons of destruction.

In the past nine months, the US has fired more than 630 Tomahawks: 80 at Afghanistan and the Sudan, at least 330 Tomahawks at Iraq last December, 220 at Yugoslavia this spring. Capable of being fired from 1000 miles away and carrying a 1000-pound warhead that's strong enough to level a bridge or a concrete building, Tomahawks are the cornerstone of US military strategy. In the Balkans they were equipped with cluster bombs that spread 'bomblets' across an area the size of two football fields. Many remain unexploded after the missile hits, waiting to be detonated by a plough blade, a foot step, or the hands of a curious child.

"The Tomahawk has another deadly advantage," according to Sean Donahue of Peace Action who, along  with five other members of the Bread and Roses Affinity Group, is currently awaiting trial for blockading the entrance to Raytheon's Andover plant during the war in Yugoslavia. "While it normally carries a 1000-pound conventional warhead, it can also carry a 220-kiloton nuclear warhead.  The warheads these missiles carry are powerful enough to destroy a city-they are sixteen times as powerful as the bomb dropped on Hiroshima.  But they are much smaller than the US's strategic nuclear missiles and could probably be used without creating the same level of international uproar an all-out nuclear attack would cause. The nuclear Tomahawks are currently in storage, but they could be redeployed on destroyers on submarines on very short notice if the US found itself facing a potential confrontation with another nuclear power.  The Clinton administration has affirmed that nuclear weapons are the 'cornerstone' of US foreign policy, and that the US is willing to use nuclear weapons against countries suspected of preparing to use chemical or biological weapons. The Tomahawk offers a middle-of-the-road option to a military commander between a full-scale strategic nuclear war and a conventional attack, increasing the chances that the US might use nuclear weapons."

Five of the walkers chose to practice civil disobedience at the Raytheon gate, pouring their own blood and kneeling in prayer, just over the property line, and duly arrested. They have a court date in October. (For information: Hattie Nestel, POB 248, Athol, MA 01331; 978/249-9400; haleyathol@aol.com)

Donald Lathrop, for whom this was a first time on a peace walk, reflected on the experience: "Why did I choose to spend the period between Hiroshima Day and Nagasaki Day trudging about northeastern Massachusetts carrying signs and posters with a small group of fellow walkers? That's easy. It was the right thing for me to do. The purpose of calling attention to our need to turn away from military 'solutions' to our problems is a valid one for me; for those of us without an advertising budget, walking the streets maximizes the number of people exposed to our concerns. A walk with signs, drumming, and chanting is hard to overlook and prompts reflection by all who view it.

"The only four verbal criticisms I heard hurled at us on our walk were the following: 'Get a job!' I have one. 'Get a life!' I have one that I am very fond of. 'Why not protest against China?' I have, in writing, over Tibet, and that makes some sense, though as an American I am more responsible for the actions of my own government. Lastly, 'What about Pearl Harbor?' I have been there and felt the horror of that 'day of infamy.' I have also been to Hiroshima and Nagasaki and come to know and love many atomic bomb survivors. They were also the victims of an atrocity beyond words. Hurling insults across the vast gulf between those committed to nonviolence and those supportive of armed conflict is counterproductive. Being heard requires mutual respect. Best I learn to do it better. I can never really walk in another's shoes because my set of life experiences is unique, as is everyone's. Only love can bridge barriers, I suspect. I wish us all good luck."