- The Guardian
- Issue #2113
Sydney Remembers Hiroshima/Nagasaki 1963- 2023
An Exhibition
Denis Doherty
The exhibition presently on show in the atrium of Sydney Trades Hall in Sussex Street consists of three parts. Firstly, there are large posters which were organised and produced by the Japanese groups who supported the Hibakusha, the survivors of the atomic blasts. The second element is fabric items – banners and the like. The third element is the collection of the posters prepared for each year’s event over most of the 60 years. The Hiroshima Day Committee of Sydney with the help of the archivist at the Trades Hall Neale Towart have put together a most stunning display of artefacts from a sixty-year campaign to rid the world of nuclear weapons.
The exhibition was opened on 8 August by Henry Rajendra the President of New South Wales Teachers Federation (NSWTF). Henry mentioned that the NSWTF was “a union with a long history in supporting the peace movement and driving the peace education and activism”. The Hiroshima Day Committee acknowledged the important support that the NSWTF had given over the years and was keen for all to know of their great work.
Henry went on to explain how they have developed “peace contacts” in each local teacher association and have backed that up with trade union training for those elected to be peace contacts. He reiterated that the NSWTF stands by the position of the ACTU that Australian Government should take immediate steps to secure peace in Gaza.
“The Federation is appalled by the rising death toll in Israel’s War on Gaza. We maintain our condemnation of all forms of attack on civilians by Israel and Hamas.”
He added that the NSWTF opposes AUKUS, and repeated the slogan “peace will always be union business.” In the case of NSWTF, teaching union members can say that with pride, as they take their responsibilities seriously.
He went onto to quote the 1982 resolution from their annual conference which is just as relevant today as it was 42 years ago: “Conference opposes the involvement of Australia in the US military strategy through bases, landing rights for bombers and facilities for nuclear-armed vessels. These facilities apart from infringing the sovereignty of our country, make Australia a potential target in the event of a nuclear war.”
“We educate for peace not war.”
Henry reminded the audience at the launch that in 1947, Sam Lewis the then president of Australian Teachers Federation attended a conference of UNESCO in Mexico. “Not long after he came back he declared ‘All wars are fought against children.’ Sam ensured this concept was embedded into the political psyche of the NSW Teachers Federation.” The NSWTF has an annual Sam Lewis Peace Award which gives children in NSW public schools an opportunity to express a message of peace and tolerance and hope through art.
Sam Lewis was a prominent member of the Communist Party.
The exhibition is open during business hours in the Trades Hall atrium. If you can go there, take a few minutes and check out the history of what ordinary people have worked on over the years. Take time to relive the issues of yesteryear – banning the bomb, expelling US bases, wars create refugees, NMD, Jabiluka, uranium mining, and many other topics, all still relevant.
The exhibition demonstrates the grit exhibited by civil society as they acted to ban atmospheric testing, underground testing, French Tests in the Pacific, all testing. They reduced the stockpile of nuclear weapons from over 60,000 to less than 5,000. They along with the International Campaign to abolish nuclear weapons (ICAN) have secured the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), a UN treaty that has 70 signatures on it but sadly not Australia’s. There is still a lot of work to do for peace. It’s encouraging to see the work that has been done.
