Yesterday the Asahi newspaper in Nagasaki included my opinion about the Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) which was enacted as international law on January 22nd. A big thank you to Mizuki Enomoto for asking me to contribute to her article.
I began photographing atomic bomb survivors (hibakusha) in 2008 and will continue to do so until the last voice goes silent. In 2011 these portraits were published as a book, From Above. Everyday I think about the people I met in Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Most have passed but their memory lives on when the treaty banning nuclear weapons arrives.
“Man developed nuclear weapons. We have to question the human heart. People can decide to abandon them. I believe we can abolish nuclear weapons.”
-Miyoko Matsubara, Hiroshima atomic bomb survivor
On
January 22nd the Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) will be enacted
as international law. I began photographing atomic bomb survivors
(hibakusha) in 2008 and will continue to do so until the last voice goes
silent.
In 2011 these portraits were published as a book, From
Above. Everyday I think about the survivors I met in Nagasaki and
Hiroshima. Most have passed but their memory lives on when the treaty
banning nuclear weapons arrives.
Mrs. Matsubara was 12 years old
when the atomic bomb destroyed Hiroshima. Her story details the hard
life during and after the war and the passion she derived from living
through those years. The atomic bomb left her severely burned with
keloid scars covering most of the body. She experienced discrimination
because of her appearance. In 1953 she was selected to be part of the
Hiroshima Maidens program which made it possible for her to have
corrective and cosmetic surgeries.
After Mrs. Matsubara dedicated
her life to peace activism and helping other victims of war cope with
the aftermath. She raised her elder brother’s three young children when
he and his wife passed away. My memories of the afternoon I spent
with Mrs. Matsubara will be that she was always affable. Her spirit
instantly brightened the room. She had suffered a stroke a couple of
years prior but made it a priority to practice speaking English in the
mirror so she didn’t lose her motor skills. She spoke to me in perfect
English.
That afternoon was my only time with Mrs. Matsubara. I
still remember all the details vividly because she left a permanent
impression. She always had this glow about her. I feel lucky to have the
opportunity to call her my friend.
“When I sit to write my recollections of that time, I have to brace myself to confront my memories of Hiroshima. It is exceedingly painful to do this because I become overwhelmed by my memories of grotesque and massive destruction and death.”
-Setsuko Thurlow, Hiroshima atomic bomb survivor
On
January 22nd the Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) will be enacted
as international law. I began photographing Mrs. Thurlow in 2011. From
the moment we met her determination to fight for the abolition of
nuclear weapons was evident. She was 13 years old when the atomic bomb
destroyed Hiroshima. Mrs. Thurlow was a prominent advocate of the
treaty that will ban nuclear weapons. She has waited almost all her
life for this moment.
Everyday I think about the survivors I met
in Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Most have passed but their memory lives on
when the treaty banning nuclear weapons arrives.
