Environmentalists Against War

ACTION ALERT: On the 60th Anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis

October 13th, 2022 - by The Basel Peace Office

Take Action to ‘Defuse Nuclear War’

The Basel Peace Office

(October 12, 2022) — Sixty years ago, from 16-29 October 1962, the survival of humanity was in jeopardy, as the Soviet Union and US engaged in a tense nuclear standoff over the installation of nuclear weapons in Cuba. As we celebrate the diplomacy and good luck that prevented the Cuban Missile Crisis from ending in nuclear war, we face new nuclear threats that could just as easily spiral out-of-control into nuclear annihilation. These include the Russia/Ukraine war, China/Taiwan/US tensions, Korean Peninsula and India/Pakistan conflict.

Basel Peace Office encourages you to take action, especially during this Cuban Missile Crisis anniversary period, to reduce the threat of nuclear war and support the global elimination of nuclear weapons.

Endorse Protect People and the Planet: Appeal for a Nuclear-Weapon-Free World.
During UN Disarmament Week (Oct 24-30), UNFOLD ZERO will send the appeal to all nuclear armed and allied states, and present it to the UN;
Undertake the ‘Don’t even THINK about starting a nuclear war’social media action outside embassies of the nuclear armed states.
If you are in New York on October 16, join the social media action outside the UN Missions of Russia, United States and other nuclear-armed states;
For others in the USA: Join the Defuse Nuclear War month of action to commemorate the Cuban Missile crisis.
Actions include lobbying congress members, ‘picket lines’ on Oct 14 and demonstrations/social media actions on October 16.

Thirteen Days: The Movie
You won’t believe how close we came to nuclear war!

Thirteen Days is a superb docudrama directed by Roger Donaldson and starring Kevin Costner, Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp — which takes you into the Kennedy Administration (primarily recreated National Security Council meetings) during the 13 days of the Cuban Missile Crisis. See the trailer below and watch the full movie here.

Protect People and the Planet calls on our cities, parliaments and governments to:

Affirm that nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought, and therefore the nuclear armed States should stand down their nuclear forces and affirm policies never to initiate a nuclear war (no-first-use policies);
Commit to achieve the global elimination of nuclear weapons, no later than 2045, the 100th anniversary of the United Nations;
Cut nuclear weapons budgets, end investments in the nuclear weapons industry, and redirect these investments and budgets to support the United Nations, COVID-19 management and recovery, drastic reductions in carbon emissions to protect the climate, and financing the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

The appeal is being coordinated by UNFOLD ZERO, who will send it to the nuclear armed and allied states – and present it to the United Nations – during UN Disarmament Week (October 24-30). This when governments meet at the United Nations annually to discuss and adopt disarmament resolutions. (Click here to see endorsers of the appeal. Perhaps you have already endorsed?)

Endorse the Appeal Here

ACTION: For a Nuclear-Weapon-Free World:
Protect the People and the Planet

The Global Appeal to end the nuclear threat, abolish nuclear weapons and shift the weapons budgets and investments to support public health, COVID-19 recovery, the climate and sustainable development.

The nuclear weapons possessed by nine countries threaten us all. Any use of these weapons by accident, miscalculation or malicious intent, would have catastrophic human, economic and environmental consequences. The use of just a small fraction of the 14,000 nuclear weapons in the world’s stockpiles could end civilization as we know it.

In addition, the $100 billion spent annually on nuclear weapons is sorely needed for environmental, economic and human needs, including addressing the COVID-19 pandemic, protecting the climate and implementing the Sustainable Development Goals.

We, the undersigned, call on our cities, parliaments and governments to:
1. Affirm that nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought, and therefore the nuclear armed States should stand down their nuclear forces and affirm policies never to initiate a nuclear war (no-first-use policies);

2. Commit to the elimination of nuclear weapons by 2045, the 100th anniversary of the United Nations;

3. Cut nuclear weapons budgets (if they are a nuclear-weapon State), end investments in the nuclear weapons industry (all governments), and redirect these investments and budgets to support the United Nations, COVID-19 management and recovery, drastic reductions in carbon emissions to protect the climate, and financing the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Social Media Action:
During the 60th anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis (Oct 16-29) we invite you to:

Download the sign‘ Don’t even THINK about starting a nuclear war.’Download as PDF. Download as JPG.
Take a photo of yourself and/or a colleague holding the sign outside the embassies or consulates of nuclear-armed states;
Post your photos on your social media with the hashtags #nofirstuseglobal and #DefuseNuclearWar.

Note: If you are in New York on October 16, we invite you to join the social media action being organized outside the UN Missions of the nine nuclear-armed countries, starting at the Permanent Mission of the United States and ending at the Permanent Mission of Russia. The action is being held in conjunction with the Defuse Nuclear War month of action to commemorate the Cuban Missile Crisis.

A Month of Action
Defuse Nuclear War, a coalition of over 50 organizations, is holding a month of action to prevent nuclear war in conjunction with the anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis. This includes picket lines outside the offices of US congress members on October 14 and social media actions and demonstrations on October 16.

Defuse Nuclear War calls for concrete measures to end the threat of nuclear war by the adoption of no-first-use policies, taking nuclear weapons off alert, eliminating Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMS), supporting legislative action to avert nuclear war and moving the nuclear weapons money (budgets and investments) to human need.

Congressional Action
Initiatives that US Congress members could be encouraged to support/cosponsor:

The ICBM (Invest in Cures Before Missiles) Act;
Defense Spending Amendments to ‘Reduce Risk of Nuclear Armageddon’ announced by Senator Markey on October 7, 2022;
No-First-Use Act introduced by Senator Elizabeth Warren and Representative Adam Smith;
House Resolution 1185 on the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which calls on the USA to adopt no-first-use policies, take nuclear weapons off alert and enter into negotiations for the global elimination of nuclear weapons.

Peoples’ Action
New York, October 16: 2:00 – 3:30pm. Social media action outside the UN Missions of the nine nuclear-armed states, starting at the Permanent Mission of the United States and ending at the Permanent Mission of Russia. To join, contact info@nofirstuse.global.