THERE ARE LOTS OF RESOURCES HERE — for groups and individuals. please scroll down to see everything that is available!
On this page you will find templates for banners, signs and posters that you can have printed. (Bannersonthecheap.com has great prices on vinyl banners, fast and inexpensive shipping. They almost always have a “sale” going on for 40-50% off).
There are also many resources you can print and/or use yourself. These include materials for education (Fact sheets and reflection pieces) and for use at actions and events (Treaty excerpts for public reading, ICAN stencils, Litanies for religious communities, Voices of Witnesses, hibakusha video links, and more).
There are resources for individual actions (sample letters to the editor, letters to Senators and Reps; signs for social media campaigns). There are resources for campus/university connected organizing. There are resources for organizing (What you can do/ The power of One).
So — please take the time to scroll down through the very long list of options and decide what works best for you and your group.
IMPORTANT: Your action is significant. PLEASE multiply the power of whatever you choose to do by posting a report, photos, video or other documentation on the Facebook page: Nuclear Ban Treaty Days of Action. We want to document the power of this growing movement and we want your action to inspire others!
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YELLOW BANNER! Sized to make a 3′ x 8′ banner. You can download the pdf file and have a banner made locally, or you can order them at bannersonthecheap.com — their price is reasonable, they are fast, the quality is good. We recommend adding grommets when you order. We do not (though we probably should!) get a kickback from them… If you need a version of this banner that is modified somewhat, email < orep@earthlink.net > with “banner request” in your subject line. The chance that we can customize something for you is much better if you ask sooner rather than at the last minute.
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A NEW BANNER FOR 2022 AND THE FUTURE. We hope this one will be obsolete in six months — but really that’s not too likely. This is our central message in one sound-bite, and it needs to be seen and heard across the country. You can use this banner on January 22 and at actions and events into the future… sized at 3′ x 8′, but scalable by your banner maker.
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Prefer just to hold a SIGN? This lovely creation delivers the message, too. It’s sized at 18 x 24 to fit on a piece of poster board.
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POSTER SIZE TREATY… Whether you want to post it on a fence or sign, deliver it in person, or carry it in a march, this poster size version of the Treaty highlights the prohibitions. You can download the pdf and have it printed at Office Depot/Staples or just about any print shop. We found almost all options for printing posters these days charge for color whether the poster has it or not, so we added color.
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NEED IDEAS? CHECK OUT WHAT YOU CAN DO
This sheet is full of links and can be downloaded and sent to other people on your planning committee (hint, hint)
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PLAY THE VIDEO AND SHARE IT!
Any self-respecting UN Treaty should have a song and a video celebrating it (forty years ago, Peter Gabriel did a brilliant video for the UN Declaration of Human Rights). The Ban Treaty is no exception. Check out the link below for the brilliant youtube video produced on the fly by Amy O’Brien and her co-conspirators at the Snake River Allliance. Like it, share it, spread the word — the Ban Treaty is here to stay!
You can play this for your own planning committee, a little entertainment on the side… It’s 2:33 long. Don’t watch later — watch now. Or now and later! And see below for how you can create your own version!
DIY INSTRUCTIONS TO MAKE YOUR OWN NUCLEAR BLUES
What would your version of the Nuclear Blues look like? Don’t just wonder—thanks to Amy O’Brien, you can make it! This sheet has everything you need—a link to the soundtrack, instructions for making the placards — and you get to choose who will play Allen Ginsberg. When you’re finished, post your version to the Nuclear Ban Treaty Days of Action facebook page.
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A FACT SHEET on the TREATY that you can use to educate yourself or others; you can also hand it out as a flyer or provide it to the media at your action or event.
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TEMPLATE FOR MEDIA RELEASE
Here is a model template for a media advisory — fill in the blanks (bold type) before you send it to your local media. Feel free to adapt this however it best suits your action or event. It’s good to send a media advisory out about a week before your event and then again on the day of or the day before. The media will appreciate the reminder.
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SPEAKERS LIST A number of speakers with a variety of expertise have agreed to be available to the media for interviews and background information. Please use this list with discretion and with media only because speakers have graciously provided contact information.
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VOICES FROM AFFECTED COMMUNITIES
A selection of voices from communities that have been directly affected by the use and testing of atomic and nuclear weapons.
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VOICES FROM AFFECTED COMMUNITIES II
LINKS TO Hibakusha testimonies
A number of youtube videos with testimonies from hibakusha (survivors), first, second and third generation, are available by clicking the links below.
- Message from Sadae KASAOKA, Hiroshima survivor: https://youtu.be/2Rqhzqxcj_8
- Message from Michiko HATTORI, Hiroshima survivor: https://youtu.be/o70CSa_qvmw
- Message from Kathleen and Sara Burkinshaw, 2nd and 3rd generations hibakusha: https://youtu.be/lO9YTONILFQ
- Message from Yuki MIYAMOTO, 2nd generation hibakusha: https://youtu.be/0Sl2gQg4aOk
- Message from Daiki YANO, 3rd generation hibakusha: https://youtu.be/LgiIR0LZ-T4
- Message from Kakuwaka Hiroshima, a youth group in Japan: https://youtu.be/g-JUKGpS0Ik
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PEACE CRANES!
The origami peace crane, and the story of Sadako Sasaki, a victim of the Hiroshima bomb who died of leukemia nine years later, is a powerful reminder of the humanitarian impact of the bomb. Peace cranes have become an international symbol of peace and are used in many ways at Hiroshima events around the country. This info sheet can be a handout to accompany any event that uses peace cranes — and the download version includes a link to a video to teach you how to fold peace cranes!
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TREATY EXCERPTS FOR PUBLIC READING… Of course, you can read the Treaty in its entirety (it’s not that long), but the audience might drift away when you get to some of the process sections. We prepared this TPNW excerpt version to capture the power of the Treaty, and we hope it might be useful to you. It is formatted for two readers (regular and bold type), or for use as a call/response.
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WRITE YOUR SENATOR OR REPRESENTATIVE! Don’t have a group doing anything on January 22? You can still do something very important — write a letter. You can send it via your Senator/Rep’s web site by going to the contact page, putting in your info, then cutting and pasting the text of your letter. Here is a sample letter — note at the end that there are alternative closings for Representatives and Senators. And, of course, you can personalize this however you want, or write a different letter altogether. But Congress will ignore the Ban Treaty until we make enough noise to get their attention.
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WRITE A LETTER TO THE EDITOR — The best way to remind people in your community that nuclear weapons are still a threat and that it is important to take action! Here’s a sample letter — you can sign it and send it, modify it, or write your own! Think of it as speaking to a crowd of hundreds without having to actually get up on stage and do it!
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TAKE THE PLEDGE — IF YOU ARE CONNECTED TO A COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY
Students, faculty, alumni, administrators, donors— if you are connected to a college or university that has links to nuclear weapons production, you can take the ICAN pledge — and ask others to take it as well. The pledge is a great organizing tool, and you can use it if you are associated with one of the 50 schools named in ICAN’s Schools of Mass Destruction report, OR if you are part of a school that has an endowment that invests in nuclear weapons corporations or financial backers. Here is a flyer for the Pledge, and you can sign the pledge on line here.
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WRITE TO THE SCHOOL PRESIDENT — of your college or university if it is one of the Schools of Mass Destruction! Here is a sample letter; feel free to personalize it or adapt it in any way to make it your own!
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RESOURCES AND IDEAS FOR FAITH COMMUNITIES
Last January, a statement was issued, signed by more than 170 faith communities around the globe, reflecting on the threat of nuclear weapons and calling for all nations to sign the Treaty. This statement is short enough to be read at a vigil or during a workshop service
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Litany version of Interfaith Statement
This pdf. provides the Interfaith statement broken into a litany.
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RING CHURCH BELLS
In the 1980s, St. Michaels and All Angels Episcopal Church in Tucson, Arizona had a large sign on display at the busy intersection in front of the church that read “It’s a sin to build a nuclear weapon.”
It reminds us of the final message of Philip Berrigan before he died in December of 2002: “I die with the conviction, held since 1968 and Catonsville, that nuclear weapons are the scourge of the earth; to mine for them, manufacture them, deploy them, use them, is a curse against God, the human family, and the earth itself.”
And now, looking ahead: On January 22, 2022, people in the U.S. and throughout the world will celebrate the day that the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons enters into force. On that day, nuclear weapons will be illegal!!
We invite churches and faith communities to “ring in” the new Treaty at noon on that day, with church bells or hand bells in front of their building. Signs, flyers, etc. announcing the Treaty will be available for use.
Please contact <nuclearbantreatyEIF@gmx.com> or <nukeresister@igc.org> if you have any questions or plan to participate. We’ll include news of planned events in a press release.
Here’s a blurb that your faith community might use in a newsletter or email to explain why they are doing this.
On January 22, 20212 peace-loving people throughout the world will be celebrating the Entry into Force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. On that day, nuclear weapons will be illegal! We will be ringing our church bells at noon on that day to “ring in” the new Treaty. More information about the Treaty is here: https://www.icanw.org/signature_and_ratification_status
One community member offers this sample of a letter written to request the ringing of bells by his place of worship and offers it as a template…
Dear . . .
I hope you, your family and your congregation had a happy and safe holiday season.
I’m writing on behalf of the Genesee Valley Citizens for Peace regarding the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. As you may already know, the Treaty has been signed by 86 nations, ratified by 51, and enters into force as world law on January 22nd. Since the US isn’t a signatory it doesn’t technically apply to the US, but we think the US should sign it.
People across the US and around the world (including GVCP) will be celebrating the treaty with banner hangings, visits and letters to elected officials, public readings of the treaty, bell-ringings and more.
GVCP would like to ask you to have church bells rung at 12:00 Noon on Saturday, January 22nd in celebration of this treaty (which I personally feel is something Jesus would have supported).
Please let me know what you think and thanks!
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PASTORAL LETTER FROM SANTA FE ARCHBISHOP
On January 11, Archbishop John Wester of Santa Fe, NM, issued a pastoral letter entitled: Living in the Light of Christ’s Peace. The letter is subtitled “A Conversation Toward Nuclear Disarmament.” It is a valuable resource, especially for those in the Roman Catholic tradition, for stimulating thought and conversation about the responsibility of people of faith in the face of the threat of nuclear weapons. You can download it here:
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SPEAK UP ON SOCIAL MEDIA
These three signs can be downloaded and printed for a “stand up and be counted” action by individuals or groups. Choose your favorite sign, take a selfie (or get a few friends and take a groupie!) and post it at the Nuclear Ban Treaty Days of Action Facebook page. Invite others to do it, too!
REFLECTION — NUCLEAR WEAPONS OR US
This piece, prepared by Steve Baggarly at the Norfolk Catholic Worker, is perfect for reading and reflection or to share as an education piece. It includes statements by Beatrice Fihn, Setsuko Thurlow, General George Lee Butler and others reflecting on the need to abolish nuclear weapons.
MAKE YOUR OWN STENCILS AND STICKERS!
Last January, members of the Snake River Alliance in Idaho created a stencil and put it on inexpensive white haz/mat suits for their action at the Idaho National Laboratory. Lots of people liked it, so the Snakes have shared it with instructions for DIY!
Oregon PeaceWorks is encouraging people to create their own TikTok vids and use the ICAN logo. Here is a template for printing stickers. You’ll need Avery’s 22806 labels…
THE POWER OF ONE
Don’t have a group ready for action? You can still take an individual action to grow the movement. This sheet has suggestions just for One (okay, or for a few. or for a mass action…)
IS THAT ALL? Hey, c’mon, that’s a lot! But if you have other ideas or suggestions, share them at Nuclear Ban Treaty Days of Action on Facebook and/or email orep@earthlink.net. We can’t promise we can add everything by January 22, but we’ll do our best to provide as many resources as we can. ALSO, if you are participating in MLK events and want to highlight his opposition to nuclear weapons, there are a few resources (banner, op-ed, LTE) provided in a separate post on OREPA’s site.
WAIT— MORE BANNERS? YEP, MORE BANNERS!
Here are a couple more banner templates (3′ x 8′, but you can scale them to half size for a one-person banner) created by special request. Same banner, different color print…
