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17 June: Women's March to Ban the Bomb!

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Next week at the United Nations, history will be made. The majority of governments, together with international organisations and civil society groups, are gathering to resume negotiations of a treaty banning nuclear weapons. Women are at the forefront of this effort—as they have been at the forefront of the anti-nuclear resistance since the beginning of the nuclear age.

The Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) was one of the first civil society groups to condemn the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Women were leaders in the campaign to ban nuclear weapon testing in the United States, including by collecting baby teeth to show evidence of radioactive contamination. Women led the Nuclear Freeze movement in the 1980s, calling on the Soviet Union and United States to stop the arms race. Now, women are the leading edge of the movement to ban nuclear weapons in the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN). Women are also leading in some of the delegations negotiating this treaty—and a woman is presiding over the conference!

As part of its efforts to ban nuclear weapons, WILPF is organising a public march and rally, the Women’s March to Ban the Bomb, on 17 June 2017. This event aims to bring together an intersectional, diverse, and inclusive group of people who want to see the end of the nuclear era. Solidarity events are also being organized across Australia, Scotland, and the United States, as well as other points in Europe.

There's still time to join in! Check out our resources like our call to action, infographics, flyers, videos, and other materials for distribution. Your organisation can endorse the march, you can donate to support our efforts, you can volunteer to help with the march and rally in NYC, and you can organise your own event! You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for more information and for pictures of the day, using the hashtags #womenbanthebomb and #nuclearban!

To celebrate the nuclear ban—and women’s leadership in achieving it—join us on 17 June in NYC and around the world for the Women’s March to Ban the Bomb!

Negotiations will be on at the UN from 15 June-7 July 2017. To follow the negotiations, you can subscribe to WILPF’s ban treaty mailing list to receive daily updates from its disarmament programme Reaching Critical Will. You can also follow us on social media with the hashtag #nuclearban and the Twitter account @RCW_.