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Related: About this forum60 Minutes Report: Fukushima Now Radiating Everyone: Will Impact All Of Humanity
60 Minutes Report: Fukushima Now Radiating Everyone: Will Impact All Of HumanityMnemosyne
(21,363 posts)ErikJ
(6,335 posts)proud patriot
(100,700 posts)these were the worries I had initially
Downwinder
(12,869 posts)The wind carried it East. If the Law of Averages holds, there should be some good mutations.
Coyote_Bandit
(6,783 posts)Which government was calling for this to be sealed under tons of concrete?
freshwest
(53,661 posts)Said it was the only solution and the only reason it wasn't being done was greed. He called for it to be entombed like Chernoybl.
He explained the deaths of the helicopter pilots who knew they would die, pouring concrete as fast as they could ferry it to Chernoybl. Explained every living being since that time carries a residue of that disaster inside their bodies, in their bone marrow.
And said that so shall this be, if not stopped. He said it had to be done. And it wasn't. We couldn't escape the fallout from the Russian disaster. There is residue of all of this in every country now. We can't stop an earthquake. We can't stop this. At this point, no government can stop this anymore than it could stop a volcano.
Coyote_Bandit
(6,783 posts)No government including our own has called for this thing to be entomed and few of the large media outlets have provided continued coverage of this disaster much less even suggested that entoming this disaster might be an appropriate course of action that might be entertained.
Color me unimpressed by our government and its leaders. For them it seems it's all about the fucking money. And that would seem to be just as true for most Dems as it is of most Repukes.
lutefisk
(3,974 posts)And he swam in the Gulf...and Bush Junior flew over New Orleans.
I'm starting to think we're on our own.
Coyote_Bandit
(6,783 posts)Why do I care about politics and other public and policy issues?
Life would be easier if I didn't give a flip about such things - seeing as how most of those in power don't give a shit about me. Most of them don't even care whether I have access to basic healthcare services to preserve my very being.
Somedays I aspire to be apathetic. Why should I fight for a system/politician that does not serve to advance and protect my very pedestrain needs and interests?
Moostache
(9,895 posts)The fact is that I find myself like millions of others - forced to choose the lesser of two evils, but still choosing one form of evil over a more virulent strain of evil.
Democrat.
Republican.
Right.
Left.
Liberal.
Conservative.
These are all rapidly becoming meaningless labels - shades of gray in an otherwise black as night future.
The only way out is to die or die trying to change it. If re-electing a lesser of two evils only gives me a chance to fight on for one more day or one more week or one more year or one more term, then so be it. I feel that I need every available second to teach my children what is best in humanity (and for my materialistic 'friends' on the lunatic fringe - IT AIN'T MONEY OR POSSESSIONS OR CARS OR ANYTHING MADE, BOUGHT OR SOLD!!!) because those things that ARE best - compassion, curiosity, science, art, literature, music, leisure time and nature - those things are being attacked far less from one side of the so-called "debate". I care because of this simple distinction - the Dem's won't do anything to help solve the problems, they'll just stop making them exponentially worse in a few cases and allow the slide to continue without a rocket assist on others.
I am embarrassed beyond words at what future generations - those who survive the coming horror of our human global collapse - will write and say of us. The excesses and evils of our "civilization" will be scarcely believed in 200 years time.
The fact that we ever allowed poison to power our world or that we allowed it to continue without a global response or a spare-no-cost approach with be unfathomable. The survivors will only be those who have empathy and are able to band together and sacrifice immeasurably for the greater good.
Those who live today and do not teach their offspring about sacrifice, equality, generosity and caring will soon enough see their seed vanish from the Earth. Those who imbue their descendants with these characteristics, who ingrain the very behaviors that will save a select few and maybe just enough to have the human species persist or even split into new species beyond the other side of the storm filled horizon.
I care because humanity is facing its own extinction event - the intentional and internal destruction of the very environment that provides life to us all...and for what? MONEY? LUXURY? CARS? HOUSES? GOLD? OIL? MORE?
I care because this extinction event is inescapable for the right wingers - their DNA is doomed and will perish as surely as the sun will rise....but maybe, just maybe...those who aspire to more humanitarian aims and less monetary gains....maybe THEIR DNA will find a way to survive.
Fight on.
Continue to care.
And as Crosby, Stills and Nash once sang .... "Teach your children well"...
Coyote_Bandit
(6,783 posts)I had the foresight and good sense not to bring children into this fucked up world. Nonetheless, I am concerned for the future of your children.
Still, I resent being forced to choose to vote for a bad candidate that does not serve to advance and protect my needs and interests in order to avoid an even worse candidate being elected. While that may offer a fear based reason to vote for the least bad candidate it is no reason to support the candidate. In this scenario I am being manipulated to vote for a candidate that will not serve to advance and protect my needs and interests. I have little patience for that kind of gamesmanship.
Most politicians (not all) are master manipulators lacking in ethics and morals. Sleazy, smarmy, self-interested bastards who will undermine the people who elected them in order to obtain (or maintain) position and the power and prosperity it brings. Why should I be interested in their success when they could care less about mine?
It's not that I am unwilling to fight or that I do not care. But I see no reason to fight for or be much concerned about advancing the fortunes of those who do not serve to advance and protect my own needs and interests.
I vote for bad candidates in an effort to protect your children's future.
magical thyme
(14,881 posts)If they entomb it in the current situation, it will reach criticality within the tomb and burn right through it.
It also is leaking out the bottom into the water table / seabed. It is a totally, totally different situation then Chernobyl.
kristopher
(29,798 posts)... in order to reduce the flow of groundwater through the plant to about 1/2 of what it is now. Not great, but at least a step in the right direction.
saras
(6,670 posts)Tepco could also, with help, drill these wells close enough together, and deep enough, to make a caisson all the way through the water table. Once the whole complex is sealed inside a concrete tube - a big enough one that the hot part won't get near it - then encourage it to burn down deeper, cover the top with something that can handle and filter any pressure buildup, and when it gets deep enough start filling the caisson with concrete and rubble. Once the water is out of the caisson it will mellow out a lot.
davidthegnome
(2,983 posts)All I can say is that I grieve for the people of Japan - and for the whole world. The genie is out of the bottle, we cannot put it back in now. Were it up to me, I'd say abandon nuclear power, I wish it had never been discovered in the first place. The energy it grants it not worth the price we pay now - or the ultimate price we could very well pay in the future. Chernobyl.... the reactor is STILL melting down. Unbelievable.
gateley
(62,683 posts)When they would say "it may affect California" or something like that, I'd think -- it will affect the entire PLANET!
People here were reassuring me that I obviously didn't know science and didn't know what I was talking about, but I don't care. I KNOW we're all affected by this. The earth is an ecosystem! Sheesh!
AnotherDreamWeaver
(2,846 posts)And still, there is no known way to deal with the nuclear waste of spent fuel rods. We protested years ago, trying to stop this event. OCCUPY EARTH and remove management of resources from Corporate CEOs, but we have a lot to learn to manage the waste.
chervilant
(8,267 posts)I WISH reporters would STOP saying that nuclear power is CHEAP!! We've known since the beginning that the nuclear power sycophants deliberately misrepresented the costs AND the dangers of nuclear power!
MADem
(135,425 posts)A few things crossed my mind while watching this....firstu, the helo pilots who died encasing Chernobyl...doesn't new drone technology seem to be the way to get around that sort of thing? If Fukshima could be encased remotely, that would be a good thing. It would be nice if we could use robotics/drone tech for good in this case.
Second, how many of us live within striking distance of a nuke plant? I know that the places I live are uncomfortably close to them.
Third, am I the only one who thinks that fracking, which seems to be followed by unusual earthquake activity in more than a few instances, is not a good fit anywhere near nuke plants?
Completely off topic to the seriousness of the piece--that scientist/expert commenting with the long white hair, for some crazy reason, reminded me of Bill Maher! Not sure if his was his speech pattern/vocal cadence or his attitude and facial expressions--or maybe all of the forgoing!
SlipperySlope
(2,751 posts)onestepforward
(3,691 posts)I was curious too and found this link to the show:
http://sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au/stories/8262363/fallout
KamaAina
(78,249 posts)Not the CBS program of the same name with the familiar ticking watch.
Kablooie
(18,571 posts)She's visiting her mother who recently moved to a nursing home.
I was worried about this.
Sigh. Not much I can do though.
marshall gaines
(347 posts)this is NOT chicken little s... here. The sky and water will fall on us with dire effect.
PearliePoo2
(7,768 posts)All the samples would be considered nuclear waste if found here in the US.
This level of contamination is currently being discovered throughout Japan.
http://www.fairewinds.org/content/tokyo-soil-samples-would-be-considered-nuclear-waste-us
bvar22
(39,909 posts)As long as we are using Nuke Plants,
[font size=3]this CAN and WILL happen AGAIN.[/font]
"These modern plants are perfectly safe.
They are engineered to withstand Natural Disasters and Terrorist attacks.
They are so safe, we can build them on known Earthquake Faults
and along side Oceans and Fisheries!
It can't happen here.
Trust us!"
/bitter sarcasm
Meiko
(1,076 posts)I wish there was more I could do. I have a special place in my heart for Japan having lived and traveled extensively in the country. I do trust the Japanese though and I know they will come up with something, I just hope they don't wait too long.
obxhead
(8,434 posts)So far we've had 2 plants totally destroyed in 65 years or so of nuclear power. I wouldn't classify that as rare.
SpankMe
(2,937 posts)The radiation affects the whole earth for centuries. It only takes one disaster to have a negative effect on millions. Therefore, "rare" offers no relief.
mbuch64
(55 posts)one event like this is unacceptable. The consequences that we once thought unimaginable have happened twice and yet still people still endorse this form of energy. I used to live in Savannah, GA, and just recently moved 3 hours west and after watching the 60 minutes video, I can now imagine what would happen if the Savannah nuclear plant were to have a similar incident. Don't bother saying it can't happen here either as we have already seen it twice.
obxhead
(8,434 posts)Not only can it happen, but it will happen again in the future. To many plants are still operating well past their intended service range. In fact the plant I live near was shut down about a decade ago for a drastic problem that could have caused a meltdown. The cause was a component that was supposed to last well beyond 100 years without replacement. It spurred plants of similar design across the US to be inspected.
Like I said, I'm tired of the meme that meltdowns are rare. They are not rare and they effect the entire planet. It's time to end nuclear power globally.
KamaAina
(78,249 posts)Gregorian
(23,867 posts)This is what will be the legacy of nuclear energy mistakes. Mutations and disease.
Once these radioactive particles are spread around the planet, we have a new landscape. A new planet. One that isn't safe. And we spend more money on terrorism than energy research, I imagine.
truedelphi
(32,324 posts)So much so that now normal Americans are "terrorists" -- Obama also plans to loan some fifty eight billions of dollars to the Big Banks so they can loan it to the nuclear industry.
The President couldn't see to it that a much smaller loan was made to the state of California to keep our schools and fire fighters up and and working- but he is able to step forward and offer up this loan package.
For the President, some things are sacred. But apparently, reading and understanding the news isn't one of them. He just does what is "advisors" and his campaign contributors tell him to do.
And in having the Fed government make the loan, the bank that handles the loan is absolved of any responsibility when this bites us in the butt.
When not one but two nuke plants here in California are located on very active faults, where tsunamis could occur that make the one in Fukushima look like a picnic, I guess the Big Bank is wise to have this absolution from liability
KansDem
(28,498 posts)And that time is running out...
Dont call me Shirley
(10,998 posts)Most importantly it is destroying the environment, flora, fauna including us The economy is the least of our worries. This is where the nuclear global leaders are inherently wrong.
proverbialwisdom
(4,959 posts)Washington Post: Closing reactors causing a mess after non-catastrophic Fukushima crisis Argues for building more nuke plants in US
Title: Phasing out nuclear
Source: The Washington Post
Author: Editorial Board
Date: April 22, 2012
Link: http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/phasing-out-nuclear/2012/04/22/gIQArSXbaT_story.html
proverbialwisdom
(4,959 posts)[img][/img]
Were you outraged??
Were outraged. And we expect you were, too. On April 23, 2012, the Washington Post editorial board writers callously dismissed the Fukushima nuclear disaster as non-catastrophic.
The Post advocated the continued use of nuclear energy and dismissed Germany's green revolution as an "anti-nuclear frenzy," while omitting inconvenient deal-breakers such as cost, waste, safety, health risks and human rights. The paper taunted Germany and Japan - and the anti-nuclear movement - for looking to renewables but misrepresented Germanys successes. And they utterly ignored those who have already paid the price for the nuclear fuel chain, like indigenous uranium miners, and its newest victims, the children of Japan whose future has been stolen. You can review the original editorial here.
Tell the Washington Post what you think! We're fighing back. Please forward our alert ( http://www.beyondnuclear.org/storage/documents/WP_Alert_Rebuttal.pdf ) and reference our longer rebuttal document ( http://www.beyondnuclear.org/storage/WhytheWPisWrong.pdf ). Write to the editorial board at The Washington Post, 1150 15th St. NW, Washington, DC 20071-0001. Or contact the editorial page editor, Fred Hiatt at fredhiatt@washpost.com or 202-334-7281. You can also contact the Ombudsman, Patrick Pexton, at ombudsman@washpost.com.
April 30, 2012
May 01, 2012
Why the Washington Post's Description of the Nuclear Disaster as non-catastrophic is both Callous and Erroneous
Trivializing Fukushima
by LINDA PENTZ GUNTER
On April 23, 2012, the editorial board of the Washington Post proclaimed that the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan was non-catastrophic. The writers eagerly promoted nuclear power while omitting inconvenient deal-breakers such as cost, waste, safety, health risks and human rights. The board taunted Germany and Japan and the anti-nuclear movement for looking to renewables but misrepresented Germanys successes. They showed a shocking disregard for the suffering in Japan due to a very real catastrophe that is by no means over. And they utterly ignored those who have already paid the price for the nuclear fuel chain, like indigenous uranium miners, and its newest victims, the children of Japan whose future has been stolen.
The following rebuttal can also be found, with more detail, on the Beyond Nuclear website...
Linda Pentz Gunter is a founder of Beyond Nuclear and its international specialist. For more, see www.beyondnuclear.org.
proverbialwisdom
(4,959 posts)New Interview: Fukushima poses lethal risk to US West Coast, says Senator Another bomb waiting to go off Extreme nuclear vulnerability, especially in Reactor No. 4
Published: April 23rd, 2012 at 5:29 am ET
Source: Oregonian
Author: Editorial Board
Date: Apr. 23, 2012
Oregon Sen. Ron Wydens recent daylong field trip from Tokyo to the zone of Japans nuclear devastation is worth at least a week in the telling. Bunny-suited with a breathing device for protection against radiation exposure, Wyden walked through the ruined Fukushima Dai-ichi complex and saw what few from the West have seen: another bomb waiting to go off.
The senator is not typically alarmist. But his field notes, followed by letters to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Energy Secretary Steven Chu, signal alarm. They paint a picture of extreme nuclear vulnerability, especially in Reactor No. 4 [...]
Wyden completed his tour by asking Japan, with written urgings for help from Clinton and Chu, to sharply speed up a cleanup expected to take 10 more years. His fear is that another big seismic event will trigger another disaster before the cleanup is completed exposing Oregon and the West Coast to potentially lethal risk.
What we learned the first time is that radioactivity leaks out quickly, he told The Oregonian Friday. If (No. 4) ruptures now, it gets into the air, and thats very troubling to us in Oregon. This must not happen. [...]
Read the report here: http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2012/04/ron_wydens_nuclear_field_trip.html
Wikipedia on The Oregonian: Largest newspaper in Oregon and the Pacific Northwest by circulation and the 19th largest daily newspaper in the country.
US Senator Issues Press Release on Fukushima Spent Fuel Pools Urges Japan to accept international help Warns situation worse than reported after touring plant
Published: April 16th, 2012 at 3:32 pm ET
Read Senator Ron Wydens (D-OR) letters to:
US Ambassador to Japan Fujisaki
Secretary of Energy Chu
Secretary of State Clinton
NRC Chairman Jaczko
Let Sen. Wyden know how you feel about his position
Send him an email
Make a campaign donation via Facebook
Source: Press Release of Senator Wyden
Date: Monday, April 16, 2012
After Tour of Fukushima Nuclear Power Station, Wyden Says Situation Worse than Reported
Urges Japanese Ambassador to Accept International Help to Mitigate Continued Nuclear Risks
Washington, D.C. After an onsite tour of what remains of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear facilities decimated by last years earthquake and subsequent tsunami, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) a senior member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, sent a letter to Japanese Ambassador Ichiro Fujisaki looking for ways to advance and support clean-up and recovery efforts. Wydens principal concern is the relocation of spent fuel rods currently being stored in unsound structures immediately adjacent to the ocean. He strongly urged the Ambassador to accept international help to prevent dangerous nuclear material from being released into the environment.
The scope of damage to the plants and to the surrounding area was far beyond what I expected and the scope of the challenges to the utility owner, the government of Japan, and to the people of the region are daunting, Wyden wrote in the letter. The precarious status of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear units and the risk presented by the enormous inventory of radioactive materials and spent fuel in the event of further earthquake threats should be of concern to all and a focus of greater international support and assistance.
Wyden visited Fukushima on April 6, 2012 while on a Congressional delegation trip to the region. He and a staff member wore radiation suits as they toured the facility and met with workers and managers from the Tokyo Electric Power Company, TEPCO, which is responsible for the clean-up. Wyden found that the facilities designed to house spent nuclear fuel and the reactors themselves were still in a state of disrepair and located in areas that would make them susceptible to further damage from future seismic events. The reactor buildings still contain large amounts of spent fuel making them a huge safety risk and the only protection from a future tsunami, Wyden observed, is a small, makeshift sea wall erected out of bags of rock.
Wyden is also sending letters today to U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairman Greg Jaczko asking them to identify additional resources and assistance that their agencies could provide to Japan to address these risks.
frankroberts
(35 posts)to happening in Nebraska just a year ago...
Botany
(70,291 posts).... I had to quit following the reports and the news out of Fulushima because
the information was too much for me to handle.
the # of deaths will be staggering
KamaAina
(78,249 posts)"and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter." Rev. 8:11.
Ready for this? The word chornobyl in Ukrainian means mugwort -- a close relative of wormwood.
proverbialwisdom
(4,959 posts)[img][/img]
Press Conference on Fukushima Daiichi Disaster
May 4, 2012
New York City, New York
Japanese nuclear scientist and Japanese and U.S. medical doctors to discuss current radiological health conditions and concerns in Japan after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactor catastrophe.
Time: 10:00 am - 11:00 am
Location: Rissho Kosei-kai, 320 East 39th Street (between First Ave. & Second Ave.)
A press conference about the on-going, rarely publicized, and still grave situation around the stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactors, featuring a nuclear scientist from Japan, and first hand medical reports of clinical and on site observations in Japan related to the Fukushima radiological contamination. Discussion will include the immediate needs to protect Japanese citizens now living in contaminated areas, for better monitoring of radioactive content of food, and for the cessation of incineration and burying of radioactive tsunami rubble throughout Japan.
Featuring: Mr. Hiroaki Koide, Assistant Professor, Research Reactor Institute of Kyoto University, Japan; Dr. Junro Fuse, Internist, Japan; Dr. Ken Nakayama, Orthopedic Surgeon, Japan; Dr. Andrew S. Kanter, President, Physicians for Social Responsibility, USA; Kazko Kawai, Voices for Lively Spring, Japan; Mari Inoue, Human Rights Now, USA.
Media Interviews: To schedule media interviews after the event, please contact Kazko Kawai at 212-432-0705 or kazko@aol.com for interviews with Japanese speakers; or Alfred Meyer at 202-215-8208 or alfred.c.meyer@gmail.com for interviews with PSR speaker.
Details: Hosted from Japan by Voices for Lively Spring, Human Rights Now, and Physicians for Social Responsibility. Mr. Koide, the best-known nuclear scientist and concerned medical doctors from Japan and USA will share their experiences and speak about the on-going nuclear crisis in Fukushima. They will discuss the under-reported health consequences after the nuclear disaster, health risks resulting from inadequate food safety standards, and the environmental dispersion of radioactive materials by government burning of radioactive disaster debris. Voices for Lively Spring, a Japanese citizens group, Physicians for Social Responsibility, a U.S. NGO, and Human Rights Now, a Japanese international human rights NGO, feel that the international community is not adequately informed about the evolving current status and the remaining serious problems in Japan after the nuclear disaster. The nuclear scientist and medical doctors from Japan and US will be available for media interviews.
Background: A year after the nuclear disaster in Fukushima local communities in Japan continue to be exposed to radioactivity. Radioactive materials are still being released into the air, soil and ocean - from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Many citizens still live in areas where the radiation level is dangerously high. The Japanese government continues to keep its citizens in harms way by applying a 20mSv per year standard to establish evacuation zones. Citizens in the rest of Japan also remain in danger of being exposed to unsafe levels of radiation due to widespread radiological contamination from the accident, food safety standards that are not strict enough to protect children, and the Japanese government continuing to burn and bury the radioactive disaster debris in municipalities across the nation.
Speakers:
Hiroaki Koide, Nuclear Reactor Specialist and Assistant Professor at Kyoto University Research Reactor Institute. After realizing in 1970 that nuclear power was extremely dangerous, Mr. Koide dedicated over 40 years of his career to educate the nuclear industry and the general public to stop nuclear reactors in Japan. After the nuclear disaster in Fukushima, he gained rock star status due to his tireless efforts in providing detailed analysis and honest suggestions to the Japanese community about the extent of the disaster. He will speak about the extremely dangerous conditions at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, including the concerns regarding the damaged Unit 4 irradiated fuel pool.
Dr. Junro Fuse, Internist and head of Kosugi Medical Clinic near Tokyo, Japan. In June 2011, he started to use social media as the main tool to educate the general public on risks associated with radiation exposure. He will discuss unusual medical symptoms among their patients after the nuclear accidents, issues within the Japanese medical communities to protect citizens from the disaster, health risks in association to the burning of radioactive tsunami debris and his concerns with the current food safety standards in Japan.
Dr. Ken Nakayama, Orthopedic Surgeon from Japan. Following the 3/11 earthquake, he entered the exclusion zone in Fukushima for three days as a member of the governments Disaster Medical Assistance Team to rescue patients abandoned at a hospital. In December 2011, he spoke in a press conference in Osaka along with Dr. Fuse in opposition to the government policy for incinerating tsunami rubbles across the country.
Dr. Andrew S. Kanter, President of the Board of Directors of Physicians for Social Responsibility, has studied radioactive plume projections from nuclear reactor accident scenarios and other public health impacts of nuclear radiation dispersion. He is the director of Health Information Systems/Medical Informatics for the Millennium Villages Project for the Earth Institute at Columbia University as well as an Asst. Prof. for Clinical Biomedical Informatics and Clinical Epidemiology at Columbia University. Will speak about the need for accurate and timely information regarding exposure to radioactivity in order to protect and promote public health.
Co-sponsoring organizations:
VOICES FOR LIVELY SPRING: Founded in December 2011, Voices for Lively Spring is a Japanese advocacy group for safe environment, working to save lives of Japanese people in the post-Fukushima era. It hosts seminars by renowned scientists and journalists in large cities between Tokyo and Osaka, and sends instructors to local study groups to teach a radiation protection course in Shizuoka Prefecture, which is Japans focal point of the radioactive debris issue at the moment.
PHYSICIANS FOR SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY: Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) is the largest physician-led organization in the U.S. working to prevent nuclear war and proliferation and to slow, stop and reverse global warming and toxic degradation of the environment.. PSR was founded in 1961 and succeeded in achieving the Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty that ended the global radioactive contamination produced by atmospheric nuclear bomb testing. PSR shared in the 1985 Nobel Peace Prize awarded to International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW), for building public pressure to end the nuclear arms race. Guided by the values of medicine and public health, PSR works to protect human life from the gravest threats to health and survival.
HUMAN RIGHTS NOW: Human Rights Now (HRN) is an international NGO based in Tokyo with more than 700 members, composed of lawyers, scholars and journalists. HRN dedicates itself to the protection and promotion of human rights. To raise awareness of the situation in Fukushima after the nuclear accident, HRN organized a human rights forum in March 2012 at the UN Church Center in conjunction with the 56th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. Mothers and children who were evacuated from Fukushima spoke about the great and ongoing disruption of their lives. Our goal is to inform the international community about the ongoing crisis and advocate for the protection of communities in Japan