The Hiroshima Peace Bell/Haiwa No Kane...
A global performance, August 5, 2005, 5:15 PM
Preceding the program I curated at SITE Santa Fe was what I call a global performance. Here in Santa Fe, New Mexico, down the hill from where the bomb that destroyed Hiroshima was built, citizens, in the spirit of reconciliation, join the people of Hiroshima in remembering. In collaboration with Shannyn Sollitt of Peace Day and Cranes for Peace, we cast a wide net that enabled our region to "attend" the yearly Hiroshima Peace Bell Ceremony at the exact time the bomb was dropped (August 6, 8:15 AM Hiroshima, August 5, 5:15 PM New Mexico.)
The Hiroshima ceremony was followed by a dialogue between activists from the Japanese and American sides who exchanged ideas on ways to work for peace. For this, we used Apple iChat Internet technology as well as worked with a wide range of media organizations including the Hiroshima Day Radio Project, RCC/Hiroshima's Public Radio/TV station, KSFR/ Santa Fe's Public Radio Station, KUNM/Albuquerque's Public Radio Station. We also enrolled many churches of our region to echo the Hiroshima Peace Bell with the resonance of their bells* at exactly 5:15 PM. The event was a way to unite with the people who have witnessed what the end of the world might look like, and with them send out our prayer for world peace. We repeated this ceremony in 2006 as we want for the world to listen, to wake up, and to care about the fate of future generations.
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* Bells are ceremonialists' tools. They consecrate the moments of joy and sorrow in the lives of individuals and communities... They also help commemorate and remember.
