A Day of Hope for a World Free of Nuclear Threat and International Day of Indigenous People

Apart from the commemoration of August 9 as the day of the bombing of Nagasaki in Japan, this is also the day to recognize the role of the Indigenous people in society.  International day of the World's Indigenous Peoples is a call for us to remember what the indepenous people bring life to our world.  The natural beauty that our world possesses is what commonly they care for.  The sacredness of the land and the creation are rooted in their unity with life.  They have a sense of responsibility on caring for the land as this is what they will leave to their children and the next generations (Laudato Si' 146).

It is not a coincidence that the International day of the Indigenous People is also a day of the bombing of Nagasaki during the World War II.  This speaks of the sacredness of the creation.  If we forget how to take care of our nature and planet, we can easily forget that we are part of this sacred life.  We will not think of life as something worth saving which includes all of us.  Nuclear is a big threat to human life and the planet.  Nuclear can be used indiscriminately against a nation or a locality.  Within a few minutes, a whole town can be wiped out.  Part of the budget for the current administration is to improve the nuclear capability for defense and security.   This will allow the development of nuclear armed sea-launched cruise missile given the $US2 Billion appropriations among other military defense technologies and infrastructure expansion having their own multi-billion and million-dollar appropriations until September 2029.

Unfortunately, the current government has positioned itself in an agressive way similar to its history on how this country and other "European countries" used violence against a sovereign nation when there is an assumed threat to the security and safety.  This mentality is rooted in the Doctrine of Discovery.  This doctrine presumes that the "European country" has the rights to declare itself an authority and can dictate the governance of a land or property.  The indigenous people who may have occupied any of these territories for generations even before the European settlers have been mostly ignored or marginalized for centuries.  Christianity as religious is abused to dominate the world stating that anyone who is not Chrisian has lesser value or does not hold the truth.  This puts the non-Christians as an enemy of those who would oppose the settlers.  This specific colonial mentality is called Doctrine of Discovery which has perpetuated for centuries as a guiding principle and still very evident with the colonial mentality of the west.          

We have the chance to live a life free from nuclear weapons through the resolution that is being presented in the Congress right now.  We also have the role to protect the rights of our indigenous brothers and sisters.   United States already has enough nuclear to destroy the planet, we do not need any more waste and chemicals.  The nature and the indigenous people deserve to have a voice through this advocacy on this day.

Nuclear Prayer by URI

The beginning and end are in your hands, O Creator of the Universe
And in our hands, you have placed the fate of this planet.

We, who are tested by both creative and destructive power
in our free will, we turn to you in sober and in intoxicating hope.

We ask for your guidance and to share in your imagination in our 
deliberations about the use of nuclear force.

Help us to lift the fog of atomic darkness that hovers so pervasively 
over our Earth, your Earth, so that soon all eyes may see life 
magnified by your pure light.

Bless all of us who wait today for your Presence and who 
dedicate ourselves to achieve your intended peace and
rightful equilibrium on Earth.

In the name of all that is holy and all that is hoped.

Amen.   

Call to Action:                           

Text - H.Res.317 - 119th Congress (2025-2026): Urging the United States to lead the world back from the brink of nuclear war and halt and reverse the nuclear arms race. | Congress.gov | Library of Congress

Tell Congress to Support a Safer Future and Back H. Res. 317 to End the Threat of Nuclear Weapons | Physicians for Social Responsibility

More Information:

International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples | United Nations
An International Day of Indigenous People by the UN Chieff
Honoring International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples – August 9, 2025 – The Implementation Project
Texans Ending Nuclear Dangers | Texas PSR
The Ten Legal Dimensions of the Doctrine of Discovery: The International Law of Colonialism - Doctrine of Discovery Project
Erasing Indigenous History, Then and Now | Origins
The Monarch | Then and Now: The Marginalization of Indigenous Peoples
Bill to protect manoomin incorporates Indigenous lifeways into Western legal framework