October 16 Day Of Action
Organizing local events on October 16 is about making nuclear weapons a focus for communities, activists, and elected officials – from many policy angles and political approaches. There are a lot of changes that can be enacted to decrease the possibilities of nuclear war. On October 16, plan to make your voice heard about nuclear weapons in the way that will have the biggest impact in your community and beyond.
1. Know the Demand.
The goal of actions on October 16 is to bring the dangers of nuclear weapons to your community’s attention and get regular people and elected officials talking about solutions. The primary message is to Say NO to NUKES. You may choose to focus on more specific issues, like the ones listed below, but it isn’t necessary.
From Beyond the Bomb: Under current policy, the President of the United States has limitless authority to launch a nuclear strike. The notion that any one person, regardless of character or party affiliation, could have such vast power to end life on Earth is appalling in the best of times — let alone during a time of increasing nuclear rhetoric and vast foreign policy shifts.
The United States withdrew from the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty in 2002 and from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty in 2019. Both pacts significantly reduced the dangers of nuclear war.
From Back From The Brink: The United States has roughly 1,700 deployed nuclear weapons and another several thousand in reserve. Four hundred of these are on missiles in underground silos, ready to be launched within minutes of a presidential order. This alert status — called hair-trigger alert — increases the chance of a launch in response to a false alarm.
From Beyond the Bomb: The U.S. is set to spend $264 billion dollars on the projected lifetime cost of the Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent program, which is set to replace the land-based nuclear missiles. Meanwhile, a growing consensus among nuclear weapons experts asserts not only that the U.S. doesn’t need these weapons for its security, but that keeping them keeps the U.S. needlessly vulnerable to a massive nuclear attack.
H.Res. 1185 “calls on the President to embrace the goals and provisions of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and make nuclear disarmament the centerpiece of U.S. national security policy. It also calls on the United States to lead a global effort to prevent nuclear war.”
Half of the U.S. government’s discretionary budget goes to military spending — while vast numbers of people lack adequate health care, education, housing and other basic needs, at the same time that the climate emergency and other environmental crises are worsening. Budgets are moral documents, and should be devoted to sustaining life instead of destroyed life.
2. Choose Actions
On your own
Hand out fliers
Engage people in your community directly at the park, downtown, or anywhere there are people. Download fliers below, or click HERE.
Write a Letter to the editor of your local paper
Use our automated Letter To The Editor Tool to quickly send a letter that may get published in your local paper. Use our template letter and feel free to add your own words.
With a group
Banner drop
Hang a banner near a road or highway overpass. Get the graphic you need HERE or request help printing a banner by emailing Ryan@Rootsaction.org.
Demonstration
Hold up signs in a busy area Download sign files HERE. Need signs printed for you? We can help! Email Ryan@Rootsaction.org to coordinate.
Other options: Die-in, picket, flash mob, human chain, etc
3. Print Signs, Fliers, and Banners
Click below to download printable versions of the signs and banners below.
Defuse Nuclear War will print signs for your group! To have signs, banners, and flyers printed for you, please FILL OUT THIS FORM and we will contact you.
4. Publicize
- Write a press release and send it to your local news stations and newspapers. Reach out to Ryan@RootsAction.org if you need a template or guidance.
- Ask local like minded organizations to get involved and share info about the event before and after.
- Post about the event on social media. Tag @Roots_Action
5. Share Widely
- If your group is able to livestream your event, send a message to Ryan@RootsAction.org to let us know and we will share the stream.
- Please send pictures of any and all actions (even if you’re by yourself!) to Ryan@Rootsaction.org and we will share them on social media.
- Post videos and pictures on social media and send to Roots Action on Facebook and Twitter.
- Follow up with local press by sending pictures and videos.
Organize in your community
Get involved in the effort to prevent nuclear war. Email us today to get started.
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Defuse Nuclear War is a joint endeavor of RootsAction.org and the RootsAction Education Fund.