I began to work on The Bikini Project in 2018 after discovering my father’s memorabilia from Operation Crossroads at Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands in 1946. His six month daily journal was one of the most important parts of that discovery and the beginning of a project I have felt compelled to pursue since then. (Please see TheBikiniProject.org)
Although The Bikini Project was initially limited to an investigation of my father’s participation in Operation Crossroads and nuclear testing at Bikini Atoll, it has expanded into an exploration of the possibility of a world without nuclear weapons and its connection to my own home, family, and experiences. In addition, the project has come to focus more specifically on the dire humanitarian consequences of nuclear war and testing.
I have lived in New Mexico for more than 50 years, and I have developed a deep attachment to my home. Although my experiences cannot be compared to the displacement of the Bikini people, their enduring attachment to their ancestral homeland resonates deeply with me.
Santa Fe, New Mexico, where I live, is near Los Alamos where the first atomic bomb was developed. Also, within my home state, the first atomic bomb was tested at the Trinity site in southern New Mexico in July 16, 1945.
Communities downwind of the Trinity test were exposed to radioactive fallout without warning or protection. Generations of residents have reported cancer and other serious health problems, as well as profound effects on their families, communities and lifestyles. Their experiences have important parallels with those of the Bikini people.
Tina Cordova, co-founder of the Tularosa Basin Downwinders Consortium, delivered the keynote address at a high-level meeting of the United Nations General Assembly commemorating the International Day Against Nuclear Tests on August 31, 2026. Her address focuses on the the humanitarian consequences of the Trinity nuclear test.
Tina Cordova (1959)
“I know we have the ability as human beings with a shared vision to eliminate nuclear testing and the use of nuclear weapons so we never create a new victim.”
Please listen to her address. (Ends at 33:42)
The Bikini Project is also connected to the family issues of my grandson’s Japanese heritage. His Japanese mother was born and lived in Japan for the first decades of her life. I also lived in Japan for 18 months in the 1960’s when Japan was still living with the consequences of World War II, the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the United States led allied occupation from September 2, 1945 to April 28, 1952. Okinawa remained under United States administration until 1972.
My grandson, now an international university student in Tokyo, has lived in Japan for the last three years. In May 2026 I traveled to Japan, for the first time in more than 60 years. My grandson and I traveled throughout Japan for two weeks during his semester break. In Hiroshima we interviewed four hibakusha, survivors of the 1945 atomic bombing. Their accounts reveal not only what happened on August 6, 1945, but also how the consequences of the bombing continue through their lives and the lives of their families.
Please click on the link beside each portrait to read each survivor’s story.
Masue Matsumoto (2/1942)
“Please do not be indifferent… . And please do everything you can to ensure that no one, anywhere in the world, ever experiences what happened in Hiroshima again.”
Keisaburo Toyanaga (3/19/36)
“The movement for peace should not belong only to survivors. It must belong to everyone. “
Kazuhiko Futagawa (4/19/46)
“Peace is not created only by governments. It is also created through human relationships. Through listening. Through empathy. Through remembrance .“
Sadae Kasaoka (9/20/1932)
“I will continue telling this story so that people remember what happened in Hiroshima and so that future generations will never repeat it.”
Conclusion
The experiences of the Bikini people, the Trinity Downwinders, the hibakusha of Japan and the communities affected by nuclear testing around the world reveal the lasting humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons. Nevertheless, the continued possession and modernization of these weapons and the possibility that they may be used or tested remain threats to us all.
There are more than 12,000 nuclear warheads in the world today. Many modern nuclear weapons are far more destructive than the atomic bombs the United States detonated at Trinity, dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and tested at Bikini Atoll between 1945 and 1946. Considerations of nuclear policy often center on military strategy, national security, and deterrence, giving insufficient attention to the immense human suffering and the threat nuclear weapons pose to humanity.
My purpose in sharing the stories of the Bikini people, the Downwinders of New Mexico and hibakusha of Japan is twofold. First, In the words of the survivors themselves, I want to bring attention to the humanitarian consequences that can easily be forgotten when nations focus on warfare, security and fear for the future. Second, I want to show, through my own story, that nuclear history is not remote. It is connected to the present through our families, our homes and our personal experiences sometimes in ways we have not yet recognized.
The survivors’ stories remind us that nuclear weapons cannot be understood solely in strategic and military terms. They must also be understood through the lives of the people, families, and communities they have harmed. These survivors and their descendants are the voices of the nuclear age. If more people can hear their stories directly, I believe there will be a greater chance of creating a world without nuclear weapons. As Masue Matsumoto states in her interview, “Please do not be indifferent,”
Acknowledgements
I am sincerely grateful to the hibakusha: Matsue Matsumoto, Keisaburo Toyonaga, Kazuhiko Futagawa, and Sadae Kasaoka who entrusted my grandson and me with their memories and generously gave me permission to share their stories. They were welcoming, open and courageous as they recounted deeply personal and painful memories. My grandson and I were saddened by their suffering and moved by the resilience they and their families showed during the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and its aftermath. Although we came from the country responsible for the bombing, they received us without blame or hostility.
Our visit to Hiroshima and the arrangement for the hibakusha interviews were facilitated through the nonprofit organization, Asian Network of Trust. (ANT-Hiroshhma) and its Executive Director, Tomoko Watanabe. ANT-Hiroshima pursues projects in international cooperation, international peace building and international peace education. During our visit, Watanabe-san was a hospitable and generous host. She arranged dinner and lunches for us and made a conference room at the ANT-Hiroshhima’s headquarters available for the interviews. Without her assistance and generosity, these interviews would not have been possible.
Naoko Koizumi provided English interpretation for the interviews which were conducted in Japanese. She also translated all subsequent correspondence among the hibakusha, ANT-Hiroshima and me. In addition, she translated into Japanese the English narratives I prepared and presented them to the hibakusha for review, correction and approval. Following the interviews, she gave generously of her time because of her commitment to preserving and sharing the hibakusha stories. I am very grateful for all of her help.
My grandson’s mother, Etsuko Maruoka, translated my initial communications with ANT-Hiroshima helping the organization understand the purpose of my visit and assisting with the necessary arrangements.
My 21-year-old grandson, Silas Maruoka White, traveled with me while I was in Japan. Silas helped navigate the transportation system, arrange accommodations, and overcome language difficulties. He participated in every interview as a representative of the younger generation.