The Brookline Students for Nuclear Disarmament (BSND) chapter hosted an event dedicated to discussing the harmful effects of nuclear weapons and possible solutions for disarmament after school on Wednesday, Jan. 15. The event featured Massachusetts General Hospital physician Dr. Joseph Hodgkin as keynote speaker and an activity where members of the clubs worked to brainstorm solutions.
BSND leader and senior Maria Udalova said a focus of this event was grassroots programs and how even small, student-led protesting can cause big change.
“I’ve only been doing this since last February, so less than a year, but I’ve already made a lot of progress,” Udalova said. “I really hope that students leave this room knowing [they] can actually make a difference.”
Udalova said these themes of student activism went beyond nuclear disarmament, mentioning action was being taken to educate students on general protesting and advocacy.
“We’re going to be doing a climate-change-related event because nuclear disarmament and climate change are really intertwined topics,” Udalova said. “We’re also going to be doing a few advocacy workshops. If you’re interested in, for example, animal rights advocacy or human rights advocacy, you could just come and learn a few helpful techniques and tactics.”
Hodgkin focused on how dangerous nuclear weapons can be and how the harmful effects of radiation from it can cause central nervous system problems. Hodgkin also emphasized how the destructive nature of nuclear weapons amplifies the importance of regulating first responder programs and what the possible solutions are for the future.
“There is no cure, our only treatment is prevention,” Hodgkin said. “Prevention is nuclear disarmament and a world without nuclear weapons.”
Hodgkin said he believes when politics fail, there are other ways to promote nuclear disarmament, such as scientific diplomacy.
“When there is not constructive dialogue going on for disarmament efforts between the governments of the U.S. and Russia, we can use doctors and scientists to reach a consensus together and then relay those recommendations to our respective governments,” Hodgkin said.
Freshman Alma Beck said this event sparked motivation in attendees for pursuing activism, and how this topic in particular was more accessible than she previously thought.
“This seems like an issue that a lot of people don’t think about it because it seems like there’s nothing you can do, but this kind of advocacy is easier than you realize,” Beck said.
Beck said this topic in particular sparked a passion in her, stating how the nature of this subject made it so important.
“It’s such a big issue, all other issues wouldn’t matter if there was a nuclear war,” Beck said. “So it does seem kind of like the most important thing.”
