With music, poetry, and a lantern floating ceremony, From Hiroshima to Hope will shine hope and light on Green Lake on Wednesday evening, August 6, the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The annual remembrance event honors the victims of the atomic bombings, and all victims of violence. With 1,000 candle-lit lanterns floating on Green Lake, From Hiroshima to Hope is one of the largest commemorations of the atomic bombings held outside of Japan.
The event begins at 6 pm with lantern preparation, followed at 6:30 pm with performances by Koto no WA and Heron Dancers. The family program gets underway at 7 pm and features the popular Japanese American drumming group, Seattle Kokon Taiko. Sharon Maeda, noted Seattle social justice activist and journalist, will emcee the program. Performers include keynote speaker Stan Shikuma, activist with Tsuru for Solidarity; Seattle Youth Poet Laureate Janae Lu, The Rhapsody Songsters, Cello performance by Seattle-Japan Suzuki Institute, and Patrick Johnson on shakuhachi. The candle-lit lantern ceremony begins at 8 pm, with lanterns floating on the lake at dusk. This year also marks the 83rd anniversary of Executive Order 9066, which led to the incarceration of Japanese Americans on the U.S. West Coast.
The event is created annually by the non-profit organization, From Hiroshima to Hope, and is sponsored by local community organizations, with grant support from The Abe Keller Peace Education Fund. It is held just south of the Bathhouse, on Green Lake’s northwest shore near West Green Lake Drive North and Stone Ave North. All are welcome to this free event.