By Rosemarie Pace
Coordinator
Pax Christi New York State
From April 27-May 22, the latest Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference took place at the United Nations with most of its supporters in a pessimistic mood. Sadly, the Treaty seems to be crumbling before our eyes at the hands of the nuclear weapons states. (The Pax Christi International delegation was comprised of Mary Yelenick, Anthony Donovan, and Sr. Carol Gilbert.)
Nevertheless, a coalition of peace groups, including Pax Christi New York State, spent months organizing a rally, march, and conference on Sunday, April 26, the eve of the conference, to express our staunch insistence that the Treaty be respected, upheld, and strengthened, not abandoned.
The rally began with an invocation by Japanese-American Buddhist priest Rev. TK Nakagaki. We then heard from Japanese, Korean, and US speakers, among them hibakusha (atomic bomb survivors) who shared personal stories, demanded an official apology from the US government for the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, and passionately appealed for the abolition of nuclear weapons. We also heard a popular song for peace by a Japanese chorus.
The joyous spirit among the entire crowd of a couple hundred people was immeasurable, much of it coming from the Japanese majority among us who came with banners, clothing decorated with peace messages, and, as is their custom, countless gifts of origami peace cranes, pins, and more. The procession from our gathering place at the New York Public Library to the Isaiah Wall across from the UN was filled with music, chanting, and electrifying energy. A particular highlight for me was a mini-reunion with two people from the Pax Christi pilgrimage to Japan in 2024: Michele Peppers of Ribbons International came with tens of ribbons to distribute to anyone who wanted one, and Narumi Tomida, our loving guide in Kyoto, who brought her own ribbons which she gifted to Michele and me.
A conference, “Tectonic Changes: Which Way to Peace and a Nuclear Weapon-Free World?,” organized by the Campaign for Peace, Disarmament and Common Security, was held following the march. Photos, text, and video are available here.
And it didn’t end there. Three days later we gathered outside the US Mission to the UN to repeat our call for complete nuclear disarmament and the abolition of nuclear weapons.
Also, throughout the Review Conference, some attended General Assembly meetings, as well as several side events, including one co-organized by Pax Christi International, Veterans for Peace, and Nuclear Age Peace Foundation: “Genocide, omnicide, and those who profit.” The event explored the links between the global war economy, nuclear weapons production, and ongoing violence, drawing on findings from Francesca Albanese’s 2025 report. It highlighted how many corporations and institutions involved in nuclear weapons are also connected to broader systems of conflict and profit, and examined how these interconnected structures hinder progress under the NPT, limit public accountability, and perpetuate insecurity. It also identified pathways to challenge these dynamics and advance disarmament, justice, and transparency.