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Protesters line up at the Y-12 plant.
Washingtonians Arrested at Tennessee Anti-nuke Action
from Ground Zero Center, photos by Sue Ablao
Two Puget Sound nuclear abolitionists were among those arrested during a vigil and nonviolent direct action at the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant in Oak Ridge, Tennessee on July 5, 2010.
Father Bill "Bix" Bischel of the Tacoma Catholic Worker and Sister Jackie Hudson of Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action were among the 35 people arrested at the action.
While 22 people blocked the highway entering the Y-12 plant, holding a banner that read "Independence From Nuclear Terrorism", Bischel and Hudson, along with 11 others climbed through a barbed wire fence to enter the Y-12 site. All were arrested. Those blocking the roadway were charged with "obstruction of highway", while those arrested on the Y-12 site will face federal trespass charges.
Arrestees carried "A Declaration of Independence from Nuclear Weapons at Y-12", which they read prior to their arrests.
It stated in part, "Current Law requires an end to all planning, preparation, production, threat, or use of nuclear weapons and adherence to the fundamental rules and principles of Humanitarian Law.... Whereas... it is our duty to protect children and future generations we call on on this government to use our tax dollars that are now being used to wage permanent war... to pursue a nuclear free world and clean up all chemical and radioactive contamination."
The motto of Oak Ridge, TN, is "Secret City," apparently in homage to major employers there.
Bischel, Hudson and the others facing federal charges attended a detention hearing in federal court on July 6. Both Bischel and Hudson chose to accept a public defender, waived the right to a preliminary hearing, and agreed to return for arraignment in two to three months. Both will also have to report to a probation officer, and will be assigned specific travel restrictions prior to their trials.
The approximately 200 protesters at the Y-12 site were attending the Resistance for a Nuclear-Free Future gathering from July 3-5 at Maryville College to celebrate the 30th anniversary of seminal actions that took place at the General Electric nuclear weapons plant in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. The weekend gathering was intended to increase awareness and action around nuclear issues while working toward a nuclear-free future.
The average age of those arrested on the federal side was approximately 76, while the youngest member was 49. Four members of the original Plowshares Eight—who were arrested in the General Electric protests 30 years ago—participated in the action on the federal side.
Bischel and Hudson are both longtime peace activists and nuclear weapons resisters; Hudson was part of the Sacred Earth and Space Plowshares II in 2002, and Bischel was a member of the Disarm Now Plowshares in 2009.
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