On August 6th, 1945 at approximately 8:15 am, the atomic bomb ‘little boy’ exploded over the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Koji Kobayashi managed to survive the bomb and years later battle radiation linked illnesses. A former journalist, now active in the peace movement, Koji spoke about his recollections of that day and his enduring belief in world peace.
For additional stories, click on each image in this post.
In commemoration of the 70th Anniversary of the Spanish Civil War, and in memory of Cesar Augusto Cortes, I am presenting this StoryCorps interview. The Spanish Civil War is often called the testing ground for World War II, setting the stage for the twentieth century’s civilian horrors of war. It was also a war where powerful ideaologies-in all their complexity- fought to determine the future of a nation, and maybe even the world. International volunteers flooded in to join the struggle against the facist powers of Italy and Germany that supported Franco’s Nationalists. The war in Spain held a special resonance for journalists and writers like Ernest Hemingway, George Orwell, John Dos Passos, and Langston Hughes.
My father grew up in Spain during the Spanish Civil War, and eventually left the Franco dictatorship to find success as a doctor in the United States. We talked about the war, living under Facism, and how these experiences affected his political beliefs. I remember looking at the title, in Spanish, of one of his books: “Los Ninos de La Guerra, Ya Somos Viejos” (The Children of the War, Already We Are Old). It is the stories of my father, and those of his generation, that we must remember.
Charlene Mitchell ran for president in 1968, nominated by the Communist Party. Born in 1930, she’s a part of the civil rights movement since she was thirteen. I spoke to her for over an hour, the following edited interview is only a glimpse into her remarkable life and views.
Produced for WBAI by Amber Cortes.
image: detail of installation by Bronwyn Lace