At noon on Hiroshima Day about 15 medical students, doctors, and other community activists met in front of the large silver globes on Rundle Mall in central Adelaide to assemble a large red target. We donned scrubs, stethoscopes, and old surgical gear and distributed pamphlets explaining Target Adelaide to anyone who was interested, emphasising the ongoing health threat posed by nuclear weapons.

We had lots of interesting conversations; several Japanese people stopped by and one thanked us for remembering Hiroshima Day. Other people were not sure what Hiroshima Day meant, nor did they realise Australian uranium is being exported to nuclear weapons states. Most people were very receptive to what we had to say and some wanted to get more involved. Apart from the big red X, the other crowd pleaser was a big image of central Adelaide from Google Earth, with large rings on top indicating zones of destruction in the event of a nuclear strike.

Because Australia has over a third of the world’s uranium stores, we thought it was important to call for the Australian government to be responsible and stop exporting uranium to those who make nuclear weapons, so we had a pile of postcards addressed to Prime Minister John Howard. After having been told of the dangers of nuclear weapons, most people were very happy to have something they could do right on the spot, and were eager to sign a card. This was so successful that we ran out postcards

Target Adelaide was only a success because of the support of Friends of the Earth Australia, who helped with the planning, and sent out an amazing press release. This resulted in a camera crew from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation covering the event. They took footage of a “dead” volunteer on top of the target, and interviewed Ruth Mitchell.

A highlight of the two-hour event was when a group of Aboriginal women came by and lent us their support by signing postcards and encouraging others to sign them. This is particularly important in Australia, where uranium mines and proposed new mines, along with a proposed new nuclear waste dump, are on Aboriginal land.