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We must ensure that terrorists

never acquire a nuclear weapon.

This is the most immediate

and extreme threat
to global security.

One terrorist with
one nuclear weapon

could unleash
massive destruction.

And we know that
there is unsecured

nuclear material
across the globe.

To protect our people,

we must act with a sense
of purpose without delay.

There's been a security breach
at a U.S. nuclear facility

which is supposed to
be one of the most

secure sights in the world.

They managed to break
into the grounds

surrounding the Y-12 National
Security Complex in Tennessee,

triggering the highest security
alert there since 9/11.

The country's largest stockpile

of uranium for nuclear bombs
in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.

Take a look at this picture.

Authorities say she

an 82-year-old nun who they
say cut through fences,

got past high-tech security.

I am Megan from Nevada.

Sister Megan Rice and two others

did what no one
should be able to do.

In the middle of the
night using bolt cutters,

the three breached
the perimeter fence

and then three more fences
and motion detectors,

reaching the building
holding all that uranium.

You have to be
a little concerned

when it's an octogenarian
nun who helps you

understand your nuclear
weaknesses and security.

The complex
holds enough uranium

to make 10,000 nuclear bombs.

The place that
is supposed to be

one of the most secure
places on the planet is not!

They walked right in.

They walked right
up to the interior

storage facilities
holding the uranium.

They got so far
inside the complex

that they were able to lay hands

on the nuclear materials
storage facility inside there.

And once they were inside,
they prayed, they sang songs.

They were just
waiting for somebody

to notice them in the
shoot-to-kill zone.

They were there for an hour

before anybody came
to arrest them.

We're talking about
what the New York Times

described as the
biggest security breach

in the history of the
nation's atomic complex.

The three are all senior
citizens, upper 50s,

one in his 60s, and Megan
Rice, a nun in her 80s.

They didn't have any
special knowledge,

any special highly
advanced tools to break in.

Luckily, of course,
they had no bad intent.

In fact, here'

I wouldn't have
gone with the blood,

but I'm not a peace
activist, right?

What do you think will happen?

I mean, we're talking
about an 83-year-old nun

who says, "Look, I'm
against nuclear weapons."

This was a way for
her to protest.

What do you think the
punishment should be for her?

Rap on the hand with a ruler!

Come on, old school Catholic.

The trio now
face the possibility

of lengthy sentences
in federal prison.

Sister Megan,
you've not disputed

the fact that you breached
security at Oak Ridge.

We don't consider
it a breach of security.

I spoke
to Sister Megan Rice

a few weeks following
the Y-12 break-in.

She was free awaiting trial

after a judge released
her from jail.

I don't think anyone was
more surprised to hear

about the security breach
at Y-12 than I was.

I'd been working on a film

about nuclear
disarmament activists,

some of them Catholic nuns
and priests who engage

in Plowshares protests
involving hammers and blood.

But I never met
Sister Megan before,

though I would soon learn
there were far fewer

than six degrees of
separation between us.

What does it say?

I mean, I think the fact
that an 82-year-old woman

and two other people basically
unarmed could get into

the most top secret allegedly
high security atomic plant

that stockpiles highly
enriched uranium.

What does it say?

This is the Y-12
National Security Complex.

We are
absolutely essential

to the nation's security.

Y-12 inspects,
refurbishes, dismantles

and non-destructively tests
the nation's nuclear arsenal.

As the nation's Fort Knox
for highly enriched uranium,

Y-12 uses more than
60 years of safety

and security experience to
store special materials,

further reducing
global nuclear threats.

Was it
easier to get on the property

than what you
thought it would be?

Far, we were led miraculously.

But it was difficult.

But not as difficult
as officials had believed.

This is the Highly Enriched
Uranium Materials Facility.

This is a brand new
facility at Y-12

which was created
for the safe, secure

and efficient storage of
highly enriched uranium.

This facility is
unique as it stores

12,000 drums of material
and 12,000 cans of material.

Y-12 houses the nation's

main supply of highly
enriched uranium.

Overall do you
think the Y-12 plant

is safe against terrorists?

Absolutely.

Our people are well trained.

They're well equipped.

The American people can
rest assured that this is

one of the most well protected
facilities in the world.

How secure
is this new facility?

Very secure.

Will it
withstand an airplane crash?

It'll withstand everything that DOE has
determined

to be an appropriate
credible threat.

The three
activists used bolt cutters

to cut through four
chain link fences

to reach the outside walls
of this very building.

Please rise and
raise your right hand.

Do you swear the
testimony that you

are about to give
is the whole truth

and nothing but the
truth so help you God?

This is one of those hearings

that we occasionally
have in Congress

where we say together,

We're shocked.

We're shocked that something
like this could happen.

When an 82-year-old
pacifist nun

gets to the inner sanctum
of our weapons complex,

you cannot say job well done.

She's in the audience.

Would you please
stand up, ma'am?

We want to thank
you for pointing out

some of the problems
in our security.

While I don't totally agree

with your platform that
you were espousing,

I do thank you for bringing out

the inadequacies of
our security system

and thank you for
being here today.

All they were worried
about was the fact

that somebody could
get in so easily.

And that could be anybody.

That's not what we
wanted to be thanked for.

It's for exposing and opposing

the existence of
nuclear weapons.

A stunned
universe now swiftly learned

that man had a new weapon
of shocking destructiveness.

This bomb, exploding over
the north factory district,

took the lives of 42,000
persons and injured 40,000 more.

It destroyed 39% of
all the buildings

standing in Nagasaki
before the calamity.

We had an uncle,
my mother's baby brother,

was in the Marines and sent
into Nagasaki in September 1945

and stayed there for
the next four months.

So he witnessed the effects
of the Nagasaki bomb

Flash burns
from primary heat waves

caused most of the
casualties to inhabitants.

Many persons lingered
from two to six weeks

before the onset of death.

And he would explain to
us the terrible effects

and was totally convinced
of how evil it was.

Blood would not coagulate

and oozed through unbroken skin

or seeped into many of the
interior body cavities.

Before she
became a peace activist,

Sister Megan devoted
her life to education.

She taught science to girls
and trained other teachers

in West Africa, in Nigeria
and Ghana for 40 years.

My conviction has
grown over the decades

of the sacredness of all of
life and all of creation.

In the 70 years since 1943,

10 trillion dollars has been
spent on this industry alone

and we just can't
imagine what could

have been done with
10 trillion dollars.

And there it goes,

Polaris on the way
with a nuclear warhead.

It's got to stop.

We have to use these resources
for life enhancement.

They're sabotaging the planet.

The entire planet
is being sabotaged

by the existence of weapons
of mass destruction.

By the purpose for
which they were made,

each one is meant to be
exploded and to kill.

Mr. Chairman,
that young lady there

brought a Holy Bible.

If she had been a terrorist,

the Lord only knows what
could have happened.

- Thank you, ma'am.
- The gentle lady

can sit down if she likes.

The gentle lady from Tennessee

is recognized for five minutes.

The ineptness and the
negligence is mind-boggling.

We are appalled.

It's inexcusable,
it's appalling.

The language the
committee has used here,

I would agree with.

We had a breakdown
up and down the chain,

including a sense of complacency

that something like
this could not happen.

Were the cameras new or old?

Some of the equipment
was fairly new.

Many of the cameras

or some of the cameras
were not operable.

How long were these cameras,

these critical
cameras, not operable?

Could you tell that?

There were elements of
the security apparatus

that were inoperable
for at least six months

and probably beyond that.

And the
contractors were responsible?

Correct

And we pay
them significant fees

to do this.
We do.

And then the onsite
government employees

who are overseeing
the contractors also have responsibility,

'cause they failed to catch
this, is that correct?

They do.

Camera maintenance was not
prioritized as to be fixed.

Our federal oversight
should have caught that.

What was wrong
with the cameras?

Those two particular
cameras that were out,

one was an inner
workings of the camera.

It took 24 hours to fix that.

The other one was a trip switch

that had to be just flipped on.

So all they had
to do was look at it

and go like that and that
camera would have worked again?

That's what my inspectors

are telling me.
But it was down

for six months.

Underlying it all
is profiteering.

The people who make the money

are the contractors
who do this work.

B&W Y-12 responsible
for delaying

the repair of cameras for months

and failing to do the
required maintenance

that would have reduced the rate

of false alarms received
as a rating of excellent

for its safeguards
and security work,

contributing to B&W Y-12
receiving $51 million

in incentive fee for
fiscal year 2011.

We have to do something.

We can't just
continue pouring money

into the pockets
of the profiteers.

I don't understand
why these individuals

are free to be here in
the hearing room today.

Why are they not incarcerated?

My understanding is
they've been charged

with both criminal trespass,
which is a misdemeanor,

and destruction of federal
property, which is a felony.

What is to prevent them from
doing the very same thing

tomorrow night or
the night after?

As Sister
Megan was facing fire,

what I wanted to know
was how did a nun

who spent half
her life in Africa

find herself in this situation?

I want to thank Sister Rice

and the other people
for coming today.

I apologize you won't
be allowed to testify.

If lawmakers had
invited Sister Megan to testify,

they might have heard about
the incident 2,000 miles away

that actually inspired
her to break into Y-12.

Tell me about your connection
to the people out in Tacoma.

How did that all come about?

And so they, these five
people, I could name them.

Father Bill Bichsel, Sister
Anne Montgomery was then 84,

Father Bichsel was maybe 82.

And then...

We have
to take a stand.

The people have to take a stand

to force governments into
doing what is humanely correct,

to eliminate these things.

They're killing people already

because of the
diversion of resources

going into weapons
of destruction

rather than
healthcare, education,

employment, housing, food.

Things that people need
to live a human life.

Hey, tell me, how are you?

If you spend any time

among Tacoma's poor
or marginalized,

you're more than likely to
run into Father Bill Bichsel.

He's known as Father
Bix or just plain Bix.

He's an 82-year-old
Catholic priest, a Jesuit,

and for more than 40 years,

he's devoted his life to
helping those in need.

We have about
five houses here.

We take in people for
varying lengths of time,

so depending on what
their needs might be.

Those who have been homeless,

to help them to transition
to something better.

We live by what
people give to us.

During the Depression,

nobody had anything or a
window to throw it out of,

as my mother used to say,
but there was a cohesiveness.

I think it's worse now.

I think people are
more separated.

He's helped our
family a long time ago

when we were homeless.

We were in the streets
and he gave us shelter.

By being with the
poor, you receive direction.

It is a kind of
a call to action.

Together we can do something.

We don't have to live
in this deep deprivation

when God's creation is bountiful

and intended for all people.

While Father Bix
may have lots of admirers.

Very good to see you.

Good to see you.

He's also
been a headache

for government authorities

because of his persistent
nonviolent protests

against war funding

and specifically
nuclear weapons funding.

About 40 miles north
of where he lives,

the Kitsap Bangor Naval Base
sprawls over 6,000 acres.

It's the home port for eight

of America's 14 Trident
nuclear submarines.

That pool of eight
ballistic missile submarines

that operates out of Bangor,

that is the most powerful
military force on the planet.

Hans Kristensen
is one of the country's

leading experts on
nuclear weapons.

He says the Bangor Naval Base

also houses the
largest stockpile

of operational nuclear
warheads in the U.S.

Well, we estimate
that there is

about 1,300 nuclear warheads
at the storage facility

and on board the
submarines combined.

It's an estimate.

There are no official numbers.

You can't go to a
government website

or say exactly what's there,
because it's a secret.

And just building 12 submarines

is gonna cost over $100 billion.

The B stands for
ballistic missile,

the N stands for nuclear,
meaning it's nuclear powered,

and the SS is what we
use to denote submarines.

The SSBNs feature the
Trident II D-5 missile system.

It's the most incredible
strategic deterrent

ever fielded in the
history of the world.

It is the most powerful weapon

in the possession of
human beings today.

There is no comparison.

Request permission to
authenticate message one.

The launch is authorized.

Once we're underway,

the submarine in and of
itself would rate probably

about the fifth most powerful
nuclear nation in the world.

One submarine has
enough capability

to end modern countries
as we know them.

I'm horrified.

Is living with these things
that are indiscriminate killers

where we've seen the
proliferation of weapons

continue throughout our globe,

are these things really
bringing security?

More and more nations
are arming themselves

or have the ability
to arm themselves.

So we're much worse off now
than we were 20 years ago

as far as the nuclear exchange.

I think when people talk about

that the world is more
dangerous, it's perhaps that

you can get into a
conventional shootout

that is a limited war
that quickly escalates

into nuclear threats and
potential nuclear use.

Launcher
closure door open.

And so at
some point the public

might just wake up
to a real surprise

that suddenly a crisis
has gotten a lot hotter

and a lot more dangerous
than they expected.

And are all
the nuclear armed states

preparing to modernize
their arsenals?

Every single one
of them is busy

modernizing their
nuclear arsenal.

I'm trying to
be a part of what

would bring about
a peaceful world.

If I would die today,
I would feel okay

about what I've
been trying to do.

He has, on occasion,
chained himself to doors,

he's climbed trees,
he's cut fences,

knowing full well that
there are some consequences

and always willing
to pay that price.

I've asked him, "Is this
the best use of your time?"

His response was, "Yes, it
is the best use of my time

"and there's plenty of people
in jail who need ministering."

Since the late 1970s,

Father Bix, along with thousands
of other peace activists,

have waged a campaign to
raise public awareness

on the catastrophic capabilities

of the nuclear weapons system
aboard the Trident submarine.

The nerve center
for the activists' campaign

is the Ground Zero Center
For Nonviolent Action,

known as Ground Zero.

Its backyard borders the
naval base's property,

with a chain link fence
separating the two.

What's right here is
the largest concentration,

so far as we know, of
deployed nuclear weapons

anywhere outside of Russia and
maybe anywhere in the world.

Anyone who
walks in the door

receives an education from
Dr. David Hall about the base

and the nuclear weapons stored,
literally, in the backyard.

Hall is a medical doctor
and longtime activist.

He's also the former
national president

of Physicians for
Social Responsibility.

There is no cure for the use

of a nuclear weapon,
only prevention.

That's why we here in
the state of Washington

have particular
responsibility to stand

and try to make these
weapons visible,

try to help the folks on
the base keep them safe.

This is the nuclear
weapon bunkers,

right down here at the bottom.

And that shows you how close
this is to downtown Seattle.

It's about 20 air miles
to downtown Seattle.

The Pier, here's
the Delta Pier here,

which is where the subs
actually are processed.

The warships here
are Trident class

and there's eight of them.

One of these weapons wipes
out everything I stand for

and everything I
do instantaneously.

To ignore what I know
about these weapons is to

betray my profession.

The peanut bomb that
we dropped on Hiroshima

killed 100,000 people outright

and flattened everything that
wasn't steel and concrete.

One W88 nuclear warhead
carried by the Trident subs

is 30 times the
Hiroshima weapon.

These are survivor paintings

of what it was
like in Hiroshima.

So this is the NUKEMAP.

As you can see, it uses

the Google Earth engine
to render the world.

Alex Wellerstein is
a nuclear weapons historian.

He created the
interactive NUKEMAP.

What we're gonna do first is

target our bomb
here on New York.

This is the Hiroshima bomb

and now this is
the Trident bomb.

That's a 455-kiloton
weapon on midtown Manhattan

with about 1.6
million fatalities,

about 2.4 million injuries.

What it's done is taken

a population density
map of the region

and then applied various
calculations to it

based on the effects
of the nuclear weapons.

These calculations are derived

from official government
reports during the Cold War.

And that's only
from one detonation.

If we imagine nuclear war,

we're talking about
many more than just one.

My major motivation
for the NUKEMAP

was to help people wrap
their heads around the bomb.

The bomb can seem so abstract.

The idea of the bomb
can overwhelm people.

They have a very hard time
thinking about it concretely.

Anything that helps
people understand

that these are physical
objects in the world,

that they can detonate and
these can have real effects.

The commander of the submarine

that shoots that
weapon is responsible

for observing and complying
with the law of armed conflict.

Tom Rogers retired

after serving 31 years
in the U.S. Navy.

He used to command submarines
that carried nuclear weapons.

Now he's an activist
at Ground Zero.

The law of armed conflict
requires belligerents

to observe the rules and
principles of humanitarian law.

First of all, you
must discriminate

between combatants
and noncombatants,

and you can't cause
undue suffering

and you can't destroy the earth

and you can't commit genocide.

And when I relate that to a
455-kiloton nuclear warhead,

you can't get there from here.

It's by definition
such destructive power

that there's no discrimination.

Everything within
miles is vaporized.

And for that reason
I strongly feel

that use of a nuclear
weapon is unlawful.

A nuclear exchange
would result in the death

of tens of millions of people,

both American and whoever else
we're fighting with today.

It would devastate the earth

and it would end
civilization as we know it.

I don't trust us to have that
capability and not use it.

The citation's
inside there.

So they gave you a court date?

Not
yet, but they will.

Yeah, they will
give you a court date.

Is that
the way it usually works?

Yeah.

Whoa, okay.

The normal means
of influencing

public policy have
fallen on deaf ears.

You can write all
the emails you want.

You can vote for the people
you want to vote for,

but the corporate
Congressional complex

is calling the shots.

The only way that the folks
at Ground Zero have found

to bring attention to
what's going on is to engage

in nonviolent direct action
at the base at Bangor,

because that's where we live
and that's where the bombs are.

One up the fence line.

One up the fence line
went through the gate!

Three times a year,

on the anniversary of the
Hiroshima bombing, Mother's Day,

and Dr. Martin Luther
King, Junior's birthday,

the activists walk
a few hundred yards

from Ground Zero to the
naval base's front gate,

where they stage their protests.

Some will block traffic and
face arrest by county police.

Others will trespass onto
the naval base property

by crossing this blue line

and face more serious
federal charges.

This is the
fence that keeps us

out of the Bangor
submarine base,

where just probably 100
yards or 150 yards beyond

is where the nuclear
weapons are stored.

We're hanging this
as a sign that peace

is much stronger than
weapons of death.

This is a map of the base,
the Bangor submarine base.

This is from Google.

How did
you use this map?

We didn't carry
the map in with us,

but we had a pretty good idea

once we had studied it
where the roads were.

How did
you get involved?

Holy socks.

I'm not totally sure, but
here is what happened to me.

I had not been involved in
a Plowshares action as such.

So there was this
group with Steve Kelly

and Anne Montgomery and Susan
Crane and Lynne Greenwald.

We met for over a
year at various times

and then spent three
or four days together

reflecting on what is our call.

Lynne Greenwald
is a mother and grandmother

who raised her three
children near the naval base.

Hi, thanks for coming.

Is this a grandchild?

- Yeah, Jack.
- Cute.

Lynn is a
former social worker

and hospital
emergency room nurse.

Her consciousness
on nuclear weapons

was raised back
in the late 1970s,

after she met atomic bomb
survivors known as hibakusha.

This is a book that
really got me on the road.

I went to New York,
to one of the first

sessions on disarmament
at the United Nations,

and there were hibakusha there
and they gave me this book.

And...

And that was the first
time I was arrested,

at the United Nations.

And just pictures of images

of what happened when
the bomb dropped.

It just shocked me,

because I never learned
about this in school

and I had a college
degree by then

and I never knew about it.

And

it just
changed my life.

It's more of a compelling
feeling that by not doing it,

I'm not following my conscience,

I'm not doing the right thing,

and it's a very personal choice.

It's just something
I feel I have to do.

I can't not protest
nuclear weapons.

Give thanks for the abundance

of what we are about to receive,

which is food for our bodies

and all the love and
dedication for the rest of us.

Sister Anne
Montgomery is an 84-year-old

Catholic nun from the
Society of the Sacred Heart.

She's the daughter of
a U.S. Navy admiral.

She took part in the
first Plowshares action.

What is Plowshares?

Plowshares is a movement.

It's not an organization.

You don't belong.

It's a movement
that began in 1980.

In 1980, the
Plowshares Eight that included

the Catholic priests Fathers
Dan and Phil Berrigan

trespassed onto a
nuclear weapons plant

in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania.

During that time,

we said we have to bring
in some kind of a statement

of what we're doing
and why we're doing it.

They found
it in the Old Testament

and in the words of
the prophet Isaiah.

He says, they shall beat
their swords into plowshares

and at that point the nations
will come together in peace.

A movie was
made about the case.

The activists played themselves

and Martin Sheen
played the judge.

And would
you describe it

for the members of the jury?

I saw these people, bunch
of people with hammers

beating on the metal there.

We had blood, we had hammers.

We thought, this is
a sign of changing

something evil into
something good.

The defendants maintain
because of their belief,

their actions were justified.

The defense of justification
is not proper in this case.

It started a
movement that's gone

to different parts of the world,

over a hundred and
something Plowshares,

so that people themselves

saw this as a way of
exposing what was going on

and doing it in a
spirit of nonviolence.

Non-violence has to be active.

You can't just sit
and talk to people.

When you plan this, the
most important thing

is to get a community together

that's willing to take a risk
and to challenge each other.

How do you
challenge each other?

Could you explain that to
me, what that involves?

Well, say Bix and his health.

I didn't want him to act.

I was really worried and I
was afraid, you know, heart.

What if that had
happened on the base?

What are we gonna do?

How do we get help?

I've had two open heart
surgeries, knee replacement,

pacemaker and things like that,

but other than that, I'm
doing okay, you know?

It's just a matter that
I do get out of breath,

especially if
you're going uphill.

It pulls more out of me now.

We left it up to him
to make his own decision

and his provincial
was wonderful.

So he came and
started talking to me,

'cause it's what we
call a discernment,

where we go back and forth
for a while, he prays, I pray,

we look at what he's asking
to do, to get permission,

because we have the
vow of obedience

and so he would have
to have my sending

in order to do anything.

He asked at
that time if he could go

to do civil disobedience
up at Bangor.

I mean, it is
kind of mind-boggling

that you go to your superior,
your boss, so to speak,

and you say, can I, effectively
can I go and break the law?

You're saying, I mean,

did you think about
that aspect of it?

Yes.

I certainly looked at that.

And in my own head, I
knew that that would mean

I would be eventually
having to send him to jail.

And we talked about that then
and we talked about it again.

Is he ready to go and die
in a federal penitentiary

if that's what happens to him?

Bix has been really our prophet,

an amazing prophet of
justice for many years.

And so in my own
prayer, I came to say,

we need someone to stand up.

We need witnesses for
what God wants done.

It's a
calling to Americans

and to any persons of goodwill

around ending the role of
nuclear weapons on this earth.

For years, we've wanted to
get into this Trident base.

And the news we got,

oh, it's impossible,
security's so tight.

The only thing stopping
us was that we thought

was how hard it was to get in.

Up to the last minute, I
didn't think we'd make it.

Everyone said,
there's cameras,

there's guard dogs,
there's car patrols,

who knows what sort of
surveillance they have?

Susan Crane has taken part

in a number of
Plowshares actions

and spent more than five
years in prison for them.

She's a retired
California school teacher,

a mother and grandmother.

Father Bix had to consult
with his provincial

and so did Sister Anne.

So did you do that with anybody?

Well, we have conspiracy
laws in this country

and if other people know
you're going to do something

and don't say
something about it,

they could be charged
with conspiracy.

God, you are the God of our
life, our breath that we take.

Father Stephen
Kelly is a Jesuit

who served the Catholic
Church as a parish priest

in California and in
Africa and Central America.

He was incarcerated
for more than six years

for his Plowshares protests.

Half the time he was in
solitary confinement.

What is the purpose of
doing something like this?

Why take this action?

We were convinced that
we were saving lives.

I think anyone who, if
they were really convinced

that their next
actions were gonna

be saving the life
of a loved one,

they wouldn't hesitate to do it.

I'm not saying that I'm gonna
change the Pentagon overnight,

all that money that's
made by weaponeers,

but I know there's a
sleeping giant out there,

there's a moral sleeping giant,

when woken, will
take all of this on.

We cannot be fully human while
one nuclear weapon exists,

so our humanity is at stake.

We pray especially for
those who have stood guard

over this area
right here and now,

and that they can understand
we mean only harm to the nukes.

So we entered the base at
two o'clock in the morning

by cutting through
the perimeter fence.

We had bolt cutters with us

and so we cut it in
the shape of a teepee.

And nothing happened.

There was no alarm,
there were no cameras

that started clicking
that we could hear.

I was the first one through.

I was supposed to be leading
people across the road

and I put my shoe right
in a puddle of water.

We walked through the fence
and into some deep water,

so we started out with wet feet.

We thought we were gonna have

to go through brush all the way.

We didn't think we'd be able
to be on any roads at all.

So we found this road,
it was a utility road,

and we walked for several hours.

And Bill Bichsel, God bless
him, he's got a bad valve

and he was taking nitroglycerin

and we were resting frequently.

They had to go very slow,

because I had to take
nitroglycerin along the way

because of a heart condition.

Steve Kelly said we
were going so slow

that we were invisible.

Steve and I were
a little ahead

and suddenly we
saw a car coming.

So Bix and I
jumped in the bushes.

And I looked over my shoulder

and I saw these bodies flying
in the air into the bushes.

And oh my God,
something's wrong.

Steve and I had to keep walking.

There was nothing
else we could do.

We're carrying cloth
bag with some clippers,

wire cutters in them and
maybe a couple of hammers.

Elderly, but I guess we
could resemble workers.

And the car passed
and didn't stop

and so we kept on going,

but we thought,
perhaps we'd really

better get off the main road.

How long
were you on the base?

Four hours.

We were walking around on
the base for four hours.

We headed
up with this road

and then eventually made over
this road going eastward.

This is SWFPAC here,
the Strategic Weapons Facility Pacific.

We saw kind of a
light way up ahead,

but that was it, just
a indistinct light.

Thought, well, what's up there?

So the closer we came, we says,

we are actually at the bunkers.

It happened.

We got to the bunkers.

All the heavy nuclear
weapons that are used

on the Trident submarine
are stored here.

It looked like a huge prison
yard with fences around it

and guard towers and so forth,

and I'd been in prisons before

and I said, "Wow, you
can't get into that thing."

Two strands of barbed wire

with heavy-duty topping
concertina wire on the top,

guard towers, several of them
and just what seemed like

at least a mile and a half
of indications of bunkers.

It was a shoot-to-kill
zone around the bunkers.

We thought, well,
we have to take

our next steps and
go to the fence.

Is it electrified?

And so we walked up

and I think it was
Susan touched the fence.

I had said that I would do it.

But it wasn't electrified
and it was a double fence

and took a little longer to cut,

but we all got through that too.

I honestly had thought
there would be dogs,

helicopters, there
would be something,

but we got to the first fence
and I said, "I'll be darned."

I thought, well, now

we must be setting
off alarms someplace.

They're due to
arrive any moment.

We'd planned what each of us

was going to do if we got there.

And some would pour blood
and hammer right away.

The vision is
one of conversion,

going from a wartime economy
to peacetime production.

They shall beat their
swords into plowshares.

Just like in the old days,

they took swords and took
them to the blacksmith

and the blacksmith pounded
on them to make a plow.

We're not out to
destroy the weapons,

but to take all of those
resources and reshape them,

reconvert them into
something useful

We had some blood that we
had brought, our own blood.

We weren't gonna hammer

on the nuclear
weapons or anything,

but we did hammer on the
fences and things like that

as a sign of our opposition to
these weapons of destruction

and pour our own blood as a sign

of there's enough blood
has been spilled already.

And where did
you place the blood?

In baby bottles.

We poured them on the
fences themselves,

something at least, some
structure that was visible.

The blood is sort of scary.

People don't understand that.

And that's saying many things.

It's saying people who
are pushing buttons now,

whether they're on
a Trident submarine

or sitting in a desert
someplace with the drones,

do not see what happens to
human bodies on the other end.

What
happened after that?

Lynne and I were
assigned to go first

and take a banner in to
show we were nonviolent.

Lynne and I walked slowly,

let the others do what
they were doing behind us.

I was afraid even to
turn around and look.

And then a van came
with three marines in it

and one got out.

He said, "Stop," so we stopped
and we knelt down right away

and we held up the banner
and gave the peace sign.

I was standing
next to Father Bix

and he picked up a water bottle

and did an exorcism at the time.

I thought if we
were gonna be shot,

it would have been when
he did that, but...

Then they kind of
forcefully turn you around

and then they get your
hand behind your back.

They cuff you.

We didn't look
like ninjas or commandos,

just ordinary people.

At the time we were
laying on the ground,

we were all pretty quiet.

I just had this moment of
elation that we made it.

You know, in my mind still
are the images from Hiroshima

and the skin
falling off children

and the terrible devastation.

And I felt, well, at
least I'm doing what I can

so that that doesn't
happen again.

I tried to stay
focused on some kind

of prayerful presence
there and at that moment,

a bag was put over my head.

They hooded us,
which was a surprise.

Here is one of us.

It's actually Steve Kelly
on the ground with a hood.

And here's his jacket.

And here are the Marines
with their guns on him.

This is Father Bix here

and this part here is the hood.

It's hard to see, but
we know this is him

because he has his
Hiroshima T-shirt on.

We were interrogated by FBI

and Navy Criminal NCIS officials

and we were questioned

or tried to be questioned
for three hours.

To see if our
stories corroborated,

but we didn't answer any
of their direct questions

like I'm answering now

about what we were
about and all that.

We gave our names and
not even addresses.

What were you
expecting at that point?

Well, I was expecting to
maybe be taken to Guantanamo,

I don't know.

No, I wasn't expecting that.

But I was expecting to be held.

We were in shock

that halfway through
the interrogation,

they told us, "We're going
to cite you and release you."

I really expected
to go right to jail,

but I was also happy,

'cause jail's
not my favorite place.

It was amazing.

I mean, we were so
shocked that we were out.

Anti-war protesters
made quite an entrance

at Naval Base Kitsap this week.

They cut through fences,
breached security

and wandered around
for four hours

before naval police caught them.

They made it all the way

to the nuclear weapons bunkers

before being stopped at
gunpoint by base police.

For years,
the Bangor base has been

a flashpoint for protesters,

but never before had
anyone cut through fences

to reach an area where
nuclear warheads are stored.

Two priests, a
nun and two fellow activists

all ranging in
age from 61 to 84.

The Navy told
me sensors in that fence

gave away their position,

but won't say anything
more about their claims

of being on base for four hours.

The U.S. Navy
issued a press release

published in the Kitsap Sun.

Of course, it wasn't a threat

because these were not
people that were armed

and going in to blow things up.

So there wasn't a direct
threat at that point.

You know, from this
particular garage right here,

you can see a truck with
a ballistic missile body

coming out from the bunker.

I mean, fortunately
in this case,

they're peaceful demonstrators,

but the nasty surprise would
be if a day comes in the future

where there's
well-organized terrorists

that try to make
their way in there.

I mean, they don't have
to necessarily get into

the weapons and nuclear warheads
storage sites themselves.

These are the 21
bunkers over here.

That's where you
store the warheads.

They could aim at getting in

and trying to blow up
some of those missiles.

These are the
garages, so to speak,

for the ballistic missiles.

Those are huge canisters
full of very volatile fuel.

My big alarm bell is
whenever an official

reassures me that
something is safe.

You know, you can't
reassure that.

You can try, but it's
never entirely safe.

In a way, these people
should get a medal

for waking up the
security people

so that they see where
things don't work.

We didn't do it to bring
to light the insecurity

that's there or the lack of
security guarding these things,

although that was a truth.

We did it in order
to bring to light

the illegality and
immorality of these weapons.

You see people commenting

within the newspapers,

why didn't you try
the democratic means,

going to Washington and/or
lobbying, things like that?

We've done all
of those things.

We've lobbied, we vigiled,

we've visited our Congress
people in their offices.

We've had vigils and marches.

This is going on for about
40 years, but to no avail.

I would like to
add that we are not

against the young men and
women in the military.

They are part of the victims.

I'm a child of a naval officer,

so I loved the Navy growing
up and then I see it

turning into this sort
of technological force

that speaks a
different language.

It's all so compartmentalized
that the soldiers and sailors

don't really connect
with what they're doing

any more than our citizens do

when the weapons are
hidden from them.

Shortly after the break-in,

the U.S. Attorney's
office announced

it was investigating
charges against the five.

Then nine months later,
the indictments came down.

The five were charged
with a host of crimes,

including conspiracy, trespass

and destruction of
government property.

Each was now facing up
to 10 years in prison.

And the trial
itself is open to the public.

- Is that correct?
- Yes,

the trial will be
open to the public.

We like to think that
it's not just us on trial,

that this is a trial
about nuclear weapons.

We'd like to invite any
who might be listening.

It's on the 28th.

It's gonna be at the
Tacoma Federal Courthouse,

which is at 1717 Pacific
Avenue in Tacoma.

Sister Megan Rice told me

that call to action
would send her to Tacoma.

Tell me about your reaction.

Did you come up for their trial?

Yes, we did.

So I heard that the five of
them had done this action.

I did know Father Bill Bichsel.

I had visited him in prison.

We have sisters in Portland

and so I able to visit
him in prison there,

so I knew him well.

Anne Montgomery had done five
or six Plowshares actions

and had spent a lot
of time in prison.

The trial is underway
for five war protesters.

There's a crime at Bangor

with the storage of all
those nuclear weapons.

The future of all
children depends

on people speaking up
against atrocities.

Former U.S. Attorney
General Ramsey Clark flew in

from the east coast to
appear before the court.

Why did you go to
Tacoma to testify?

Well, I've been working
with them for a long time.

The main thing, the
steadfastness of those saintly people

and the pain they've suffered.

And it is our challenge still
remaining to love the people

that are accusing
us and judging us,

and with your help and
support, we're able to do that.

God bless you.

Amen.

Amen.

They've laid their lives
on the line time after time,

trying to make our
people understand

that these nuclear weapons
are a form of madness,

that they threaten
life on the planet.

And right here in
this gentle city,

Tacoma, with all these
beautiful people,

there's a mass of destructive
power beyond imagination.

One of those
submarines could hit

110 or more centers of
population and exterminate them.

Attention must be paid
and it's not being paid.

So God bless the Plowshares
and make all of us Plowshares

and then we shall
overcome, not before.

Amen.

Amen.

Thank you, Ramsey.

During a pre-trial
hearing, Clark was asked

if he thought the defendants'
actions were justified.

Clark told the
court the nuclear missiles

aboard the Trident submarines
violate international law.

Blake Kremer
was on the defense team.

What happened?

Well, there was
a pre-trial hearing

several weeks prior to trial.

Ramsey Clark testified
regarding international law

and the judge ruled that the
international law defense

and the necessity defenses
would not be allowed

to be presented to the jury.

Before the trial started,

Judge Benjamin Settle
ruled the defendants

had not shown that
international law

or the so-called
Nuremberg defense

applied to the
charges against them.

He said the defendants
claimed they were acting

out of necessity to
point out the dangers

and criminality of
keeping nuclear weapons.

But the judge called
the case a political one

and citing precedent, said
other courts had struck down

the use of the necessity
defense in similar cases.

The problem is that
federal courts presume

that nuclear weapons are legal.

They say, well, if Congress
funds them, then they're legal

and if you don't
think they're legal

then you have to go
do something else

like petition your Congressman
or write letters or whatever.

But you can't go in and say
you're stopping a crime,

because there's
no crime going on.

What we're saying is
that you cannot produce

and deploy and prepare for use

or threat of use of
nuclear weapons legally

because these
weapons are grotesque

weapons of mass destruction.

They cannot be controlled
in space and time.

They're indiscriminate
and therefore,

they violate every
basic law of war.

We bless you, as a family,
as a community and as one.

Amen.

Amen.

Look at that sun
on the bridge up there.

During the four-day trial,

Lori McPhee sat on the jury.

To see that they
were all elderly people

was kind of amazing.

To have them be of religion,

that made it even more shocking.

They broke the law.

They had their reasons, but
it was still breaking the law.

The prosecutors
want to keep the focus

on whether these folks
cut a fence or not

and they're saying,
"Yes, we cut the fence,

"but let me tell you why,"

and open all that up.

And the prosecutors just
wanted to keep it on the fence

so it was just about

the damage to government
property that way.

So in that sense, they
didn't get a fair trial.

Bill Quigley
was on the defense team,

which functioned in
an advisory capacity,

because the defendants
represented themselves.

He's a law professor
at Loyola University.

Now did the judge do
anything illegal or unjust?

Most federal judges
would have done

the same thing this judge did

because the law
is really stacked

to keep these kinds
of things quiet

and to make sure that
people don't get a chance

to explain all these
things to a jury

because they're so powerful.

Why do we have these weapons?

What good do they do
the world to have them?

What's the impact that
they've had already?

What's the financial consequences?

What are the medical consequences?

I don't think that the
defendants in this case

have any objection to
laws that prevent you

from cutting through a fence
at a military installation.

That's not the issue.

Professor Michael Honey

is a civil rights historian

and expert on the life of
Martin Luther King, Junior

and nonviolent
civil disobedience.

He testified as
an expert witness.

Throughout our history,

people have done
this kind of thing.

King said, in some cases
we're opposing laws

that are themselves unjust,

which would be the
segregation laws.

He said, but there's
another body of laws,

like if a policeman
tells you to move

or not sit down in the street.

He said, we're not
objecting to those laws,

we're objecting to
the larger moral issue

and through our demonstration,

that's the only
way we can do it.

We haven't found any other
ways to redress these issues

except for protest and that
seems to be the case here,

that nothing else
seems to be working.

In fact, it's getting worse.

They're now talking
about modernizing

the nuclear weapons system

and spending billions
more dollars.

They're trying to find a
way to raise the issue.

Why did the U.S. go
after Saddam Hussein?

He wasn't using weapons
of mass destruction.

They said that he had
them and he might use them

and that this was illegal
and unacceptable and immoral,

and what's the U.S. doing,

but the very same thing
with nuclear weapons?

Michael Baur sat on the jury

and for him the case
presented a dilemma.

You know, it is not every day

you are asked to sit
judgment on people

who I think are probably are,

it's a tough one, but maybe
morally superior in a way,

because they've living
their lives for God

and the service of man.

So for me, to put
someone like that away

or put 'em in jail possibly

was a little bit
hard for me to do.

What was it that you
were really wrestling with?

Well, just the fact that

it was really hard for
'em to defend themselves.

They were guilty and I knew it,

but in my mind if I decide, if
I go with what the law says,

which a good citizen will do,
then it should be no big deal,

but at the same
time, like I said,

these are some of the good ones

and I'm gonna possibly
put them away for a while.

And this is what I feel like
we need more in society,

is some more of them.

The people who
were the real victims

are those marines and sailors

who were on that reaction force.

I've been on a reaction
force and you are pumped up

and you are ready and when
you go charging in there,

it speaks very well
of the training

of the marines and the sailors,

that they didn't shoot
some of those people.

They have the
order to shoot to kill.

You put them in a tough spot.

How do you react to that?

Well, how I react to that,

first of all, we
thought about that too.

We don't want to put anyone

in that position of
having to kill us.

We prayed that that not happen.

We went in with all the
precautions that we could,

with our peace symbols,
with our banners.

However, evidence at trial

revealed Father Bix and
several of the other defendants

also carried living wills
with them into the base.

Father Bichsel

"I went in there
with my medicines."

You know, had a bag
full of medicines.

He needs medicines to survive.

It wasn't a suicide mission.

They did risk being shot
and as he pointed out,

they've done a hundred of
these Plowshares actions

and no one has ever been hurt,

none of the
Plowshares activists,

none of the military
people involved.

And I think the defendants
answered that themselves

by saying, people are
taking risks for war

all day, every day,
all over the world.

And when you take
risks for peace,

you have to take a
few risks as well.

Today a
federal jury convicted

five anti-war protesters.

They were found guilty of
conspiracy, trespassing

and destruction of
government property.

Each person faces up
to 10 years in prison.

These people committed
a serious offense.

They trespassed onto Bangor,
they got into an area

that was a lethal
force authorized area.

If something had gone wrong,

both they and the guards
guarding that area

would have felt tremendous
consequences from that.

The judge described

the defendants as extraordinary

because of the sacrificial
lives they've led,

but he called their
action a form of anarchy,

which would lead to
the complete breakdown

of the social order
if left unchecked.

He sentenced Father
Steve and Susan Crane

each to 15 months in prison,

Lynne Greenwald six months,

Father Bix three months

and Sister Anne
Montgomery two months.

What are your
thoughts about the outcome?

We're pleased that
the court recognized

the seriousness of the offense.

He found, the judge found
that if everyone behaved

in this manner, society
could not function.

Did it trouble you

that you had to send a
nun to prison though?

Those choices were made by
the individuals who made them.

That's not what
we are looking at.

We are looking at what was the
crime that was committed here

and it was a serious offense.

The judge ordered
Father Stephen Kelly

into custody right away,

saying that he was too much
of a risk to re-offend.

Well, the other four say
that they couldn't guarantee

that they wouldn't go out
and re-offend right away too,

so the judge says,
okay, everybody goes

into this federal
detention center right now.

If you want to come
in, it would be good.

I know that the defendants
were ready for today.

And the judge said,
true words, right?

Jail is no deterrent to
the spirit of the people

who were in the courtroom today.

Is that right?

That's right.

We must act again, was my
feeling when we ended that trial

and they stood up
and were handcuffed

and taken out to go to prison

and the jury had failed to
see the truth, in my view.

Another action had to
take place soon to show

that just going to prison is
not enough to deter people

from speaking the
truth about this.

I felt that I
needed time to think

about how we could act again.

I was able to be there for
Anne's release after two months.

It sends signals all the time.

That's a GPS monitoring system,

so they know exactly
where I am now.

They use this for people
they feel can, I guess,

not commit murder while
they're out of prison.

I had Bix's car, actually,

and I was able to drive
her to mass once a week.

She had permission
to go to church

and so we would
have time together.

I was fired up and
energized to do

whatever I could to
support the movement

to end the nuclear
industrial complex.

I'm coming to ask
for a future action

Yes!

Expose this horrendous
plan to modernize

and to expand and to
proliferate nuclear weapons.

It almost seems to me

that the baton had
been passed on to you.

Oh absolutely, absolutely,

especially when she was
84 and I was only 82

and I had nothing
to complain of.

I mean, I had no reason to
say I can't do this, really.

There's been a security breach
at a U.S. nuclear facility

which is supposed to
be one of the most

secure sites in the world.

Take a look at this picture.

Authorities say she is the
an 82-year-old nun.

I telephoned to her
and she was very pleased,

cheered up by the fact that
another action did evolve.

Our Sister Anne
has gone to her rest

in the peace of Christ.

May the Lord now
welcome her to paradise.

Holy is this earth that
beholds in gentle embrace

those buried here and receives
our Sister Anne this day.

We love you, Anne.

Thank you for loving us.

For following her conscience

with integrity and perseverance.

We remember her.

For her belief
in the necessity

and strength of community.

We remember her.

For her insights

into the interconnectedness
of all things.

We remember her.

We know different,

for somehow with this
extradition you're a violation of.

All of us were in our
20s, it was pretty scary,

but Anne was a very
centering presence to us.

There were eight of us in
the Pershing Plowshares,

Anne Montgomery sort of being
the maternal presence there

because she was 58 and
just this very calm,

determined, strong woman.

Jury selection
has been difficult,

at least it's going very slowly.

Well, we went to trial, got
convicted in federal court,

but a couple of years
after we did our action,

we had the superpowers negotiating

away the Pershing missiles

and signing a treaty that talked

about crushing them, cutting
them, shredding them.

Gorbachev got a
Nobel Prize for that

and I thought the prize
shoulda gone to Anne Montgomery

for leading us through a really
profound disarmament action.

And the world lost an
extraordinary peacemaker.

The gentleman
from Massachusetts,

Mr. Markey, is recognized
for five minutes.

Thank you, Sister Megan
Rice, for being here.

Thank you for your actions.

Thank you for your
willingness to focus attention

on this nuclear weapons buildup

that still exists in our world

and how much we need to
do something to reduce it.

We don't need more
nuclear weapons,

we need fewer nuclear weapons.

What you have done is you
have shown the laxness

of the security at our
nuclear weapons facilities,

but you've also pointed
out that we still have

an out-of-control
nuclear arms race

with an out-of-control budget,

and for that you
should be praised.

Three nuclear weapons protesters

who pulled off an
unprecedented break-in at Y-12

now face more charges
and tougher penalties.

63-year-old Michael Walli,
57-year-old Greg Boertje-Obed

and 82-year-old nun Megan Rice.

Now the trio are charged

with one count of sabotage

and one count of damage of
property in excess of $1,000.

Now if convicted,

the three could each face
up to 30 years in prison.

Nations will not lift

swords against nations.

Hi!

As the
three awaited trial,

they met with graduate
students and faculty

at the University of Tennessee.

I went into the military

and they trained us to
use nuclear weapons.

And they taught us
about radiation, how radiation can kill,

gamma radiation in particular.

My conscience said no.

Nuclear weapons are
gonna kill many people,

not just the soldiers.

Greg joined ROTC to pay

his college tuition at Tulane.

He is a husband and father.

Michael grew up on a
farm in northern Michigan

and enlisted in the
army at the age of 18.

He served two tours
of duty in Vietnam.

The two have acted before
in Plowshares protests

and spent a combined
eight years in prison.

So what do you think's
gonna happen to you?

They offered us
a plea bargain.

We said, "No, we feel
we're not guilty."

"We believe we were
following international law."

They said, "Plead guilty to this

"or we're gonna
add more charges."

We still stayed
with our not guilty.

They said, "Okay, we're
gonna add sabotage."

Which is a 20-year charge.

And could you go
through the litany of things

that the government is motioning

to preclude you from presenting?

Michael, do you wanna try it?

God is irrelevant, we
can't talk about that.

Our legal right to practice
religion is irrelevant.

The U.S. Constitution
is irrelevant.

International law,
which connects up

with the Constitutional
law, that's irrelevant.

The common good is irrelevant.

Human rights are irrelevant.

Intention.

Our intentions, why we did
what we did, that's irrelevant.

I'm here
at the courthouse

in downtown Knoxville, where
this trial's been going on

since about nine
o'clock this morning.

I know that they meant well,

but they really hurt a lot
of people, individual lives,

and I'm an economics teacher,
so I think of it that way,

of whose lives did
they really impact?

And the people that
lost their jobs

that were guarding the facility

and the managers
and things like that

were very hurt by their actions.

It should be within
our scope to be able

to transform Y-12
into a place of peace

rather than a place
that generates

weapons of mass destruction.

Transform now!

Transform now!

The prosecutor's
gonna put on their case.

It might prove that a few
things have been broken,

but we can't believe that
they're gonna show any sabotage.

It's really been a battle

between the prosecution
and the defense

as to whether the trio presented
any actual threat to Y-12.

One of the first witnesses
called to the stand

was Steve Erhart, the highest
ranking officer at Y-12.

Early on, the prosecution
asked what harm had been done.

Erhart responded it
delayed a secret convoy

that was supposed to bring
in a shipment that night

and it also hurt the
U.S.'s credibility

with other countries when
it came to nuclear weapons.

To make God's dream for
the human family a reality.

I think this trial
points to a major problem

in the U.S. justice
motions in limine

which don't allow the defense

to actually present
their defense.

Should be condemned
by judges and lawyers

on both sides of the aisle,

as it really
undermines the truth

of justice process
in this country.

As the prosecution
walked out the gates,

supporters of the
activists circled

in front of the courthouse.

Transform now,
transform now, transform now.

A saying that we
have in the movement

is you can jail the resisters,

but you can't jail
the resistance.

The spirit has been
released here on it.

Y-12 will never be
the same anymore.

They were convicted.

They were convicted of sabotage

and of depredation of
government property.

Guilty as charged,

the three Y-12 protesters now
wait to hear their sentence.

What would be
fair in this case?

A sentencing
that's appropriate.

We don't really think
that she belongs,

as a nonviolent
offender, in jail.

Their sentencing
came down late this afternoon.

The two men, they were sentenced

to just over five
years in prison.

Sister Megan Rice, 84 years old,

was sentenced to one month
shy of three years in prison.

He did not think the
ends justified the means,

so you can't go breaking
into a federal facility

because you believe
you're protecting

the future of the planet.

Any of
the attorneys, are you?

Yeah, I can speak,
I just found out.

I've had to keep my
mouth shut up to now

because of the local rule.

My name is Chris Irwin.

My family has been in
this town for, I believe,

five generations, according
to my uncle Buford.

I've always lived in
the shadow of the heart

of the American nuclear
weapons production complex,

where they make
mobile death camps.

In World War II, they brought
the people to the death camps.

In some obscenity,
we've now figured out

how to bring the death
camps to the people.

I've been proud every minute
I've been in the crowd

with these people and
everyone who is here.

Once again, in this
sort of criminal case,

the court has ruled
that the necessity

or justification defense
could not be put to the jury.

In my opinion, that's
part of a larger trend

to take more issues
away from juries.

Sister Megan was incarcerated

at the federal detention
center in Brooklyn, New York.

Meanwhile, her
lawyers moved forward

to appeal the
sabotage conviction.

She's is in prison now

and here you are less
than 10 miles away.

She's being held in
a holding facility,

which is not where a person

is supposed to be
held for very long,

and she's there for a long time,

because the prisons in this
country are so overcrowded.

So her conditions, she does
not get fresh air very often.

She's in a very confined
space and it's really not,

not that prisons
are much better,

but for a long length of time,

it would be a better place
than this place in Brooklyn.

I'm here in the name
of Sister Megan Rice,

Greg Boertje-Obed
and Michael Walli,

who have written to us and
asked that we be on the streets,

because at the United
Nations at this time,

the Nuclear
Non-Proliferation Treaty

signed by the United
States in 1970 stated

that the United States and
the nuclear weapon powers

would abolish all
nuclear weapons.

We have neglected our
duty for 45 years.

It is a great honor
for me to declare open

the 2015 Review
Conference of the Parties

to the Treaty on the
Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

The treaty, which entered
into force 45 years ago,

has played a crucial role in
nuclear non-proliferation,

nuclear disarmament and the
peaceful uses of nuclear energy.

I would like to extend
a very warm welcome

to all states party to the NPT.

As they're discussing it, we
are here to teach, to preach.

No more Hiroshimas!

No more Hiroshimas!

No more Nagasakis!

The president of
the conference and the UN

have received petitions calling

for the elimination
of nuclear weapons.

These petitions have
millions of signatures

from concerned citizens
across the world.

This is a powerful
reminder of the hopes

and the expectations of the
peoples we are here to serve.

There was no
intention, I believe,

at any year of any
American administration

to fulfill its
international obligations

under that treaty of Article VI,

which calls for the prompt
initiation of negotiations

toward a prompt elimination
of nuclear weapons.

And it's not only
the United States.

The other nuclear weapon states,

of which there are now nine,

at that time, by the
way, there weren't nine,

none of the states have made
any progress to speak of.

Daniel Ellsberg was a
Pentagon nuclear war planner,

best known perhaps for
releasing the Pentagon Papers

and being sentenced to
109 years in prison.

My friend Daniel Ellsberg.

Thank you very much.

It is outrageous that
these numbers of weapons

and their targeting remain on
alert or exist in the world.

The number of
weapons has decreased

between the U.S. and Russia,

but not to a level that
precludes nuclear winter.

We're far above the
level that would cause

nuclear winter and
worldwide famine,

near extinction of
the human species

if we carried out our
existing war plans.

U.S. nuclear weapons,
get 'em while they're hot.

Each red dot is a nuclear
weapon on U.S. soil.

We have 450 land-based ICBMs
still in the United States,

each one on high trigger alert.

They're at the beck and
call of the president.

So many people
are feeling disheartened

that they've been
waiting for so long

for Article VI to
actually be realized.

Well, I think what the
non-nuclear weapon states

are waiting for and the people
of the world are waiting for

is really an action plan
that actually has steps

for implementing and a timetable
that is attached to it.

This year is the
45th anniversary

of the existence of the NPT,

and that's a long time
to be waiting for this.

I am ordering you to leave
this restricted area now.

If you do so voluntarily,

no charges will be
placed against you.

If you
do not wish to be arrested,

you must leave this
restricted area.

Young people haven't
lived in a world

of the Cuban Missile Crisis
or the Berlin Crisis,

which I participated in, both
of those in the Pentagon.

And they really
haven't been made aware

of the danger that
actually still exists.

I don't think they
have much awareness

that there is a nuclear threat.

We're out here to try
to wake people up.

No nukes,
no nukes, no nukes!

Disarm now, disarm now!

- Wage love.
- Against the wall right now!

Wage love, not hatred.

Wage love, not hatred.

Love, not hatred.

Wage love, not hatred.

Wage love, not hatred.

Arrest those who wage war,

not those who wage peace.

Arrest those who wage war,
not those who wage peace.

Arrest those who wage war,
not those who wage peace.

Arrest those who wage war.

Free
the peacemakers!

Arrest
the warmakers!

Thank you.

The meeting is adjourned.

Sister Megan was sentenced

to almost three years
in prison, 35 months.

Her co-conspirators got
five years in prison.

But now, having served
just two years in prison,

they are all free suddenly.

A federal appeals court
last week decided to uphold

their convictions for
destruction of property,

but the court overturned

the more serious
conviction of sabotage.

The court of appeals
essentially said this is a protest.

These folks are engaged
in peaceful protest

and that they were prayerful

and that the security
of the United States

was never at risk from this.

And according
to the New Yorker,

this was the first time in
30 years that the conviction

of an anti-nuclear
protester had been vacated.

So we're still
in the struggle.

We're still on the
journey and we sisters

who have this life to
give will give our lives

for the abolition of
all nuclear weapons.

This is a historic moment for
the international community.

The United Nations
formally adopted

the Treaty on the Prohibition
of Nuclear Weapons.

Are you hopeful
things can change?

Of course I am, of course.

That's the pattern of evolution.

Change is always happening
and it always comes out

better in the end, in my view.

And in many other
people's views.

And the Nuclear-Free
Future Award

is going to Megan Rice, Michael
Walli, and Greg Boertje-Obed

of the United States of America

for their act of courageous
civil disobedience

symbolically pounding nuclear
weapons into plowshares.