Hello, everyone. We will get started here on time. I want to welcome you all. The past and present impacts of Nuclear Weapons, a panel hosted by global zero, the International Movement for the abolition of Nuclear Weapons. For the next hour, we will talk about the intersections of nuclear war, Climate Change, and other important social justice and progressive movements. We have seen numerous amounts of nuclear news, whether we are talking about president trumps maralago raid when they were looking for nuclear documents, the 2015 iran deal in limbo or russia continues to show russias continuing shelling of a Nuclear Power plant. There is a lot to discuss. Before we get too deep in conversation, i want to acknowledge that we are on the Ancestral Lands of any Indigenous Peoples including the seneca nation and the members of the hody notioni confederacy. Thank you for joining us live in person and a special thank you to those joining virtually. We are humbled and honored to be livestreaming today. If you like what you hear, please make sure to follow us on twitter and tweet globalzero. Lets get started with these introductions. I am your moderator. For those of you who are not familiar, we are the International Movement for the abolition of Nuclear Weapons. We dont simply envision a World WithoutNuclear Weapons, but a possibility of what the world looks like beyond the bomb. And we are spearheading an Audacious Campaign to get there. Hopefully you have seen some of my colleagues around and make sure you talk to them when you do. Lets meet our wonderful panelists. We are absolutely thrilled to have congresswoman katie porter representing californias 45th district. As many of you have probably seen, congresswoman porter has developed a reputation for visual aids and congressional hearings, particularly a whiteboard. In her roles on oversight and reform and House Committee on national resources, the congresswoman is deeply committed to holding those in power accountable whether they are polluters or bank ceos. The congresswoman has been incredibly vocal in the Nuclear Weapons complex and is particularly concerned about the waste, fraud, and abuse that goes on in the Nuclear Weapons complex. She also plays a pivotal role in Nuclear Justice and requested a formal apology from the United States for the legacy of Nuclear Testing in the Marshall Islands that i know she will touch upon later. And we are joined by Deputy Director at engage, an organization focused on educating, engaging, and empowering american communities. There she works on protecting Global Human Rights and improving domestic policies for muslim americans. She will provide an often overlooked intersection between Nuclear Weapons and the importance of humancentered foreignpolicy policy and National Security. Finally, samantha miller, an activist currently based in the southeastern idaho. Samantha brings antiimperialist and decolonization lenses for joe for social justice work. She aims to inspire new activists in colorado, montana, nebraska, north dakota, and wyoming. All under direct Nuclear Threat as they are considered sponge states. She also seeks to find justice for victims of Nuclear Testing. Thank you all for being here with us. Representative porter, i want to start with you. There have been numerous Nuclear Incidents in the past few months. How are you talking about this with your constituents . Rep. Porter thank you very much for asking it thank you for having me here. In my district, it particularly values safety. And having a lot of dialogue about public safety, safety, and risk. Issues have to be part of that. Nothing makes us less safe than the prospect of nuclear war. I live in irvine. I say nobody moves to irvine for the nightlife. Nothing here is open past 8 00. Not even the target. People move here for the quality of life and part of that is safety. Families need to understand that authoritarianism and instability abroad is not somebody elses problem. It is our problem. We are all put at risk. And nuclear elsewhere is a nuclear arm harm here. There are policies to serve the interest of defense contractors. I think the anticorruption angle is a good way to talk about this with constituents. Our communities need to be fixed. The entire planet would suffer if there were a Nuclear Incident. And just a few days ago, researchers showed that not only would nuclear war kill millions immediately, it would cause global failures. 5 billion people on the brink of death. I think helping people understand that what happens overseas is going to happen here. That is the nature of Nuclear Threats. The biggest challenge as a representative here is simply i dont get asked about this as much as i think i should. I dont think people bring this topic up. And so i think helping them see that if you are worried about Climate Change and the destruction of the planet, let me tell you about the destruction of the planet and what that would mean with Nuclear Weapons. We can link these issues to other issues that come up in town halls. That is a wonderful point and you started talking about this being a safety and security issue and how it affects your constituents. How has this affected policymaking . When we think about about defense in government, how does this moment change the conversation . Rep. Porter when it comes to defense spending, we need to help our constituents understand the distinction. This is between what generals want and what the defense contractors have on their wish list. Too many of our defense dollars line the pockets of defense contractors. Its true with regard to all kinds of parks and procurement situation. This is really bad for taxpayers but it is also this waste and abuse makes this less safe. Instead of clamping down on systemic waste, we have been doing the opposite. Icbm replacement we do not need for another couple decades. I am buying it now. We are putting huge pressure on the rest of our Defense Budget at a time when inflation is pushing up the cost of Government Programs including the cost of, of some of our military programs. I spend a lot of my time dealing with waste, fraud, and abuse. I thought i had seen it all and i looked under the hood of the nuclear program. What might be a concern for everybody is the Congressional Budget Office that says Nuclear Weapons programs are going to be 62 billion over budget in the next 10 years. The gao says the air force hasnt even done the math on what it will cost to put intercontinental listed missiles into the silos. That is crazy. You need to know what something is going to cost before you ask us for the money. Even if you take the rationale for icbms at face value, even if you say there is no price too high for National Defense, he should still be outraged that our government is spending 260 billion for missiles we do not need to keep us safe at a price way higher than advertised. Every member on both sides of the isle should be reunited and rethinking our spending a Nuclear Policy for those reasons. And Nuclear Policy for those reasons. We are so glad to have you. Especially because your community is often so overlooked in the conversation around National Security. I want to talk about some of the things that have been striking about this crisis in ukraine when you talk about regional conflicts engaged with working with National Security and Foreign Policy particularly as they pertain to the middle east, north africa. How has your work been affected . And what has the resurgence of the nuclear conversation done to your community . The community, i represent muslim americans. I am the proud daughter of egyptian immigrants. We are the topic of National Security, but not as victims, but perpetrators. Armed conflict has devastating consequences and it really puts many innocent lives in danger. We have an obligation to address the atrocities regardless of where they occur. It was sad but not unexpected to see the double standard when it came to the armed invasion of russia to ukraine in comparison to syria, the evacuation of afghanistan, the ongoing conflict of subsaharan africa. Many of which get little attention in the u. S. Let alone on global conversation. I congresswoman was talking about spending. And last month the keep and last month, there couldve been a legislative fix. The Biden Administration asked congress to pass the afghan act which would streamline afghans getting legal status. It Congress Left that provision out of the ukraine funding bill because, republicans claimed afghans need more vetting. One threat that continues to come up is the rise of islamophobia in india, a Nuclear Power. Tensions within kashmir. In the question we continue to face is, how do we hold Nuclear Armed allies accountable for these human rights abuses . How does the u. S. Mitigate our relationship and Strategic Interests in india while also condemning ongoing violence against muslims and the concerning relationship growing with china. I have other examples but i would like to pause here. Mari we recognize there are fundamental intersections between all of these issues, particularly the way the military intersects with so many other systems of injustice and inequity. You are a youth activist. You have been working toward the abolition of Nuclear Weapons previously and now with global zero. Activists recognize there is a multitude of existential threats affecting them, including the Nuclear Threat. Also Climate Change, access to reproductive rights and health care, racial justice, and economic justice. How has your work tied these issues together . Samantha the issues of Nuclear Weapons themselves intersect with a lot of other progressive movements and the actions that global zero takes to reflect those intersections. Starting with the fact that the team is so incredibly diverse. Historically, the Nuclear Sphere has been predominantly white men. Women and people of color have been burdened disproportionately by reduction, testing, and the existence of Nuclear Weapons. The thing that we advocate for have implications for many issues. We have been talking about spending a lot. We have funds for health care, public education, and addressing Food Insecurity and combating Climate Change. We would have compensation for the communities that have been test sites. Including places like the Marshall Islands and the pacific islands. Which is a necessary component for racial justice. Mari that is absolutely true. You have the opportunity to talk with an abundance of different people. What is the most striking to you about this movement as people talk about these weapons . Samantha it is striking to me how Little People actually know about Nuclear Weapons. I find im often the first person to tell people that the president has full authority over the launch of Nuclear Weapons. They can make that decision by themselves. People dont have a concept of the threat level that exists with other Nuclear Armed countries. Whereas they have hundreds of Nuclear Weapons, the u. S. Has thousands. Which isnt to say that it still wouldnt be bad if they did something. There is also a lot of agreement across the political spectrum about the fact that Nuclear Weapons are bad and we should abolish them altogether. Even with people who may have the opposite opinion of mine on Something Else progressive, we can all agree that the present power structures are unsustainable and the risk of Nuclear Weapons is high. Mari you actually mentioned something i want to circle back to representative porter on. There is a global nexus between Climate Change, health impacts, colonial legacy, and supremacist systems and Nuclear Weapons. It disproportionately affects frontline and indigenous communities and the devastating experiences of humanitarian issues. You have been incredibly vocal along with other senators about apologizing for the u. S. Nuclear legacy in places like the Marshall Islands. Can you speak more to the legacy and work being done on these issues . Rep. Porter picking up on what sam said, most people dont know this story. This is part of our history and decisionmaking. Part of our Historic National defense strategy. I did not know until i read some articles about it and was immediately struck with how important it was for our government to prepare as much as one ever can and acknowledge the harm we have done. The u. S. Conducted 67 Nuclear Weapons test over the Marshall Islands. And the yield on those tests work out to about 1. 6 hiroshimasized bombs every day for 12 years. Children on the islands thought the Nuclear Fallout was snow. Some babies were born after the tests with transparent skin and no bones. They are called jellyfish babies. The u. S. Still hasnt told them everything we know about the harm from those tests. Even though we never admitted, to date, any wrongdoing. We promised the marshall eez marshallese people access to medication. A drafting bill took that away and it took 15 years for congress to fix it. I want to credit senator hirono for finally getting it done last year. I think everyone should be outraged by our failure to keep our promises to the marshallese people. Its important for me as a member of congress and we are home to one of the oldest marshallese communities in the country. So since 2012, congress has required the department of energy to conduct Groundwater Monitoring. Basically, its a big cement Container Holding nuclear waste. A humongous garbage can embedded in the atoll. The department of the interior provides funding and is supposed to be doing oversight with the monitoring of leakage of radioactivity and waste. They have not been complying with this Groundwater Monitoring requirement and that is where my subcommittee came in. As chair of the subcommittee for resources, we have a hearing on our nuclear legacy. I was delighted and proud that it was a very bipartisan hearing. What we tried to do is understand why we are seeing every different Government Department from state to interior to energy point fingers at each other. It became clear that the department of state needed Stronger Leadership with regard to rebuilding and maintaining our relationship with the Marshall Islands. President bidens leadership, he named a special president ial envoy for the compact negotiations, the future relationship with the marshallese people. I am hopeful that the resolution to apologize for the harm done by u. S. Nuclear testing done in the Marshall Islands will move forward and set up a future relationship with the marshallese people. The past and future obligations to continue to do this work. I was honored to have secretary holland with me in Orange County yesterday. We sat down to have lunch together and it was the very first issue i brought up to her, making sure that our department is giving funding to energy so that this is happening. There is an ongoing oversight issue here as well as historical acknowledgment and repair. Mari thank you so much, representative porter. I think its important that we acknowledge these communities that are affected, there is so much work that needs to be done for these impacted communities. I want to talk about legacy and community building. You started talking about it earlier that it affects the mus