Oral Histories

Mitsugi Moriguchi, born in Nagasaki, Japan, is a hibakusha (atomic bomb survivor). He was nine years old when the US dropped the “Fat Man” bomb on Nagasaki on August 9, 1945. As a member of the Nagasaki Testimonial Society, Moriguchi collects the stories of other hibakusha. His work with other members of the Nagasaki Testimonial Society culminated in the publication of the book, Voices of the A-Bomb Survivors: Nagasaki, in 2009. In 2018, he visited Hanford Site, where the plutonium for the Fat Man bomb was produced.

In this interview, Moriguchi discusses how he survived, how his sister suffered from cancer and eventually died years after the bombing, and how some of his brother’s children were born with birth defects. He also reflects on his visits to Dayton, Ohio, where the B-29 that carried the bomb, Bockscar, is exhibited, and Hanford’s B Reactor.

Yasuyoshi Komizo has been the Chairperson of the Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation since 2013. The former Special Assistant to the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, he worked as a diplomat for four decades.

In this interview, Komizo discusses the mission of the Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation. He outlines the goal of Mayors for Peace to create a world without nuclear weapons, and explains the importance of dialogue in resolving international security challenges. He also describes a recent tour he gave to the U.S. ambassador to Japan and the message of the hibakusha (atomic bomb survivors) he wanted to share with the ambassador.