“The Great Peace Race”
James W. Nelson
Minnesota’s United Nations Movement’s history project1
Global problems are complex, interconnected challenges that may affect many people around the world. By their nature these challenges require an informed citizenry willing to collaborate and actively participate in molding pub‐ lic policy. Scanning the daily news reminds us that there are many profound global challenges in need of a resolution. Problems that once seemed far away now impact our daily lives. Age‐old problems such as violent conflict within and between nations remain, and nuclear threats, pandemics, and population migrations are reoccurring. Profound climate change with its multiple adverse effects is an immense, more recently recognized problem. The story of The Great Peace Race highlights the leadership of Ronald and Clare Mclaughlin in sustained collaboration with Senator Hubert H. Humphrey. Together they led a campaign for public support for President Kennedy’s for‐ eign policy initiatives to control the spiraling nuclear arms race. Senator Humphrey once reflected, “We must halt the spread of nuclear terror before it halts humanity.”29
This story aims to sort out past national security challenges to see if they might offer clues to dealing with current global challenges. The Great Peace Race is a seminal story of many Minnesotans engaged in the complex world of nuclear security. Possibly this grass roots campaign which gave citizens a greater voice in public policies may be a model for addressing other global challenges.
Social philosopher Walter Ong observed that “A lively curiosity of the past is a primary qualification for leaders who would mold our future.”3 In 2019, a special collection of historical materials that focused on alternatives to war and building global community was established at the Minnesota History Center.4 This collection contains mate‐ rials that record efforts of individual Minnesotans and citizen organizations that have worked to fulfill the goals of the United Nations, especially to prevent wars. By adding more context to these materials, we may be able to ap‐ preciate how the McLaughlin couple, as well as many or‐ dinary citizens, made a big impact on national policies. Their leadership to address the spiraling nuclear arms race prepared the stage with public understanding and support so that government officials like Senator Hubert Hum‐ phrey and President John Kennedy could boldly craft the first nuclear arms agreement.
How do ordinary citizens effectively participate in word affairs? Progress has often required careful discernment of our true national interests and a willingness to work ac‐ ross political and national divides to protect mutual inter‐ ests. Civic organizations like the United Nations Association and Citizens for Global Solutions (originally named the United World Federalists) were established so that citizens could participate in world affairs and prevent the terrible suffering experienced during the Second World War. The United Nations Association focused primarily on education about world affairs and the work of the United Nations. Citizens for Global Solutions studied global challenges and attempted to craft workable solu‐ tions and took further steps by conducting sustained po‐ litical advocacy. Both organizations believe that enduring global solutions required enforceable world laws overseen by an empowered United Nations.
The early United Nations movement attracted many pas‐ sionate leaders. York Langton, a successful business man, founded a chapter of the United Nations Association in Minnesota. This group maintained strong ties with Elea‐ nor Roosevelt and her national office near the United Nations headquarters in New York. Mr. Langton made dozens of speeches during the war years advocating the United States enter the proposed United Nations. Langton’s world affairs acumen was complemented by Fanny Brin, a good friend of Eleanor Roosevelt. They had worked to‐ gether on issues of refugees and poverty throughout the 1930s and ‘40s. Mrs. Brin worked through a network of Women’s Groups. She organized large rallies every year in October to showcase the potential benefits of the fled‐ gling United Nations.
McLaughlin Family December, 1950.
War veteran/commercial airline pilot Ronald McLaughlin and his wife, music professional Clare, were the founders and passionate leaders of the Minnesota state chapter of the United World Federalists. They began organizing at war’s end and quickly enrolled several hundred members. The World Federalists (currently Citizens for Global Solutions) argued that the law‐based system of delegated and reserved authority used in the United States could be a model for global governance. The organization has many chapters around the country and a small national head‐ quarters in Washington for direct political engagement. The peace race campaign was an opportunity to translate lofty principles into concrete treaty agreements.
One early supporter of the United Nations, and a longtime McLaughlin family friend, was Hubert H. Humphrey, an energetic young mayor of Minneapolis.15 As a US Senator, Humphrey is often remembered for the civil rights legislation he championed and guided through the legislative process. He was also instrumental in curtailing the arms race and spoke often on the subject. He viewed the arms race as an enormously expensive, exceedingly dangerous enterprise that produced no decisive military advantage to any side. 29
Minneapolis Sunday Tribune November 7, 1948, Page 10.
Humphrey’s early congressional assignments included the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. He twice convened Disarmament Subcommittees in Minne‐ apolis: April 1954 and June 1956. The committee’s work and compelling testimony at these public meetings received a much encouraging publicity. Many local UN sup‐ porters testified, including nuclear expert Dr. Asher White, who monitored the first Pacific nuclear tests, and noted anthropologist Dr. Adamson Hobel, who talked about the imperative of providing security that people trusted. Input from other academic disciplines, like that of historian J. Huntley Dupre, contributed to the discussion. Dupre outlined failed efforts to outlaw war and unsuccessful in‐ ternational agreements and suggested alternatives. Legal scholar Pierce Butler III described fundamental require‐ ments for enforceable international law. As a military veteran officer Ronald McLaughlin gave insightful remarks, and Clare McLaughlin provided compelling testimony about the future for our children.17 One of the concrete outcomes of the Senator Humphrey’s leadership on the Disarmament Subcommittee was legislation for the crea‐ tion of the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency in 1961. The main role of this agency was negotiating, im‐ plementing, and verifying effective arms control, nonpro‐ liferation, and disarmament policies and agreements.7
The Russian invasion and occupation of Ukraine has heightened public awareness to the possibility of nuclear conflict. Another indication of the public’s interest in the danger of a nuclear clash was the recent success of the film Oppenheimer. This film dramatized the destructive force of nuclear weapons as well as the difficultly of controlling their use in the modern world. Perhaps only members of an older generation can recall the “age of anxiety” during the post‐World War II world. Rapid technological change in computers and communications trans‐ formed industries and jobs. The Cold War arms race became a paramount political issue. The term “missile gap” was dramatized during the 1960 presidential cam‐
paign between John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon. Senator Kennedy strongly contended that the Soviet Union had surpassed the United States in nuclear missile quantities and capabilities, and that this capability gap made the people of the United States highly vulnerable. Throughout the 1960 political campaign Kennedy warned of a “missile gap” and strongly advocated for a more ro‐ bust military defense. For example, on the floor of the US Senate he warned, “For the first time since the War of 1812, foreign enemy forces potentially had become a direct and unmistakable threat to the continental United States.”5
Yet, soon after elected, President Kennedy advocated a far more conciliatory approach of dealing with the Soviet Union. Kennedy argued that we should be challenging the Soviet Union not to an arms race but a peace race that would diminish the possibility of nuclear strife.6 President Kennedy’s term in office was full of geopolitical crises. There was seemingly continuous political friction between the United States and the Soviet Union. Tensions reached high points with confrontations in Berlin in 1961 and later in 1962 when nuclear‐capable missiles were stationed by the Soviet Union in Cuba. A nuclear clash was narrowly avoided.8
In Minnesota today, only derelict structures and fading traces in the landscape remind us of the Cold War arms race. Some military preparations for this standoff included armed, guided missile stations in areas surrounding the Twin Cities. They were placed to protect citizens from at‐ tack by the Soviet Union. A historical account reads more like a thriller than a real‐life provision for our national se‐ curity. In the 1950’s, the US Army began constructing mis‐ sile launch sites in the four principal directions approaching the Twin Cities — near the towns of Saint Bonifacius, Farmington and East Bethel in Minnesota and Roberts, Wisconsin. Nuclear‐capable missiles were stored in underground bunkers and raised by hydraulic elevators. The sites included sophisticated radar, control rooms, and personnel barracks. These launch facilities were built to protect the Twin Cities by intercepting manned Soviet bombers flying over the North Pole.9
Saint Bonifacius, MN, Missile Site. Photos by Jim Nelson, September 2023.
Saint Bonifacius, MN, Missile Site. Photos by Jim Nelson, September 2023.
Huge sums of money were spent from the 1950’s into the early 1970’s to keep this defense capability fully opera‐ tional. Over time, both technology evolved and Strategic Disarmament treaties were successfully negotiated, so these installations were deactivated beginning in 1971, in favor of intercontinental missiles housed in remote, un‐ derground bunkers scattered across the Great Plains.
A robust civil defense program was also essential to our early nuclear security strategy. The federal government funded Min‐ nesota’s 3M Corporation to pro‐ duce thousands of signs to mark designated Civil Defense shelters to be used in the event of nuclear emergemcy.10 Throughout this era, there was a sustained public Civil Defense effort to educate the public on preferred evacu‐ ations routes in the event of a nuclear emergency. A Civil De‐ fense evacuation map contains the admonition “It may save your life.”11
While these superficial efforts could protect only a small fraction of our population, we continued to test nuclear weapons in the atmosphere. More than 100 nuclear tests took place in Nevada and an equal number in the Pacific.12 Downwind nuclear fallout reached all the way to Minne‐ sota and neighboring states, affecting the environment with damaging radiation from Iodine 131 and other iso‐ topes. The fallout impacted the food chain, especially dairy, and increased the risk of certain cancers.13
The McLaughlins were often asked why they worked so hard on the intractable challenges of modern war. Perhaps some of Ronald’s idealism came from his family roots. He was born in Japan, the son of Christian missionaries. As colonel in the Air Force stationed abroad, he witnessed some of the Second World War’s tragic suffering and loss. The couple, who always worked as a team, rea‐ soned that without more effective institutions to deal with global conflict, future generations would be con‐ demned to a world of continuous wars and suffering. They felt that the vast human cost of war desperately needed practical solutions. The McLaughlins and other early activists studied the very successful social transformations inspired by visionary leaders like Mahatma Ghandi in India. They pointed out that major social changes such as political independence, the abolition of slavery, and women’s suffrage were possible because of advocacy and the broad support of ordinary citizens.
One approach to building support was to organize small home meetings to discuss world affairs, its problems and possible solutions. The McLaughlins also organized larger public meetings and enrolled members in the national World Federalist Association. They also participated as ac‐ tive members in civic groups like the Minnesota Foreign Policy Association and the League of Women Voters. They spoke to audiences at churches and schools and found novel ways to reach people, including an education booth at the Minnesota State Fair and various county fairs. For the McLaughlins, the work of building global community was a great adventure and they found deep satisfaction in exploring novel approaches of addressing the intractable problems of war.
The Great Peace Race campaign was simple, yet profound. It was more of an affirmation than a petition, both responding to and amplifying President Kennedy’s plea de‐ livered at the United Nations General Assembly on September 25, 1961. “It is a practical matter of life or death...it is therefore our intention to challenge the Soviet Union not to an arms race but a peace race...until general and complete disarmament has been achieved.”18
The petition document was strongly worded and carried a very personal commitment. It begins with the striking phrase “We Join You in the Peace Race.”14 Throughout the body of the petition are affirmations of the president’s specific plans outlined in the UN address. His plan was meant to be a basis for a “genuine and honorable peace.” It boldly states that “war can no longer serve to settle dis‐ putes.” Another audacious statement in the text was re‐ markably insightful: “We affirm your vision that a nation’s security may well be shrinking as arms increase.” Some phrases of the petition could be considered aspirational: “to create worldwide law enforcement as we outlaw war and weapons.” Below the body of the petition were the names of two dozen notable people that endorsed the statement. The time was ripe for a direct response from ordinary citizens.
The heartfelt personal sincerity of the McLaughlins ignited this dramatic response, and their perseverance helped propel it forward to a successful outcome. The sustained Mclaughlin message was: wars were not inevitable and ordinary citizens could have a decisive voice. Volunteers participated because they believed their efforts could have an enduring impact.
Fast‐paced petition canvassing began in early spring and extended throughout the summer of 1962. Citizen volunteers collected over 90,000 signatures from all 50 states. Volunteer efforts were coordinated from a small office in South Minneapolis. Many who signed the peti‐ tion took the further steps of writing and reminding their congressional representatives of this policy initiative. Ron‐ ald McLaughlin presented the collected petitions to Pres‐ ident Kennedy’s National Security Adviser, McGeorge Bundy at the White House on September 11, 1962.20 Once again, Senator Humphrey, who was present at the meet‐ ing, played the pivotal role of arranging the White House presentation and publicizing the results of the campaign. A few days after the Washington event, the McLaughlins, in a letter to the editor of the Minneapolis Morning Tribune, gratefully acknowledged the large corps of vol‐ unteers who participated in the peace race.21
Minneapolis Star Tribune, September 1, 1962, page 10.
The momentum of positive public support encouraged the Kennedy administration and agencies like the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency to redouble activities to find common ground with the Soviet Union. At that po‐ litical juncture, it seemed possible to negotiate, a limited nuclear test ban treaty that would prohibit atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons. In his commencement address at American University on June 10, 1963,22 Kennedy announced a new round of high‐level arms negotiations with the Soviet Union. He boldly called for a pause to the Cold War. “If we cannot end our differences,” he said, “at least we can help make the world a safe place for diver‐ sity.” The Soviet government broadcast a translation of the entire speech and allowed it to be reprinted.23
The upshot of these expedited negotiations was a treaty focused on nuclear weapons testing. Senator Humphrey played a decisive role in this endeavor. It is was an im‐ mense challenge of negotiating with the USSR, which, after the Cuban missile experience, many Americans considered untrustworthy. An article in the Minneapolis Star titled Test Ban Talks get a Last Try gave a sober assessment of the state of negotiations. The article stated that “Sen‐ ator Humphrey traveled to Geneva making a last good try to rescue the test ban talks from total failure.”24 The constant suspicion was that the Soviets wanted to continue testing and avoid any ban while making it appear that the United States was blocking progress. A further complication was that some Republicans wanted to make national security a partisan issue and potentially block any treaty ratification in the Senate. Senator Humphrey performed a careful balancing act, responding to the strident Soviet demands while at the same time addressing partisan Republican objections and the valid security concerns of or‐ dinary citizens.
Like President Kennedy, Humphrey believed that curtailing testing would slow the arms race and that it would be an important first step toward overall disarmament. Hum‐ phrey worked continuously behind the scenes, stressing that dangers could be reduced and security gained through the non‐partisan approval of the proposed treaty. Against formidable odds, the Limited Test Ban treaty was finalized and signed in Moscow on August 5, 1963, by US Secretary Dean Rusk, Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko, and British Foreign Secretary Lord Home, one day short of the 18th anniversary of the dropping of an atomic
bomb on Hiroshima.25 Senator Humphrey had been a very proactive observer throughout the treaty final negotia‐ tions. He is pictured in the Minneapolis Morning Tribune enjoying a toast at the signing ceremony in Moscow. He hailed the signing as major improvement in East‐West re‐ lations and predicted US Senate ratification.26
Minneapolis Star Tribune, August 5, 1963.
Over the next two months, President Kennedy addressed Congress and an apprehensive public, recommending the treaty be carefully reviewed and ultimately ratified. On July 26,1963, President Kennedy’s 26‐minute, nationally televised address to the nation was deeply moving while candidly admitting the treaty’ limitations. Stating “My fellow Americans, let us take that first step. Let us step back from the shadow of war and seek out the way of peace.”27 President Kennedy went on to express hope that the test ban, even with its limitations, would be the first step towards broader rapprochement, limit nuclear fallout, re‐ strict nuclear proliferation, and slow the spiraling arms race. Senator Humphrey, as Senate sponsor, made a matching appeal to his colleagues for ratification. The Sen‐ ate approved the treaty on September 23, 1963, by a con‐ vincing margin of 80‐19, exceeding the necessary two‐thirds majority by 14 votes. President Kennedy signed the ratified treaty on October 7, 1963.28
Grassroots support for a limited nuclear test ban insured that potentially harmful atmospheric radiation could be reduced, and the arms race could be somewhat curtailed. Senator Humphrey recalled this turning point—the first arms control agreement in the Cold War era—when he addressed the annual meeting of the United Nations Association of Minnesota on May 14, 1969.29 He reminisced about his long‐time interest in the work of the United Na‐ tions going back to early days as mayor of Minneapolis. He actually served as part of the Congressional delegation to the United Nations from 1956 through 1957. Throughout his long career he urged a strategy for peace that is embodied in the Hebrew word shalom: peace that not merely rejects violence and power politics but promotes human values such as personal freedom, economic op‐ portunity, and freedom from fear.
Are there lessons from the peace race experiences? Per‐ haps from the spirited activities of the race campaign we can distill a useful recipe for social progress. The ingredients in that recipe: energized people working to‐ gether, a well‐articulated and compelling message, and an opportune moment for delivering the message. All the ingredients seem to be necessary and reinforce one another. At that moment in history, many people believed that the arms race in a nuclear era could not be won, lit‐ erally a dead end. More atmospheric weapons testing, more missiles, and more fallout shelters required enormous funds and did not seem to enhance security. Pos‐
sible solutions to the nuclear conundrum involved reducing the most dangerous and harmful aspects of arms race coupled with building stronger, verifiable global agree‐ ments. Thoughts of a better world lifted the spirits of peace race participants and spurred them to work with a sense of urgency to a meaningful conclusion—an atmosphere free of nuclear fallout. How impactful was the Great Peace Race? Among those who joined the race, there was a steadfast belief in the wisdom of Ghandi’s in‐ sightful observation about social movements “when the people lead, leaders will follow.”30
1. Citizr Global Solutions, Minnesota was the curator of the Minnesota United Nations History Project. Under a grant from the Minnesota Historical Society G‐MHCG‐1802‐ 211928 it collected documents from individuals and civic groups as part of the observance of the 75th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations. The Final Report is enti‐ tled Our Journey Minnesota United Nations Movement. Minnesota Historical Society. The Minnesota United Nations Government collection 1945‐2019. The collection consists of an annotated listing and over 300 documents arranged in chronological order in two boxes.
2. Humphrey, Hubert H. An Inventory of his Speech Text Files at MDHS. United Nations Association Annual Dinner. May 14, 1969.
3. Knowledge and the Future of Man: An International Sym‐ posium. Page 7, Ong, Walter J. S.J. ed. United States: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1968.
4. Minnesota Historical Society. The Minnesota United Na‐ tions Government collection 1945‐2019. The collection con‐ sists of an annotated listing and over 300 documents arranged in chronological order in two boxes.
5. Papers of John F. Kennedy. Pre‐Presidential Papers. Senate Files, Box 906, “An Investment for Peace, Senate Floor, 29 February 1960.” John F. Kennedy Presidential Library.
6. President John F. Kennedy speeches: United Nations Gen‐ eral Assembly address, September 1961, 15 September 1961. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library.
7. President John F. Kennedy. Arms Control and Disarma‐ ment, September 1961. The United States Arms Control and Disarmament Agency (ACDA) was established as an inde‐ pendent agency by the Arms Control and Disarmament Act (75 Stat. 631), September 26, 1961. John F. Kennedy Pres‐ idential Library.
8. US Department of State, Office of the Historian. his‐ tory.state.gov/milestones/1961‐1968/cuban‐missile‐ crisis (accessed Jan 30, 2024)
In October 1962, during the Cuban Missile Crisis, leaders of the U.S. and the Soviet Union engaged in a tense, two‐week political and military standoff over the installation of nuclear‐armed Soviet missiles in Cuba. In a TV address on October 22, 1962, President John F. Kennedy notified Americans about the pres‐ ence of the missiles, and explained his decision to
enact a naval quarantine around Cuba. The President made it clear the U.S. was prepared to use military force if necessary to counter this perceived threat to national security. Many people feared the world was on the brink of nuclear war. However, hostilities were avoided when the U.S. agreed to Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev’s offer to remove the Cuban missiles in ex‐ change for the U.S. promising not to invade Cuba. The U.S. later removed missiles from Italy and Turkey as a gesture of goodwill.
9. Sturtevant, Andy. “Visiting the missile sites designed to protect the Twin Cities from Soviet attack.” MINNPOST. Nov 11, 2016. minnpost.com/stroll/2016/11/visiting‐missile‐ sites‐designed‐protect‐twin‐cities‐soviet‐attack/?hilite=mis‐ sile+sites
(Accessed Jan 30, 2024)
10. Lindeke, Bill. “50 years later, Minnesota‐made fallout shelter signs still hanging in there.” MINNPOST. Nov 17, 2016. minnpost.com/cityscape/2016/11/50‐years‐later‐ minnesota‐made‐fallout‐shelter‐signs‐still‐hanging‐ there/?hilite=50+years+later+Minnesota
(Accessed Jan 30, 2024)
11. Halstead, Walter P. “Follow the arrows to safety.” The Minneapolis Star. September 10,1956. Page 42.
12. Kimball, Daryl. The Nuclear Testing Tally. Arms Control Association Fact Sheets & Briefs. August, 2022. armscon‐ trol.org/ factsheets/nucleartesttally
(Accessed Jan 30, 2024)
13. National Cancer Institute. Get the facts about Exposure I‐131 Radiation. US Government, cancer.gov/about‐cancer/ causes‐prevention/risk/radiation/i‐131#search (Accessed Jan 30, 2024)
14. Minnesota Historical Society. The Minnesota United Na‐ tions Government collection 1945‐2019. Detailed Disarma‐ ment Subcommittee hearing testimony can be found in chronological order. Transcripts of testimony are included for Pierce Butler and Dr. Adamson Hobel.
15. Allison, M. “They Are Working for One World.” Minnea‐ polis Sunday Tribune. 1948, Nov 7, 1948, page 49. The story chronicled the organizing activities of the McLaughlin cou‐ ple, vigorously working to build a just world, free of war. Sev‐ eral supporters from various fields were pictured: corporate, labor unions, and academia were profiled. One notable early
Endnotes
supporter was Hubert H Humphrey. He is pictured and listed as Minneapolis Mayor and Senator elect.
(Accessed Jan 30, 2024)
16. Humphrey, Hubert H. An Inventory of his Speech Text Files at MDHS. United Nations Association Annual Dinner. May 14, 1969.
17. Minnesota Historical Society. The Minnesota United Na‐ tions Government collection 1945‐2019. Detailed Disarma‐ ment Subcommittee hearing testimony can be found in chronological order. Transcripts of testimony are included for Ronald and Clare McLaughlin.
18. Kennedy, J.F. 1961. “Address before the General As‐ sembly of the United Nations September 25, 1961.” John F. Kennedy Presidential Library. jfklibrary.org/archives/other‐ resources/john‐f‐kennedy‐speeches/united‐nations‐ 19610925 (Accessed Jan 30, 2024)
19. McLaughlin, R C. “An Open Letter to the President: We Join You in the Peace Race.” January, 1962. Found in The Minnesota United Nations Government collection 1945‐ 2019. The statement of affirmations and commitment to President Kennedy’s peace campaign. People who agreed and committed themselves were asked to sign the petition as individual citizens. United World Federalists, Minnesota distributed the petitions and served as a coordinator for the overall campaign.
20. “White House Gets ‘Peace Race’ Plea.” Minneapolis Morning Tribune. September 12, 1962. Page 10. A descrip‐ tion of the peace race petition presentation by Ronald Mclaughlin to Senator Hubert Humphrey and presidential assistant McGeorge Bundy along with a photo. startribune.newspapers.com/clip/ 116757724/peace‐race‐ 3‐sept‐12‐1962/
(Accessed Jan 30, 2024)
21. McLaughlin, R and C. “Peace Race Workers Thanked for Efforts.” Minneapolis Morning Tribune, Letter to Editor. Sep‐ tember 17, 1962. Page 6. Always gracious, the McLaughlins thanked the many workers for their dedicated efforts. They also relayed a message from President Kennedy’s staff that the support witnessed by the petitions has been extremely helpful to the President’s efforts. (Accessed Jan 30, 2024)
22. Kennedy, JF. “American University Commencement Ad‐ dress.” June 10, 1963. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library. jfklibrary.org/archives/other‐resources/john‐f‐kennedy‐ speeches/ american‐university‐19630610
(Accessed Jan 30, 2024).
23. Simone Weil Center. “John F. Kennedy’s Speech at Amer‐ ican University: A Simone Weil Center Symposium.” June 9, 2022. simoneweilcenter.org/publications/2022/6/9/ jrivlo7nbn9hvjemaxnmr4kjjpy2w5 (Accessed Jan 30, 2024).
Kennedy’s speech was widely heralded in the Soviet Union, where it was probably more appreciated at the time than it was in the United States. Pravda republished it in its entirety, except for one paragraph. Khrushchev told Harriman it was “the greatest speech by any American president since Roosevelt.”
24. Drummond, Roscoe. “Test Ban Talks get a ‘Last Try’” Min‐ neapolis Star. June 1, 1963. Page 6.
The Limited Test Ban Treaty was a very controversial subject. Many people felt that the Russians were not to be trusted and it was foolish to sign a treaty. A clever cartoon on the same page shows a skeptical citizen literally choosing atomic testing as a first step toward disarmament.
(Accessed Jan 30, 2024).
25. Center for Arms Control and Non‐Proliferation. Fact Sheet Limited Test Ban Treaty. armscontrolcenter.org/ wp‐content/ uploads/2017/05/LTBT.pdf
The treaty prohibited nuclear weapons tests “or any other nuclear explosion in the atmosphere, in outer space, and under water.” While not banning tests underground, the treaty prohibited such explosions if they caused radioactive debris to be present outside the territorial limits of the State who performed the test.”
26. “Test Ban Hailed and Condemned on Both Sides of the Iron Curtain.” Minneapolis Morning Tribune. August 6, 1963. Page 20. (Accessed Jan 30, 2024)
While subsequent history seems to validate that this treaty was highly useful, at the time it was very controversial. Cit‐ izens at home and allies abroad question whether we were undermining our own national security or whether we could ever trust the Russians. The article was accompanied by a photo of the signing ceremony with Senator Humphrey and Soviet leaders. Those in attendance included U Thant, Sec‐ retary General of the United Nations.
27. Kennedy, JF. “Address to the Nation on the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.” July 26, 1963. jfklibrary.org/learn/about‐jfk/ historic‐speeches/televised‐address‐on‐nuclear‐test‐ban‐ treaty
(Accessed Jan 30, 2024).
President Kennedy made a carefully balanced speech from the White House Oval Office on the contents of the Limited Test Balanced Treaty. It begins with “in a spirit of hope.” The treaty is a solemn legal obligation among the parties, to rad‐ ically reduce nuclear testing. He invites other nations to agree to the treaty and to continue to work toward other forms of disarmament.
28. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. “JFK in History: Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.” jfklibrary.org/learn/about‐jfk/jfk‐in‐history/nuclear‐test‐ban‐ treaty#:~:text=Kennedy% 20signed%20the%20ratified%20 treaty,the%20nation%20conducting%20the%20test (Accessed Jan 30, 2024)
29. Humphrey, Hubert H. An Inventory of his Speech Text Files at MDHS. United Nations Association Annual Dinner. May 14, 1969.
30. Gandhi, Mahatma, 1869‐1948. The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi. New Delhi: Publications Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Govt. of India, 2000‐2001.
