MAY 15, 2006--FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

13 people arrested in Mother’s Day demonstration at Trident nuclear submarine base at Bangor, WA

Contact: Lynne Greenwald (360) 377-2465
         Anne or David Hall (206) 545-3562
         Karol or Glen Milner (206) 365-7865

60 people walked at early dawn to the demonstration against Trident nuclear weapons at the Bangor submarine base. 13 demonstrators attempted to block the main highway entrance into the base and were arrested immediately.

At 5 AM on Monday, demonstrators walked from the Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action to the entrance of Naval Submarine Base Bangor. A banner was hung from the freeway overpass leading into the base declaring, “CREATE A PEACEFUL WORLD FOR ALL CHILDREN, Abolish Nuclear Weapons. Scrap Trident.&rdquo

Six demonstrators briefly blocked traffic on the Kitsap County side of the Main gate at the Trident submarine base and were arrested.

Seven demonstrators were later arrested on the federal side of the highway by federal officers.

Mother’s Day in the United States was first suggested in 1872 by Julia Ward Howe as a day dedicated to peace. Howe saw the effects on both sides of the Civil War and realized destruction from warfare goes beyond the killing of soldiers in battle.

The Trident submarine base at Bangor is located 20 miles west of Seattle. It is the last active nuclear weapons depot on the West Coast and is the place of deployment for approximately 1,760 nuclear warheads.

Those arrested by Kitsap County Sheriffs: Jody Tiller of Olympia; Carol Ann Barrows of Bainbridge Island; Brian Watson of Bremerton; and Karen Jones, Rev. Anne Hall and Shirley Morrison of Seattle.

Those arrested by federal officers: Lynne Greenwald of Bremerton; Jan Prichard-Cohen of Tacoma; Bryce Brown of Olympia; Rev. Gilberto Perez of Bainbridge Island; Bryan Edmark of Lynnwood; and Rose Betz-Zall and Mary Hanson of Seattle.

Demonstrators arrested on federal property were booked at the Trident submarine base and released. Some demonstrators may be tried in federal court.

Demonstrators arrested by Kitsap County Sheriffs were booked in Port Orchard and released.

Demonstrators were warned by a Kitsap County Sheriff’s officer on May 14 that they would no longer be given a warning notice and that arrests would be made as soon as they crossed the fog line along the highway. The officer also warned demonstrators that they might be held until bail was posted and that a new charge, “attempted disorderly conduct”, could be used against them by Kitsap County prosecutors.

Fact Sheet

The Trident submarine base at Bangor is located 20 miles west of Seattle. It is the last active nuclear weapons depot on the West Coast and is the place of deployment for approximately 1,760 nuclear warheads. The base has been recently rebuilt for the deployment of the larger and more accurate Trident D-5 missile system. Each of the 24 D-5 missiles on a Trident submarine is capable of carrying eight of the larger 455 kiloton W-88 warheads (about 30 times the explosive force as the Hiroshima bomb.)

In 2005, the Navy transferred two Trident D-5 missile submarines from the submarine base at Kings Bay, Georgia to Bangor, Washington, bringing the total number of nuclear-armed missile submarines at Bangor to nine compared to five on the East Coast. The larger Pacific force, the largest nuclear submarine force in the Pacific since 1979, reflects increased nuclear targeting of Chinese, North Korean and other Asian and Middle East targets.

Four older Trident submarines from the Bangor fleet are being refitted for the deployment of Tomahawk cruise missiles. Each of the older submarines will be able to launch 154 cruise missiles within a six minute period.

In July, 2005 Lockheed Martin and the U.S. Navy announced a $9.2 million contract to develop a new submarine-launched intermediate-range ballistic missile (SLIRBM). The SLIRBM will be capable of delivering a 1,000 lb. payload 1,200 miles within 15 minutes of launch. A Tomahawk missile takes about 4 hours to cover the same distance. On Mother’s Day, members of the Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action were mindful of recent threats of military strikes by the U.S. government against the citizens of Iran. The April 17 issue of the New Yorker magazine reported the U.S. government is planning a massive bombing campaign against Iran, including the proposed use of bunker-buster nuclear bombs to destroy a key Iranian suspected nuclear weapons facility.

The Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action was founded in 1977. The center is on 3.8 acres and is next to the Trident submarine base at Bangor, Washington. The Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action offers the opportunity to explore the roots of violence and injustice in our world and to experience the transforming power of love through nonviolent direct action. We resist all nuclear weapons, especially the Trident submarine system.

The next planned demonstration will be the annual Ground Zero Meet the Fleet demonstration on August 2, in Elliott Bay. The fleet arrival at Seafair is a public relations and recruiting event for the U.S. Navy. Previous years have brought Trident nuclear submarines and Navy warships used to launch Tomahawk cruise missiles in the first and second Wars on Iraq and the War on Afghanistan. The fleet is displayed for four days in downtown Seattle at tremendous cost to taxpayers while crucial social services in education, health care and transportation are being cut for lack of funds.

The next planned direct action at Bangor will be on August 6 and 7, 2006, in commemoration of the 61st anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan.