News Summary

SPRINGFIELD — Sachiko Masuoka was 22 years old when the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima in 1945.

On Friday, the 85-year-old survivor of the bombing will reflect on her experience during a panel discussion to be held at Wittenberg University's Kissell Auditorium in Koch Hall.

The panel discussion, scheduled for 3:30 p.m., will kick off an exhibit titled "Under the Mushrrom Cloud: Reflecting on the Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki," on display at Wittenberg's Thompson Gallery until April 12.

"It is very significant that we have someone in very good health who can talk about her experience," said Tanya Maus, Wittenberg's assistant professor of history. "That generation is reaching the age where, just as we are losing vets of World War II, we are losing our connection to this history."

Maus, who teaches a course on the 1945 bombings, will join other panelists, Yuki Miyamoto, assistant professor of comparative ethics at DePaul University and Molly Wood, Wittenberg's professor of history.

"Historically, Hiroshima and Nagasaki are the only two cities where the nuclear bomb was dropped under the condition of war," Maus said. While the debate has been polarized when it comes to attributing blame one way or the other, "it's important that we, as members of the university, of this community, come together to raise questions and concerns."

A reception will follow the panel discussion at 5 p.m. in the Thompson Gallery. Wittenberg's East Asian Studies Club will help participants make 1,000 paper cranes, a universal symbol of peace that will be sent to the Hiroshima Peace Museum.