Winnipeg Lanterns for Peace 2026

Please join us in commemorating the 1945 atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Date: August 6, 2026
Time: 7:30 pm
Place: Memorial Park in Winnipeg

Eighty-one years ago, the world was introduced to the horrors of nuclear war. The death, destruction and suffering that resulted from the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, on August 6 and 9, 1945, meant that the world had changed for the worse. Nothing would ever be the same. The mushroom clouds that arose over Japan cast a shadow that menaces every living creature to the present day.

In 1945 the United States had a monopoly on nuclear power; today, nine countries have their own nuclear arsenals and many more, via NATO, are set up to use these weapons. Even more alarming is the present conflict in Ukraine which pits a nuclear-armed Russia against a nuclear-armed NATO.

Therefore, we gather annually to remember people whose lives were lost in August 1945, to remember the survivors whose lives were unalterably damaged, and to reaffirm our commitment to the abolition all nuclear weapons.

Please join us for our annual Lanterns for Peace ceremony. Beginning at 7:30 pm we paint lanterns and make origami cranes. (We provide the art supplies; you contribute your imagination and creativity.) At 9:30 pm, following a short program of speeches, we float our lanterns in the Memorial Park pond as the sun sets. (Note: If you wish to be seated during the speeches, please bring a lawn chair.)

It is a beautiful ceremony, rich with meaning and one which can be enjoyed by the whole family. If you have never been to one, here is a playlist of videos of Lantern Ceremonies over the years.

Please invite your friends. We hope to see you there.

Sponsors:

• Japanese Cultural Association of Manitoba
• Mennonite Central Committee (Manitoba)
• No Nukes MB
• Peace Alliance Winnipeg
• Winnipeg Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers)