President Biden proclaims National Atomic Veterans Day

On July 15, President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. proclaimed National Atomic Veterans Day as July 16, 2021.
On June 8, 2017, the Michigan Senate passed a resolution recognizing July 16, 2017 as National Atomic Veterans Day.
Toni Clark of Sumpter Township is the daughter of an Atomic Veteran and had worked hard to get that recognition in Michigan. The Senate sent her a framed copy of the resolution, which she had written.
“I’m proud that our state was one of the first to act,” she said, noting other states have since set special days.
Clark said she was surprised to learn that the U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution on June 4, supporting setting the National Atomic Veterans Day. Or that, President Biden issued a proclamation on Atomic Veterans July 15. She said there had been no media coverage on the President’s action and she didn’t know about it until she was alerted by a friend.
While Clark is grateful the President is acknowledging Atomic Veterans, she would like to have the day recognized every year. She would like the state to do it, if not the nation.
Clark’s father was an Atomic Veteran and was present for 11 nuclear tests. She wonders if the family suffered from this radiation her father carried. Her mother had brain cancer and she wonders if it was from handling his clothes. Her two sisters suffer from cancers and her brothers have weak immune systems. Clark is healthy.
“President Biden brought it out nationally, but just for one day,” Clark said, noting these soldiers should be remembered forever forward.
President Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s July 15 proclamation reads, in part:
On July 16, 1945, the United States detonated the world’s first nuclear device in Alamogordo, New Mexico. Better know by its code name, “Trinity,” the successful test of the first atomic bomb brought forth a new age of science that changed the lives of many of those who served in our Armed Forces, and forever altered the nature and the risks of war. Just weeks later, the world witnessed the horrors of nuclear destruction at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which marked the end of World War II but opened our eyes to the truth that a nuclear war must never be fought.
Many brave men and women have risked their lives in service to our Nation, but few know the story of our “Atomic Veterans” – American military service members who participated in nuclear tests between 1945 and 1962, served with United States military forces in or around Hiroshima and Nagasaki through mid-1946, or were held as prisoners of war in or near Hiroshima or Nagasaki. These veterans served at testing sites like the Bikini Atoll and witnessed the destructive power of nuclear weapons firsthand. On National Atomic Veterans Day, we recognize and honor the contributions of America’s Atomic Veterans for their sacrifice and dedication to our Nation’s security and recommit to supporting our Atomic Veterans and educating ourselves on the role these patriots played in our national story.
Atomic Veterans served our Nation with distinction, but their service came at a great cost. Many developed health conditions due to radiation exposure, yet because they were not able to discuss the nature of their service, they were unable to seek medical care or disability compensation from the Department of Veterans affairs for their illnesses. Decades later in 1996, the United States Congress repealed the Nuclear Radiation and Secrecy Agreements Act, allowing Atomic Veterans to tell their stories and file for benefits. By then, thousands of Atomic Veterans had died without their families knowing the true extent of their service.
Our Nation has one truly sacred obligation: to properly prepare and equip our troops when we send them into harm’s way, and to care for them and their families when they return from service. As Commander in Chief, I am committed to fulfilling our obligation to the Atomic Veterans and their families and ensuring that all of our Nation’s veterans have timely access to needed services, medical care, and benefits.
On this National Atomic Veterans Day, our country remembers the service and sacrifices of Atomic Veterans. Their heroism and patriotism will never be forgotten and we always honor their bravery and devotion to duty…