Y-12 Plant (TN)

After more than half a dozen holiday-themed civil resistance actions over the past year at the gate of the Y-12 uranium processing plant at Oak Ridge, Tennessee, the Anderson County District Attorney General has given up on prosecuting the resisters. A few days after August's Hiroshima anniversary action, a Knoxville newspaper reported his complaint of "selective prosecution" where "cases of drunken driving, theft and other crimes on the federal property have been dropped or ignored while he's regularly called upon to prosecute people who walk across the boundary line at Y-12."

Consequently, eight Hiroshima Day line-crossers were prosecuted in city court, and the absence of a city jail meant a criminal penalty was not even an option. Before crossing the line, demonstrators spent the day vigiling and reading the names of Hiroshima victims, each name followed by the ringing of a peace bell. A huge Y-12 sign was also draped with a black banner in the style of popular billboard messages: "Stop the Bombs. God." A $500 fine was suspended for all defendants on the condition they avoid trouble for a year. All but one paid a $40 court fee.

Francisco Risso, subject of a warrant for refusing to pay a fine or fee from an earlier Y-12 protest, was a featured speaker at the Hiroshima Day rally but was not detained.

A Father's Day celebration and action at the Y-12 plant also resulted in eight arrests. After a piñata for the kids and a 'Father Knows Best?' skit for everyone, the fathers walked across the line in matching green Stop the Bombs ties. Seven pled guilty and received a small fine. The eighth had his charge dismissed later.

For more information, contact Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance, 100 Tulsa Rd., Suite 4A, Oak Ridge, TN 37380, (423)483-8202; email: orep@earthlink.net