Shut Down New York's Nuclear Reactors
Ben Hillman
1979
DIMENSIONS
22 x 17 in. (55.9 x 43.2 cm)
OBJECT NUMBER
PH.7482
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN
United States
CREDIT LINE
Gift of Ben Hillman
KEYWORDS
-

After the partial meltdown at Three Mile Island, antinuclear demonstrations became more frequent throughout the United States. This poster promotes two protests at Indian Point Energy Center near Peekskill, New York. They were timed to coincide with the anniversaries of the U.S. bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The poster’s headline underscores the fact that many activists did not draw a distinction between typical nuclear weapons and nuclear power: they viewed both as a threat to human life. At the bottom, the text notes that a study indicates that 27,000 people would die in the event of a major meltdown at Indian Point, while the image implies that New York City would be directly impacted. While the protests drew more than four thousand demonstrators, the power plant remained active until 2021. After it closed, three new power plants fueled by natural gas took its place, only intensifying the contentious debate over which form of energy is less damaging to the environment. 

For inquiries about image licensing, please contact collections@posterhouse.org.

Show me more
posters from this