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NEWS RELEASE
8 June 2009

Los Alamos National Laboratory
Pushes Angels Into A Box


vigilant angels
The two vigils for TNA included 5 angels passing out fliers including a quote from a nuclear bomb victim (Hibakusha).


Los Alamos, NM Trinity Nuclear Abolitionists will hold their 24th peace vigil at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) on June 25th 2009. The Abolitionist demonstrations against nuclearism have been held every month for almost two years in front of the main entrance sign at the corner of Diamond and West Jemez. From 6:30 to 8:00am, TNA will hold the prayer-action which includes five people. TNA is always nonviolent, playful, dialectic and peaceful. Recent vigils included rumors of "angels", who were corralled into the regular protest box (the painted red lines on LANL property).

Last year, two members of TNA were arrested for praying at LANL in opposition to war taxes. They were part of a group of six who held vigil on the 14th and 15th of April. The two were interrupted during the vigil and jailed for alleged trespass. One defendant, Marcus Page, had a mistrial last August 2008, and subsequently was declared guilty in a re-trial on March 31, 2009, at the behest of the Department of Energy.

In that trial, Page defended himself with Constitutional law, international law, and arguments about the immorality of supporting nuclear weapons. LANL used the court to justify their improprieties and disallow free speech on Department of Energy (DoE) land. The jury not only sided with LANL and the DoE, but also apparently gave a green light to LANL's unlawful crimes against humanity and violations of international law (creating, developing and maintaining weapons of mass destruction). Regarding his conviction, Page said, “It's very disheartening that a Los Alamos jury would care more about a local allegation of trespassing than the facts of international trespassing, Constitutional violations, and the practices of nuclear barbarism.”

LANL is a facility of the DoE. TNA is opposed to the missions of LANL and the DoE. TNA decries their works of war and nuclear barbarism while remaining committed to the goodness of the human employees at LANL, and the potential for employees to free themselves from the shackles of nuclearism.