For the most part, civilians living on those tiny islands were not evacuated or given proper medical attention but were used as human guinea pigs during tests. Eighty-four percent of those who lived on the island of Rongelap who below 10 years old at the times of the explosions have required surgery for thyroid tumors. Millions of people around the world support the dismantling and halt to nuclear weapons, as do the governments of the countries in which they live in. Even though the U.S. and U.S.S.R. began the nuclear arms race, the U.S. and former Soviet states lead the way in the making of treaties and agreements for the abolition of atomic weapons. Most countries have also signed on to non-proliferation treaties.
Today there are twenty treaties that are active in the prevention of the spread of nuclear weapons.
The C-10 Radiological Network, NIRS, CNR, Greenpeace, and Citizen Alert among others. Hopefully the nuclear era is winding down and will be a part of history only in the future. As governments and people participate in halting nuclear weapons, the human race becomes safer and can look forward to a more promising future than one lived in constant fear of an attack. Support for a nuclear-free tomorrow continues to grow and the train of progress gains speed headed toward a world without weapons of mass destruction. This is a demonstration of the massive destructive force of a nuclear weapon.