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Group to Honor Atomic Bomb Victims

Activists will create origami cranes Saturday to honor those hurt or killed when the United States dropped atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945.

The event, sponsored by the San Fernando Valley Chapter of the United Nations Assn. of the United States of America, will pay special tribute to Sadako Sasaki, who believed that if she created 1,000 cranes through origami, the ancient art of folding paper, she would recover from the bomb blasts.

In Japan, the crane symbolizes longevity and hope. Sadako made 644 cranes before she died of leukemia 10 years after the bombs exploded, event organizers said.

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A U.S. atomic bomb, the first ever used in warfare, was dropped on Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945. Three days later, an atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki.

“We are remembering the people of Japan that suffered this to foster the idea of living productively and peacefully together,” said Laura Smith, co-chairwoman of media for the association.

The group, whose motto is “Thinking globally and acting locally,” works to educate others and advocate the work of the United Nations, Smith said.

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Leon Brown, a member of the West Coast Origami Guild, will share stories and lead the session. Brown currently teaches origami at the Mason Park Recreation Center in Chatsworth.

Some survivors, known as Hibakusha, will also participate in the event, which will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Sepulveda Unitarian Universalist Society, also known as The Onion, 9550 Haskell Ave., North Hills. Information: (818) 360-7623.

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