A Little Ketch With A Big Mission

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Kirsty Gaukel
Hudson River Maritime Museum
Press & Marketing Manager
[email protected]


Golden Rule Inquires:
Helen Jaccard
Veterans For Peace
Golden Rule Project Manager
vfpgoldenruleproject.org

---

The Historic GOLDEN RULE Sails into Kingston on July 7, 2023

KINGSTON, N.Y. (May 17, 2023) – The Hudson River Maritime Museum is delighted to announce that the historic Golden Rule sailboat—a project of Veterans For Peace— will be visiting the waterfront on Wednesday, July 7. A film, “Making Waves: Rebirth of the Golden Rule,” documenting the sailboat’s history and its protest of the US Navy air and sea show in 2017 will be screened on the Museum’s campus in Homeport Barn on July 7 at 7:00 pm.  

The Golden Rule was originally launched in 1958 and was the very first of the environmental and peace vessels to go to sea. In 1958, a crew of anti-nuclear weapons activists set sail aboard her in an attempt to interpose themselves and the boat between the U.S. Government and its atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons in the Marshall Islands in the Pacific Ocean. Later restored by Veterans for Peace, the Golden Rule is voyaging once again and will be docked at the marina as part of their “The Great Loop” tour of the entire eastern half of the United States. Come learn from Captain Kiko Johnston-Kitazawa about the little ketch with a big mission - to stop the possibility of nuclear annihilation.

THE HISTORY OF THE GOLDEN RULE

In 1958, four men set sail on the Golden Rule with the intention of entering the nuclear weapons testing zone in the Marshall Islands (4000 miles east of California).  The vessel was stopped near Honolulu and the Golden Rule crew were arrested, sparking a huge backlash among the public, who added “Free the crew of the Golden Rule” to their “Stop A&H Bomb Tests” message.  The resulting swell of concern over radiation in the atmosphere gave President Kennedy the political cover he needed to sign the Limited Test Ban Treaty of 1963.  The tactic of using a boat for protesting against nuclear tests spawned the founding of Greenpeace in 1971.

The Golden Rule was restored from 2010-15 after she sank in a gale in northern California.  Veterans For Peace, the owner of the Golden Rule, has sailed her on the West Coast and around the Hawaiian Islands. 
​
Captain Kiko Johnston-Kitazawa is a 4th generation boat builder and teaches people to sail, especially Hawaiian Sailing Canoes on the Big Island of Hawaii.  He has captained the Golden Rule around the Hawaiian Islands, from there to San Francisco Bay, and for hundreds of miles down the center of the US and to Cuba and back.  He has Native Hawaiian and Guam roots.

The Golden Rule is a project of Veterans For Peace. We aim to advance Veterans For Peace opposition to nuclear weapons and war, and to do so in a dramatic fashion.
For inquiries, please contact Helen Jaccard, Veterans For Peace Golden Rule Project Manager at vfpgoldenruleproject.org.

 ##

The Hudson River Maritime Museum is dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of the maritime history of the Hudson River, its tributaries and related industries. In addition to extensive collections documenting maritime transportation, industry, recreation, and natural science, the museum offers classes and programs at its Wooden Boat School, Sailing and Rowing School, and aboard Solaris, the 100% solar powered tour boat and floating classroom. The museum is located along the historic Rondout waterfront in downtown Kingston. Visit www.hrmm.org for more information.

Photo credits:
Photo 1 - Golden Rule in La Crosse
Photo 2 – Great Loop Route Map