Last updated: July 16, 2024
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The Story of Sadako Sasaki
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COPYRIGHT: SADAKO LEGACY NP0
“This is our cry. This is our prayer. Peace in the world."
Sadako Sasaki was two years old on August 6th, 1945 when pilot Paul Tibbetts and crew of the United States Air Force flew a B-29 bomber airplane over the city of Hiroshima, Japan. Unlike the many other B-29 bombers that had flown over Hiroshima the past days and weeks, this aircraft, the Enola Gay, was much different than previous B-29 bombers. The Enola Gay carried an atomic bomb named “Little Boy.” By order of President Harry S. Truman, Tibbetts and his crew dropped one of the most powerful bombs ever created over the city of Hiroshima, Japan and a population of approximately 350,000 people. The story of Sadako Sasaki, a young girl who lived through the bombing of Hiroshima, and eventually died from leukemia, is just one of many stories from Hiroshima on August 6th, 1945. Yet, Sadako’s story still resonates with many people today.Sadako and family lived a little over one mile from the bomb’s hypocenter. A blinding white light flashed through the city, and a huge boom was heard miles away when Little Boy exploded over Sadako’s hometown. Immediately, fires broke out all over the city and radioactive black rain began to fall from the sky. Sadako, with her mother and brother, escaped the fires. Sadako’s grandmother was leaving with Sadako and her family when she turned back to retrieve some family heirlooms from their home. She was never seen again. Shigeo, Sadako’s father, was not in Hiroshima at the time of the bombing. Shigeo reunited with his family after the bombing, and Sadako and her family returned to Hiroshima to rebuild their lives.
Like many others living in Hiroshima following World War II, the Sasaki family struggled with sickness, financial hardship, food scarcity, and the uncertainty of their families’ future. They mourned the loss of their grandmother, neighbors, and home. The Sasaki family would also grieve for Sadako when she became sick with leukemia, called atomic bomb disease by some in Hiroshima because the cancer was likely caused by the radioactive black rain that fell on Sadako and Hiroshima on the day of the bombing.
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COPYRIGHT ELLIE REIMER
Sadako’s soon filled her room with hundreds of colorful origami cranes of all different sizes. After folding her thousandth crane, Sadako made her wish, to be well again. Sadly, Sadako’s wish did not come true. She remained ill but did not lose her faith in origami cranes. Sadako began folding more cranes for her father’s debt to be forgiven, her new wish. Sadako continued to fold cranes, some as small as a grain of rice, until her last moments. Surrounded by family, with 1,300 origami cranes in her room and hanging overhead, Sadako passed away at the age of twelve.
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Copyright: Sadako Legacy NPO
DiCicco, Sue, and Masahiro Sasaki. The Complete Story of Sadako Sasaki. Santa Barbara: Armed with the Arts, Inc., 2018.
Daniel, Clifton Truman. “Sadako Sasaki's Cranes and Hiroshima's 65th Anniversary.” Chicago Tribune. August 6, 2020, https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2010-08-06-ct-oped-0806-war-20100806-story.html
"Survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki." Atomic Heritage Foundation. Last modified July 27, 2007, https://www.atomicheritage.org/history/survivors-hiroshima-and-nagasaki
Daniel, Clifton Truman. “Sadako Sasaki's Cranes and Hiroshima's 65th Anniversary.” Chicago Tribune. August 6, 2020, https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2010-08-06-ct-oped-0806-war-20100806-story.html
"Survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki." Atomic Heritage Foundation. Last modified July 27, 2007, https://www.atomicheritage.org/history/survivors-hiroshima-and-nagasaki
Learn More About Sadako
This video shares more about the life and legacy of Sadako. Within the video player, you can select for audio description narration and toggle closed captions.Sadako's Origami Cranes—A Message of Peace
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Two-year old Sadako Sasaki was at home in Hiroshima, Japan, on August 6, 1945, when the US dropped the Little Boy atomic bomb over her city. Sadako survived the bombing of Hiroshima but passed away ten years later from leukemia. Japanese folklore says that a crane can live for a thousand years, and a person who folds an origami crane for each year of a crane’s life will have their wish granted. Sadako folded 1,300 origami cranes shortly before her death in 1955.