On April 5, 1955, Bertrand Russell, the renowned philosopher and Nobel laureate in literature, wrote to Albert Einstein, the celebrated physicist and Nobel laureate, requesting his support for a statement warning against the catastrophic dangers of nuclear weapons. This letter marked the beginning of what would become the historic Russell-Einstein Manifesto.
The manifesto emerged during a tense period of the Cold War, as the world faced the looming threat of nuclear annihilation. Both Russell and Einstein had long been vocal about the perils of atomic weapons, especially after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. By 1955, with the advent of hydrogen bombs,thousands of times more powerful than earlier atomic bombs,the urgency to address nuclear proliferation had intensified. Russell's letter emphasised that war in the nuclear age could lead to "the extinction of life on this planet" and called for scientists to unite in urging global leaders to renounce nuclear weapons.
Einstein responded promptly to Russell's appeal, stating that he agreed "gladly" to sign the statement. His endorsement was one of his final public acts; he passed away on April 18, 1955, just days after approving the manifesto. In their correspondence, both intellectuals shared a sense of responsibility as scientists whose work had inadvertently contributed to humanity's perilous situation.
The manifesto was unveiled on July 9, 1955, at a press conference in London. It was signed by eleven eminent scientists from various countries, including Einstein (posthumously), Percy Bridgman, Linus Pauling, Hideki Yukawa, and Joseph Rotblat. The document appealed for peaceful resolutions to conflicts and warned against the existential threat posed by nuclear weapons. It famously asked: "Shall we put an end to the human race; or shall mankind renounce war?"
The manifesto led to the establishment of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs in 1957, which continue to work toward global disarmament and conflict resolution. The document remains a powerful reminder of the moral responsibility scientists bear in shaping policies that impact humanity's survival.
