HIST103: World History (1600–Present)

Within civil society in the West, there was great concern about the possibility of nuclear war. Civil defense plans were in place in many Western countries in case of nuclear disaster, with certain people designated for protection in secret safe havens that were built with the expectation that occupants would survive. In late 1958, the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament was formed by J. B. Priestley (1894-1984), the British writer and broadcaster Bertrand Russell (1872-1970), the philosopher A. J. P. Taylor (1906-90), the historian, with Peggy Duff (1910-1981) as the founder organizer. 

Committed to unilateral nuclear disarmament, CND held rallies and sit-ins on a nuclear basis, especially when Margaret Thatcher replaced Britain's Polaris missiles with the Trident model. From 1980 to 1985 as general secretary, then from 1987 until 1990 as president, Monsignor Bruce Kent was one of the most prominent peace activists and a household name in Britain, giving Christian involvement in the disarmament campaign a very high public profile.

Amnesty International, founded by Catholic attorney Peter Benenson and the Quaker Eric Baker in 1961, monitored and campaigned on behalf of prisoners of conscience. The Soviet Union was especially a focus of attention. The organization is not explicitly religious and attracts both religious and non-religious activists. The organization published a great deal of material on the Soviet system and how it prevented freedom of expression and freedom of thought. In 1977, Amnesty International won the Nobel Peace Prize. Other groups were especially concerned about religious freedom behind the "Iron Curtain" (the popular term for the border between Eastern and Western Europe). Many people also focused on China during this period.