Moratorium Unites Students for Peace

Moratorium Unites Students for Peace

Nacy J. Holt

The Quad

Special Collections, Francis Harvey Green Library, West Chester University

October 21, 1969

Olivia Smith

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Moratorium unites students for peace By NANCY J. HOLT A small portion of the Oct. 15 « Vietnam Moratorium was held here C at the college with moderate 1 student and faculty support. ] Readings of the war dead, a march, ' and auditorium discussions were ' the highlights of the day due to an i all-out group effort on the part of ' the Student Activist Committee. ' (SAC). ; The readings commenced in the Quad at 10 a.m. with an estimated 50 students present. Readers consisted mostly of SAC members, but anyone who wanted to take part was welcomed. Soon amplifiers were brought; candles were lit; black armbands were given out. Petition Circulated While the litany of the dead was being read in the Quad, a petition was circulated through the crowd to be signed by those opposing the | war. The petition was sponsor- ; ed by SANE, Citizens' Organiza- | tion for a Sane World. The op- I ening statement of the petition read: "Mr. President, the United States must end its involvement in Vietnam now. Only in this way can our government turn from the pur- ' suit of the most disastrous policy in its history." The readings in the Quad continued, and the crowd swelled until a little before twelve, when the march began to take shape. Approximately 350 marchers left the Quad at noon, headed for the courthouse. Preceded by a West Chester police escort and a hearse, the protestors chanted "All we are saying is give peace a chance." Litany Commences Reaching the courthouse, the marchers congregated on the sidewalk; their leaders In front of a statue bearing the inscription "Old Glory." Jim Kearney, member of SAC, then stood before the group saying, "We are all gathered here to bring the boys home." The litany of the dead, according to the HOUSE CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, then commenced. Faculty Present Among faculty members presentpresent at the courthouse were Terry Guidettl and Dr. Arthur Parris, both of the music department Dr. Parris spoke for himself and Guidetti when he said, "I wholeheartedly support the moratorilm.v» Two members of the faculty who were not in favor of the proceedings stood across the street from the courthouse. William Rampon of the geography department stated, "It's beautiful. The whole thing is being ignored just as it should be." Dr. Dusan Glumac of the foreign language department commented, "They're communists; I know them." William Rahn of the education department, Dr. Michael Kay of the history department, and Dr. Madelyn Gutwlrth of the foreign language department all particij pated in the reading of the dead at the courthouse. Dr. Jane Swan J read in the Quad ofter the march. I Flag Not Lowered At approximately 12:30,tenminutes after the marchers reached their destination, Mark Anderson of SAC attempted to lower the courthouse flag to half-mast. Two men, identified as veterans, raced over to him; saying, "You have no right to lower my flag." A marcher then corrected him, saying "our flag." Anderson then went into the courthouse seeking permission to lower the flag. He was not granted this permission. Spectators Comment Barricades were placed around the protestors a few minutes later to keep the crowd in the vicinity of the statue. Townspeople stood across the street and watched. One man commented that he was present just out of curiosity. A veteran said, "It would be an enlightening experience for some of these people to be in Vietnam." Evidently, he was unaware that there were some 20 veterans who participated in the ceremonies.Some spectators asked this reporter the purpose of the moratori - um. one policeman, while trying to keep the crowd In the vicinity of the statue before the barricades arrived, commented, "It's their thing." Discussions Begun While the reading of the dead was going on in the Quad and at the courthouse, C. Ralph Verno of the mathematics department started the auditorium discussions in Philips at 10 a.m. In a very forceful tone, he stated that the biggest threat of the United States is from within. Toward the conclusion of his talk, he suggested, "Let's (U.S.) be number one in honesty, integrity, and character." Both comments drew applause from the half-filled auditorium. At 11 a.m., Mitch Crane, former regional director of SDS, Dr. Kay, and Dr. Robert Weiss of the English department took over the podium. Dr. Kay analyzed the presence of the United States in Vietnam in the terms of the views and intentions of the military, corporate enterprises, federal executives, South Vietnamese government, and Americal liberalism. Dr. Weiss gave a historical analysis of the war. Burton Present Bryn Hammerstrum of the National Liberation Front spoke at noon, and William Burns, Wayne Burton, David Eldredge, James Milne, and John Shea, all of the political science department talked at 1 p.m. Hammerstrum spoke again at two, and a member of the audience from Panama commented on the freedom of speech in the United States. Daniel Civitello, Jr., President of the Philosophy Club, spoke at approximately 3 p. m. He said that he doesn't think that the United States is going to win anything in Vietnam. Civitello also stated that "there's no reason in hell why we're in Vietnam." Dr. Thomas Platt of the Philosophy department and William Rahn of the education department p spoke between 4 and 5 p.m.