BDRG: Boston Draft Resistance Group
Anti-Vietnam War Movement
"Actually the first film that was made and distributed by Newsreel. Detailed draft resistance organizing in Boston." (Roz Payne Archive) <iframe width="640" height="480" src="https://archive.org/embed/MotionPicture0095" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Newsreel Films
Internet Archive
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
1968
film
Summer '68
Anti-Vietnam War Movement
"Draft resistance organizing in Boston, a Boston organizer's trip to North Vietnam -- a G.I. coffeehouse in Texas, Newsreel's take over of Channel 13 in New York -- following the production of the Rat's special issue on Chicago -- and Chicago during the Democratic Convention, the planning and carriage out of five days of protest. Each section focuses on an organizer central to each project -- the attempt is to define the nature of commitment to "the Movement" against a backdrop of 1968's summer activities." (Roz Payne Archive) <iframe width="640" height="470" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/112328836" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
<p><a href="https://vimeo.com/112328836">SUMMER'68 - Newsreel</a> from <a href="https://vimeo.com/user2384966">john douglas</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p>
Newsreel Films
Vimeo
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
1968
film
New York Anti-War Demonstration, December 1967
(12 images)
Anti-Vietnam War Movement
In 1967, anti-war activists shifted tactics from “protest to resistance” to the War in Vietnam, seeking more militant means on the home front to challenge U.S. policy in Southeast Asia. In October of that year, anti-war activists organized the first “Stop the Draft Week,” an effort to engage in civil disobedience at draft induction centers. Most famously, in Oakland, hundreds of activists marched on the Oakland Army Induction Center in an effort to shut it down. Police responded with widespread violence. In December, anti-war organizations organized a second “Stop the Draft Week.” In New York, Dr. Benjamin Spock and poet Allen Ginsburg led more than 1,000 demonstrators to the Whitehall induction center in New York.
A December 6, 1967, New York Times article by Homer Bigart, titled, “264 Seized Here in Draft Protest,” offered an account of the protest:
The police arrested 264 persons, including Dr. Benjamin Spock and the poet Allen Ginsberg, during a demonstration yesterday between 5 A.M. and 6 A.M. by more than 2,500 antidraft, antiwar protesters at the armed forces induction center at 39 Whitehall Street.
The mass arrests, anticipated by both the demonstrators and the police, brought the only turbulent moments in a generally orderly demonstration.
But the police were alerted for a livelier protest today when a coalition of more that 40 antiwar groups plans to surround the induction center with 5,000 demonstrators who have been instructed to paralyze traffic in the area.
The Police Department issued an order marshaling all available manpower in the 28,000-man force on either an active or a standby basis, effective through Friday. About 4,000 men were expected to be on duty at the induction station today.
The center opens at 5:30 A.M., Mondays through Fridays, and that is why the demonstrators are obliged to be up long before dawn.
Yesterday's siege failed to disrupt either the induction center or the neighboring tip of the financial district.
The ranks of demonstrators thinned out before the morning rush hour. Leaders said they had no intention of trying to force a halt in the induction process; they merely wanted a "symbolic" protest. But today, they said, would be different.
Starting at 5:30 A.M., according to instructions issued by the Stop the Draft Week Committee, demonstrators will not only block streets in the area but will try to intercept inductees and persuade them to join the protest.
The police massed more than 2,500 men yesterday and defended the induction center, a faded nine-story red brick building of 1886 construction, with barricades so formidable that Dr. Spock had to plead for an opening so that he could sit on the entrance steps and be arrested.
Among those arrested were Dr. Conor Cruise O'Brien, Albert Schweitzer Professor of Humanities at New York University, and his wife Maire, daughter of the former deputy Prime Minister of Ireland, Sean MacEntee. The O'Briens were among a group staging a sit-in at Broad and Pearl Streets, one block from the induction center.
Mrs. O'Brien told newsmen that mounted policemen drove their horses into the sitting group and her husband was assaulted by policemen who followed on foot.
"They [the police] kicked Conor around quite a bit," she said.
Dr. O'Brien, who headed the United Nations mission to Katanga during the 1961 Congo crisis, insisted on medical attention, according to Mrs. O'Brien. She said the police took them both to Bellevue Hospital, where it was found that Dr. O'Brien had suffered bruises. He was discharged yesterday afternoon.
Assembling in early morning darkness, the demonstrators arrived in Peter Minuit Plaza armed with notebooks and cameras so, they explained, they could record instances of police brutality.
But the police, operating under a set of "instructions and principles" issued by Chief Inspector Sanford D. Garelik, behaved in a manner that drew praise later in the day from Mayor Lindsay.
Mayor Lindsay told a City Hall news conference that he had received a full report on the demonstration and believed it was "handled very well by the police."
The Garelik instructions warned the police to respect the rights of the dissenters so long as the demonstrators did not impede the rights and the free movement of others.
All of the 264 persons arrested - there were 171 men and 93 women - were paroled when arraigned in Criminal Court on charges of disorderly conduct. Hearings have been set from Jan. 10 to Jan. 24.
In an unusual step, those arrested were not booked at a police station but were taken directly in police vans to the Criminal Court Building at 100 Centre Street. There, close to the courtroom, the police had set up a booking desk. Equipment for fingerprinting and photographing any who might be charged with a felony was also at hand.
In addition to disorderly conduct, two of the prisoners were charged with resisting arrest. They were Tuli Kupferberg, 44 years old, of 301 East 10th Street, an editor of East Village Other, and Jonathan Miller, 20, of 120 West 106th Street.
Judge Walter H. Gladwin released all without bail but warned the defendants that if they were brought before him after participating in any other demonstrations this week "I shall have to set bail for you."
Hearings for Dr. Spock and Mr. Ginsberg will be held Jan. 10.
Dr. Spock told reporters out of court that he had been "cheerfully straight-armed" by the police when he tried to climb over a triple row of wooden horses and reach the steps of the induction building.
Reporters who saw the incident recalled that the 64-year-old Dr. Spock after failing in an effort to crawl under the barricade, mounted the wooden horses but was gently pushed back into the mass of demonstrators by policemen on the other side.
Finally, a police official showed Dr. Spock an opening at the end of the barricade. Whereupon the child doctor and antiwar agitator led about a dozen demonstrators from the picket line in the middle of Whitehall Street to the building steps. There, surrounded by policemen, they were allowed to squat on the cold stones for a few symbolic moments before they were arrested.
As soon as the van had taken them off, a second, group, this one headed by Mr. Ginsberg, was allowed to repeat Dr. Spock's performance. Mr. Ginsberg, the bearded beatnik poet, was wearing an orange batik shawl, a huge flowered tie, a rosary and a Buddhist amulet.
There were cymbals on his fingers, of the sort affected by Egyptian belly dancers, and he made a cheerful tinkle as the police hustled him to a van.
Some of those who sat on the steps went limp as policemen approached and had to be carried to the wagons while the pickets cheered.
But there was no violence here. Many of the pickets seemed middle-aged or older, and were not inclined to be violently demonstrative. One of the demonstrators, Beatrix Turner, 68, an artist, even praised the police: "I think the police behaved well; I'm full of compliments for them."
Very few Negroes were seen among the pickets.
A younger, much more militant outpouring was predicted today. Tactics "inspired" by the antidraft demonstration in Oakland, Calif., last Oct. 16 will be used, according to the sponsors. At Oakland, missiles were thrown and vehicles set afire.
But spokesmen for four of the sponsoring groups insisted that the protest today would be "nonviolent," even though it would involve "active interference with the war machine."
Meanwhile, inside the induction center, the commanding officer, Lieut. Col. James McPoland, called yesterday's demonstration "a big zero." Induction operations were normal and he predicted that the center would continue to process about 250 men daily.
Youths carrying brown envelopes containing orders to report for induction made their way unmolested through picket and police lines during the height of the demonstration. They vanished through an elevator door that bore the slogan "The Security of World Peace Starts Here."
"Somebody's gonna fight," said Pedro Anton Baez, 19, as he neared the building. "If I have to go to Vietnam, I'll go."
Roz Payne
Roz Payne
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
December 5, 1967
New Left Notes, vol. 1, no. 17, May 13, 1966
New Left
New Left Notes was the official newspaper published by the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS). This issue includes articles about upcoming demonstrations against Vietnam draft tests on campuses; local updates; grape strike; National Council minutes; JOIN Community Union; MFDP summer recruiting; Southern Courier recruitment.
Students for a Democratic Society
Bruce Pech
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
May 13, 1966
underground press
New Left Notes, vol. 1, no. 36, September 23, 1966
New Left
New Left Notes was the official newspaper published by the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS). This issue includes articles about anti-draft organizing; the Clear Lake National Convention; financing a movement; SDS at University of Kentucky; National Council Resolutions; National Secretary’s Report; paranoid politics; SDS and electoral politics; merger of National Farm Worker’s Union and AFL-CIO; Radical Education Project (REP) report; Student Un-American Activities Committee at San Jose State College; Inter-University Committee for Debate on Foreign Policy; JOIN Community Union; literature list; letters to the editor.
Students for a Democratic Society
Bruce Pech
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
September 23, 1966
underground press
New Left Notes, vol. 1 no. 40 and 41, October 28, 1966
New Left
New Left Notes was the official newspaper published by the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS). This issue includes articles about a migrant labor strike in Wisconsin; reactionary radicals; peace candidates; anti-draft activism; internal education; university reform and revolution; Vice-President’s report; Black Power ad; chapter contact list; College Young Democratic Clubs controversy.
Students for a Democratic Society
Bruce Pech
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
October 28, 1966
underground press
New Left Notes, vol. 1, no. 44, November 18, 1966
New Left Notes was the official newspaper published by the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS). This issue includes articles about councilmanic redistricting; anti-draft activism; an anti-war event in London; a plea to the people of America from prominent Latin Americans against the War in Vietnam; Malcolm X, power, politics and organizing; the case of Jeff Segal; war profiteering; university reform; Latin American Defense Organization; Radical Education Project; planning for the upcoming National Council meeting; report from Columbia, Missouri; analysis of anti-draft conference in Chicago; report of activism by San Fernando Valley State SDS chapter; report from first Mid-Atlantic SDS meeting; protest by magistrates in Pikeville, Kentucky; African liberation in Guinea, Angola and Mozambique.
Students for a Democratic Society
Bruce Pech
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
November 18, 1966
underground press
The Black Panther, January 9, 1971
Black Power
In this January 9, 1971 issue of The Black Panther, articles include: a statement of support for the National Liberation Front in Vietnam in the name of international solidarity; a map of the U.S. showing incidents of "Guerilla Acts of Sabotage and Terrorism”; an open letter to "revolutionary children" highlighting the activism and history of the Black Panther Party; coverage of the trial of Ericka Huggins and Bobby Seale, including articles of support from allies of the Black Panthers and a letter from Huggins herself on "How to Love During a Revolution”; black draft resistance; the New York 21 case; the Jonathan Jackson Commune; the case of Monk Teba; the Juan Farina Defense Committee; Chicago Free Busing Program; G.I. Rights; police brutality in Baltimore, Toledo and Las Vegas; a U.N. Report on racism in the U.S.; a Solidarity Activities Calendar; international news shorts; the Ten Point Program; a statement of party rules; advertisements for The Lumpen, sponsored by the Chicano Revolutionary Party; and, artwork by Emory Douglas.
The Black Panther Intercommunal News Service
Roz Payne
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
January 9, 1971
underground press
The Glass Onion
Student Movement
This newsletter advertises the organization of the Bridgeport High School Student Union based in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Protesting the organization and administrative authority in the local educational system, this newsletter underlines issues concerning high school students such as the draft board, the militarization of campus law enforcement, war spending, women’s education, and the authoritative structure of secondary education.
The High School Free Press
Roz Payne
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
ca. early-1970s
underground press
Stop the Draft
Anti-Vietnam War Movement
This poster incorporates a variety of other anti-war stickers and graphics into a collage.
unknown
Roz Payne
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
unknown
poster
Rainbow River
White Panther Party
Rainbow River was an underground press paper put out by the White Panther Party in Somerville, Massachusetts. In this issue, article topics include drugs, high schools and oppression, draft resistance, poetry about revolution and food coops, a Weather Underground statement and the White Panther Party 12-Point Program.
White Panther Party
Roz Payne
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
ca. early-1970s
underground press
newsletter
Women, Deserters, Resisters
Anti-Vietnam War Movement
This flyer encourages women, military deserters, draft resisters to stay in the U.S. rather than immigrate to Canada. Created by the American Exile Counseling Center, the flyer also promotes the services and resources of the group.
American Exile Counseling Center
Roz Payne
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
ca. late-1960s or early-1970s
mimeograph
leaflet
The Draft is Stopping
Anti-War Movement
The Student Mobilization Committee was formed in 1966 "to coordinate opposition to U.S. involvement in the war in Vietnam among college and high school students." Originally named The Vietnam Day Committee the SMC organized protests on campuses and in cities. While the group opposed the war, generally, it specifically focused on the draft. The SMC is also notable as one of the first Vietnam-era anti-war groups that included both civilians and soldiers. This button promotes the December 4-8, 1967, "Stop the Draft Week" that took place in New York City. Demonstrations that week resulted in 585 arrests, including Dr. Benjamin Spock.
Student Mobilization Committee
Roz Payne
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
1967
Button
Physical Object
Hell No The Resistance
Anti-Vietnam War Movement
During the late-1960s, anti-war activism moved from protest to resistance. A popular slogan among college students and other activists was “Hell no, we won’t go!” Some war resisters eluded the draft by symbolically burning their draft cards, moving to another country, such as Canada, or going underground.
unknown
Roz Payne
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
ca. late-1960s
Button
Physical Object
Free Capt. Howard Levy M.D.
Anti-Vietnam War Movement
In 1967, Captain Howard B. Levy faced a court-martial after declining to provide medical training for Green Berets heading to the war zone in Vietnam, arguing that such a practice was against medical and his personal ethics. The trial received national attention and raised questions about the responsibility of military doctors to teach soldiers medicine, as well as an individual’s right to refuse to participate in war crimes. Levy served two years in prison for his actions and his case ultimately reached the Supreme Court.
unknown
Roz Payne
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
ca. 1967
Button
Physical Object
Join the Mobilization
Anti-Vietnam War Movement
On April 15, 1967, the National Mobilization Committee organized a protest march against the Vietnam War from Central Park to the United Nations. One of the largest demonstrations of the Vietnam War era, an estimated 100,000 to 400,000 participated, including a range of anti-war and civil rights organizations. The march was peaceful, with five arrests, all of people who opposed the demonstration. During the event, Martin Luther King, Jr., Floyd McKissick, Stokely Carmichael and Dr. Benjamin Spock all gave speeches in front of the United Nations critiquing U.S. involvement in the war as well as the socioeconomic politics of the draft. Prior to the march, nearly 200 draft cards were burned by youths in Central Park. In San Francisco, Black nationalists led a march of an estimated 20,000 mostly white demonstrators in San Francisco on the same day.
Here is a news footage of the march in New York:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=18&v=40m5gBgwjQE
Spring Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam
Roz Payne
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
1967
poster
Stop the Draft Week on Trial - Defend the Oakland 7
Anti-Vietnam War Movement
In 1967, anti-war activists shifted tactics from “protest to resistance” to the War in Vietnam, seeking more militant means on the home front to challenge U.S. policy in Southeast Asia. In October of that year, anti-war activists organized the first “Stop the Draft Week,” an effort to engage in civil disobedience at draft induction centers. Most famously, in Oakland, hundreds of activists marched on the Oakland Army Induction Center in an effort to shut it down. Police responded with widespread violence and numerous arrests. This poster promotes an effort to support the Oakland 7.
unknown
Roz Payne
Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
ca. 1967
poster