p. 1 |
Previous | 1 of 28 | Next |
|
small (250x250 max)
medium (500x500 max)
Large
Extra Large
large ( > 500x500)
Full Resolution
All (PDF)
|
This page
All
|
Loading content ...
cunne/ty new/ icans for Amnesty Mr a special supplement of American Report sponsored by America Something Decent For A Change by Ramsey Clark The war in Indochina leaves our nation divided and troubled. For many, believing we have found peace with honor is essential to self-respect. For others, the dishonor, self-inflicted by our violence, will require generations of service to humanity if we are to redeem our character. The war has left a heritage of hate, doubt, grief, fear and anguish. Few experiences in our history have so tortured -■the- AnTericah'isou'l.-;Our deiftial &- tti"e'common" humanity of the Indochinese, our use of technology against life there, have raised profound questions of our purposes as a nation and whether we intend justice. Among the people of Southeast Asia, over two million have been killed. All have suffered. The war has been the single most significant fact in the life of everyone. Nature herself has been ravaged. More then 50,000 American men have lost their lives to the war. Still greater numbers have lost their health and wholeness. Hundreds spent months or years in foreign prisons. Several million others spent years of their lives in a military pursuit they did not choose, and often did not believe in. The nation, as a whole, has given an enormous amount of its energy and resources, diverted from the urgent needs of life: food, health, knowledge, labor, adequate housing, liveable cities The war leaves another enormous group of casualties: young Americans forced to Choose between obedience to the Military Selective Service Act and the drastic consequences of failing to do so. For many who chose military service the conflict came later, leading to desertion or a discharge less than honorable. Except for the war, none of these young men would have been confronted with Oris necessity to -^do^lalTjfougKfIherh into con"rlKJt*witH"their' government. However we feel about their actions, we should not assume their course has been easy for them, their families, or their friends. They have borne a full measure of grief, hardship, and suffering. It continues until this moment and— even if assuaged by amnesty—will continue until death. The war is the single most significant fact in the lives of well over 500,000 young Americans Under the direct coercion of law, these young men became victims of discrimination by classification clerks, draft boards, conimanding officers, and courts-martial before whom they stood, often uncounseled and uninformed of their rights. They suffer a stigma that greatly diminishes their chance to hold a job, to live normal lives, to make a contribution. We should ask what this accomplishes, and why a free democratic society vests such arbitrary power in the military to blight so needlessly the lives of those it finds unacceptable. Today, thousands of young Americans who have violated the law of their land live in exile, unwelcome by the Lady in the Harbor whose torch once burned for the poor and oppressed of all lands. More than 20,000 have obtained oer- manent legal status in Canada, with perhaps as many there without such status. Most live, furtively ^herein Am erica jjives of qgiet-desperatiofl... While Thdse young people were refusing to register, resisting induction, deserting from the service, and receiving less than honorable discharges, millions of young men in their age group, with the privileges of wealth, knowledge, power, and opportunity were evading military service. Famous, physically strong professional football players and affluent young men who "knew the right doctors" received medical deferments. For several years college campuses offered haven to young men often beyond their academic interest. Some with no prior or permanent intention to teach, were able to use this occupation as an escape from military service. National Guard ranks and reserve units of the military services were swelled by young men avoiding the draft and the war. Of the draft-age I Continued Page 2-A) The Politics of Amnesty by Carl D. Rogers Although President Nixon would hardly suggest the term, he is asking for himself exactly what the war resisters want: amnesty—a word derived from the same Greek stem as amnesia, meaning oblivious, intentional overlooking, a "general pardon of past offenses." While some of us believe the President has committed high crimes and misdemeanors, polls indicate a majority of the American people are willing to forget—to overlook Watergate, Cambodia, and the rest for the good of the nation. It now remains to be seen whether they will grant the same degree of public pardon to those whose Carl Rogers was a Chaplain's Assistant in Vietnam with the Army's 1st Logistical Command. He was a Co-founder of the Vietnam Veterans Against The War in 1967. resistance activities have brought them into conflict with the law. Although the war—along with so much else— has been overshadowed by Watergate, our intervention in Indochina continues, and tens of thousands of political prisoners remain in Saigon jails. As we begin to talk about amnesty let us acknowledge the existence of a "post-war" atmosphere—created by the release of our POW's, the return of American fighting men, and the end of bombing—but let us not talk of amnesty as a post-war issue until there is no more war. And let us be aware of the tremendous task before us in educating the American people about these other victims of the war: the young men who refused to wage it. Though the public may well believe the war is over, that has not seemed to make them more open to amnesty, at least an amnesty as presented to them so far. In fact, pollster Lou Harris' surveys indicate a hardening of attitudes on amnesty for war resisters over the past two years. Harris Polls Favor Oppose Not Sure June, 1972 38 53 9 August, 1972 27 60 13 March, 1973 24 67 9 A New York radio station (WNEW) sampled sentiment in the greater metropolitan area and found 79 percent saying "No" to the question of whether "some sort of amnesty" should be granted to those who avoided the draft by leaving the country. Amnesty for deserters brought an even higher number of "No's." When the issue is spelled out or dramatized, however, as in the case of a recent hour-long TV program sponsored by the National Council of Churches, the response is quite different. Viewers M. Margolis
Object Description
Title | Amnesty news : a special supplement of American report sponsored by Americans for Amnesty |
Place of publication | New York, New York |
Publisher | Americans for Amnesty |
Publication date | 1973-1974 |
Language | English |
Country | United States |
Digital Format | XML |
Publisher-Electronic | Wisconsin Historical Society |
Publication Date-Electronic | 2015 |
Rights | Copyright belongs to the individuals who created them or the organizations for which they worked. We share them here strictly for non-profit educational purposes. If you believe that you possess copyright to material included here, please contact us at asklibrary@wisconsinhistory.org. Under the fair use provisions of the U.S. copyright law, teachers and students are free to reproduce any document for nonprofit classroom use. Commercial use of copyright-protected material is generally prohibited. |
Owner | Brünn, Harris Watts Collection - Serials and Press Release Soldiers Movements, International Institute of Social History, Amsterdam; Wisconsin Historical Society |
Type | Text; Image |
Digital identifier | giNewsletter287000 |
Description
Title | p. 1 |
Language | English |
Digital Format | JPEG2000 |
Publisher-Electronic | Wisconsin Historical Society |
Publication Date-Electronic | 2015 |
Rights | Copyright belongs to the individuals who created them or the organizations for which they worked. We share them here strictly for non-profit educational purposes. If you believe that you possess copyright to material included here, please contact us at asklibrary@wisconsinhistory.org. Under the fair use provisions of the U.S. copyright law, teachers and students are free to reproduce any document for nonprofit classroom use. Commercial use of copyright-protected material is generally prohibited. |
Owner | Brünn, Harris Watts Collection - Serials and Press Release Soldiers Movements, International Institute of Social History, Amsterdam; Wisconsin Historical Society |
Full text | cunne/ty new/ icans for Amnesty Mr a special supplement of American Report sponsored by America Something Decent For A Change by Ramsey Clark The war in Indochina leaves our nation divided and troubled. For many, believing we have found peace with honor is essential to self-respect. For others, the dishonor, self-inflicted by our violence, will require generations of service to humanity if we are to redeem our character. The war has left a heritage of hate, doubt, grief, fear and anguish. Few experiences in our history have so tortured -■the- AnTericah'isou'l.-;Our deiftial &- tti"e'common" humanity of the Indochinese, our use of technology against life there, have raised profound questions of our purposes as a nation and whether we intend justice. Among the people of Southeast Asia, over two million have been killed. All have suffered. The war has been the single most significant fact in the life of everyone. Nature herself has been ravaged. More then 50,000 American men have lost their lives to the war. Still greater numbers have lost their health and wholeness. Hundreds spent months or years in foreign prisons. Several million others spent years of their lives in a military pursuit they did not choose, and often did not believe in. The nation, as a whole, has given an enormous amount of its energy and resources, diverted from the urgent needs of life: food, health, knowledge, labor, adequate housing, liveable cities The war leaves another enormous group of casualties: young Americans forced to Choose between obedience to the Military Selective Service Act and the drastic consequences of failing to do so. For many who chose military service the conflict came later, leading to desertion or a discharge less than honorable. Except for the war, none of these young men would have been confronted with Oris necessity to -^do^lalTjfougKfIherh into con"rlKJt*witH"their' government. However we feel about their actions, we should not assume their course has been easy for them, their families, or their friends. They have borne a full measure of grief, hardship, and suffering. It continues until this moment and— even if assuaged by amnesty—will continue until death. The war is the single most significant fact in the lives of well over 500,000 young Americans Under the direct coercion of law, these young men became victims of discrimination by classification clerks, draft boards, conimanding officers, and courts-martial before whom they stood, often uncounseled and uninformed of their rights. They suffer a stigma that greatly diminishes their chance to hold a job, to live normal lives, to make a contribution. We should ask what this accomplishes, and why a free democratic society vests such arbitrary power in the military to blight so needlessly the lives of those it finds unacceptable. Today, thousands of young Americans who have violated the law of their land live in exile, unwelcome by the Lady in the Harbor whose torch once burned for the poor and oppressed of all lands. More than 20,000 have obtained oer- manent legal status in Canada, with perhaps as many there without such status. Most live, furtively ^herein Am erica jjives of qgiet-desperatiofl... While Thdse young people were refusing to register, resisting induction, deserting from the service, and receiving less than honorable discharges, millions of young men in their age group, with the privileges of wealth, knowledge, power, and opportunity were evading military service. Famous, physically strong professional football players and affluent young men who "knew the right doctors" received medical deferments. For several years college campuses offered haven to young men often beyond their academic interest. Some with no prior or permanent intention to teach, were able to use this occupation as an escape from military service. National Guard ranks and reserve units of the military services were swelled by young men avoiding the draft and the war. Of the draft-age I Continued Page 2-A) The Politics of Amnesty by Carl D. Rogers Although President Nixon would hardly suggest the term, he is asking for himself exactly what the war resisters want: amnesty—a word derived from the same Greek stem as amnesia, meaning oblivious, intentional overlooking, a "general pardon of past offenses." While some of us believe the President has committed high crimes and misdemeanors, polls indicate a majority of the American people are willing to forget—to overlook Watergate, Cambodia, and the rest for the good of the nation. It now remains to be seen whether they will grant the same degree of public pardon to those whose Carl Rogers was a Chaplain's Assistant in Vietnam with the Army's 1st Logistical Command. He was a Co-founder of the Vietnam Veterans Against The War in 1967. resistance activities have brought them into conflict with the law. Although the war—along with so much else— has been overshadowed by Watergate, our intervention in Indochina continues, and tens of thousands of political prisoners remain in Saigon jails. As we begin to talk about amnesty let us acknowledge the existence of a "post-war" atmosphere—created by the release of our POW's, the return of American fighting men, and the end of bombing—but let us not talk of amnesty as a post-war issue until there is no more war. And let us be aware of the tremendous task before us in educating the American people about these other victims of the war: the young men who refused to wage it. Though the public may well believe the war is over, that has not seemed to make them more open to amnesty, at least an amnesty as presented to them so far. In fact, pollster Lou Harris' surveys indicate a hardening of attitudes on amnesty for war resisters over the past two years. Harris Polls Favor Oppose Not Sure June, 1972 38 53 9 August, 1972 27 60 13 March, 1973 24 67 9 A New York radio station (WNEW) sampled sentiment in the greater metropolitan area and found 79 percent saying "No" to the question of whether "some sort of amnesty" should be granted to those who avoided the draft by leaving the country. Amnesty for deserters brought an even higher number of "No's." When the issue is spelled out or dramatized, however, as in the case of a recent hour-long TV program sponsored by the National Council of Churches, the response is quite different. Viewers M. Margolis |
Type | Text; Image |
Digital identifier | giNewsletter287001 |