11/13/1969: March Against Death
The March Against Death was conducted over thirty-six hours in Washington D.C. on November 13th-15th 1969, as part of a nationwide campaign of protests conducted in the Fall of 1969. Starting at midnight on Thursday November 13th, a solemn procession of some 45,000 marched single-file from the Arlington National Cemetery, past the White House to the steps of the Capitol. The procession was organized into state delegations, with at least as many members in each delegation as the number of soldiers from that state who had died in the war. Each participant wore a placard with the name of a dead soldier, and called out the name as they passed the White House. When they reached the Capitol, the placard was placed on the steps. There were also marchers who carried placards with the names of Vietnamese cities and towns that had been destroyed in the war. The March Against Death concluded with a memorial service on the Capitol steps on November 15th.
This protest was part of an ongoing campaign organized by the “New Mobe” (The New Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam) which also included the watershed Vietnam Moratorium on October 15th 1969, and a second Moratorium on November 15th. Their recruitment leaflet described:
“The Fall Offensive [...] incorporates a variety of anti-war activities taking place across the United States. It will culminate with the massing of many thousands of people in Washington D.C. for the March Against Death (Nov. 13-15) and finally end on Nov. 15 with a mass march and rally – the most significant and possibly the largest antiwar action this country has ever seen.”
(From The Times Were a Changin’: The Sixties Reader
(Article for “Vietnam War Timeline” / “Vietnam Timeline” / “Vietnam War History” for November 13 1969)
We marched single file,in silence in the darkness,each held a single candle,we all placed our candles on teh wrouht iron fence of teh treasury bldg next to the WH. It was an extremely powerful image,I’m surprised I can;t find any photos online.
If you do end up finding something, please post a link. It’s amazing how hard it is to find pictures of this.
The article is correct but it leaves out some important details. At the foot of the Captiol steps,
about ten simple wooden coffins supported by sawhorses stood open waiting for us to place our placards with the names of the soldier we each wore on our march past the Whitehouse. I remember the whole day very vividly, but especially passing by the coffin and placing my placard in the coffin. On the next level of Capitol steps up from where the coffins stood, a line of many police armed with sub-machine guns on tripods were ready to protect the Capitol from us. The guns were aimed at the protesters the entire time that we walked up the steps,and silently layed their placards in the coffins. It was a cold, cloudy November day. The dramatic effect could not have been any stronger.
I was there. I was a member of SMC. My girl friend and I were tear gassed in Dupont Circle. We were near the front of the crowd the next day around the Washington Monument. I raised my girlfriend Sue Dobyns on my shoulders during part of the songs and speeches. I am having trouble finding any photos of that day. I remember looking back up the hill and seeing hundreds of thousands of people all waving peace signs and looking like waves of grass. It was cold. I think we had a bottle of wine. I wish I could find more photos and a list of the performers and speakers. I still have my black arm band and Moratorium button.