The Concerned Officers Movement (COM) was an organization of mainly junior officers formed within the U.S. military in the early 1970s whose principal purpose was opposition to the U.S. involvement in the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
.
Very quickly, however, it also found itself fighting for
First Amendment
First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1).
First or 1st may also refer to:
*World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement
Arts and media Music
* 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...
rights within the military. It was initiated in the
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
area by
commissioned officers
An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service.
Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer, or a warrant officer. However, absent conte ...
who were also
Vietnam Veterans,
but rapidly expanded throughout all branches and many bases of the U.S. military, ultimately playing an influential role in the
opposition to the Vietnam War
Opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War (before) or anti-Vietnam War movement (present) began with demonstrations in 1965 against the escalating role of the United States in the Vietnam War and grew into a broad social mov ...
.
At least two of its chapters expanded their ranks to include
enlisted personnel
An enlisted rank (also known as an enlisted grade or enlisted rate) is, in some armed services, any rank below that of a commissioned officer. The term can be inclusive of non-commissioned officers or warrant officers, except in United States m ...
(non-officers), in San Diego changing the group's name to Concerned Military and in
Kodiak, Alaska
Kodiak ( Alutiiq: , russian: Кадьяк), formerly Paul's Harbor, is the main city and one of seven communities on Kodiak Island in Kodiak Island Borough, Alaska. All commercial transportation between the island's communities and the outside ...
, to Concerned Servicemen's Movement.
Founding

COMs genesis sprang from the participation of Marine Captain Bob Brugger in the November 1969
March on Washington
The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, also known as simply the March on Washington or The Great March on Washington, was held in Washington, D.C., on August 28, 1963. The purpose of the march was to advocate for the civil and economic rig ...
against the Vietnam War. ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large n ...
'' carried an article about Bob and his wife that caused his superior officers to enter an unsatisfactory mark for loyalty in his fitness report and generated supportive phone calls from other officers. Brugger's opposition to "blind patriotism" and his stand against racism at home and in Vietnam had struck a chord with other officers who read the article.
Over several months a group of officers agreed to work together and on March 14, 1970, they participated as ''Officers' Resistance'' in a
G.I.
G.I. are initials used to describe the soldiers of the United States Army and airmen of the United States Air Force and general items of their equipment. The term G.I. has been used as an initialism of "Government Issue", "General Issue", or " ...
Rally for Peace and Justice in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
By the end of March 1970 they had changed their name to the Concerned Officers Movement.
Early members who signed the first published newsletter were LT Jim Crawford, USN, CPT Ed Fox, USA, CPT Gerry Giovaniello, USAR, LTJG Tono Hixon, USNR, LTJG Phil Lehman, USNR, LTJG Randy Thomas, USNR; LTJG Robert Nechin USAR; CAPT Larry Wasser, USMC, and CPT Bob Gaines, USAR.
Other early members were 1LT Louis Font, a
West Point
The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...
honor graduate, who received extensive national media coverage for his stand against the war and CAPT Mike Mullen, USMCR who was one of the contacts on the organization's first leaflet (see image to right).
COM's first newsletter, published in April 1970, described the organization's political views:
While stating they were "loyal, responsible military officers", they supported "a cease-fire and the rapid disengagement of American troops from
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...
", opposed the "preponderant share of national resources devoted to the military", and called for the "free expression of dissenting opinion" within the military.
Media coverage and growth
The fact that military officers had formed a group openly speaking out against the war and the U.S. military was unprecedented and quickly reached the national media. On June 3, 1970, ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' announced that the "antiwar movement has reached the United States military officers corps." "Calling themselves the Concerned Officers Movement, about 25 officers based in Washington, most of them Navy men, have banded together to provide a forum for what they say is growing disillusionment among their ranks with the Indochina war."
COM continued to grow and on September 26, 1970, 28 members representing about 250 others on active duty from the
Army
An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
,
Navy
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It include ...
,
Air Force
An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ar ...
and
Marine Corps
Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...
held a press conference in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
to announce "their intention to speak against the war in Vietnam" and "to encourage other officers to express antiwar opinions".
Font told the press, "I reject this war....I have asked myself time and again: 'When the law becomes a crime, consensus and conformity becomes a crime, am I to condone it?' My answer is no." Major Albert Braverman, a physician at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, stated that COM had active chapters at the Marine base at
Camp Lejeune
Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune () is a United States military training facility in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Its of beaches make the base a major area for amphibious assault training, and its location between two deep-water ports ( Wilmi ...
, NC, at Navy and Marine bases in
Norfolk
Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the Nort ...
, VA,
Pensacola
Pensacola () is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle, and the county seat and only incorporated city of Escambia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 54,312. Pensacola is the principal ...
, FL and
San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...
, at Army bases at
Fort Bragg
Fort Bragg is a military installation of the United States Army in North Carolina, and is one of the largest military installations in the world by population, with around 54,000 military personnel. The military reservation is located within C ...
, NC, and
Fort Jackson, SC, at the Air Force base in
Grand Forks, ND, and in
Iceland
Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its ...
and
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only ...
.
They also read an open letter to Secretary of Defense
Melvin Laird
Melvin Robert Laird Jr. (September 1, 1922 – November 16, 2016) was an American politician, writer and statesman. He was a U.S. congressman from Wisconsin from 1953 to 1969 before serving as Secretary of Defense from 1969 to 1973 under Pres ...
demanding an immediate withdrawal from the war written by LTJG John Kent, USN, an
Annapolis
Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east ...
graduate, all-American wrestler and jet fighter pilot, and signed by 29 officers of the
San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...
chapter of COM ranging in rank from
Ensign
An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diff ...
to
Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding rank i ...
.
COM carried out a variety of antiwar activities throughout 1970 and 1971. It published a newsletter, which by the fourth issue was called ''COMmon Sense'', distributing it throughout the armed services.
It bought newspaper ads calling for an immediate withdrawal of American forces from Vietnam, wrote leaflets, printed posters and held press conferences. COM's Norfolk Naval Base chapter paid for a billboard outside the base that read Peace Now.
In May 1971, 29 officers from Fort Bragg and Pope Air Force Base took out a "scathing antiwar" ad in the ''Fayetteville Observer'' which they openly signed with name, rank and military branch. This was the first time this many military officers from one place publicly opposed the war. Soon, officers from Fort Jackson, Fort Knox and Minot Air Force Base were signing similar ads in their local papers. On September 13, 1971, over 130 officers from all over the U.S. signed a full-page antiwar ad in the ''Washington Post''.
Military retaliation
Initially, many COM members wanted to stay within the military and felt they had a right to express dissenting views. In fact, their third newsletter argued that responsible dissent "can and must be allowed to exist in the military, if it is to keep pace with the times in which we live." "We believe that such expressions of our convictions are within our rights, and that in expressing them, we are following our obligations as officers to defend the
Constitution
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed.
When these princip ...
." The organization felt the armed forces were an insular and hidebound world and explored ways to establish the right of free speech for active duty servicemen, both officers and
enlisted.
The military, however, disagreed and in many cases reprimanded, discharged and transferred COM members soon after their participation became known. Within three weeks of their September 26, 1970 press conference many COM members were facing retaliation. One Navy doctor in the
San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...
chapter was discharged on 48 hours' notice after making his membership known. Official military spokespeople blamed budget cutbacks or force reductions, but COM members were told privately they were being discharged due to their membership. ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' quoted a Pentagon spokesman who denied the existence of a "purge" of antiwar officers, but then went on to admit the military did get concerned when these officers "go public". He argued that public statements "
aw the radicals to them like bees to honey", making them "duck soup for radicals" and raising "questions about the officers' reliability." Ironically, some members who did want to get out were forced to stay in the military against their will and given orders transferring them to remote military bases like
Adak, Alaska
Adak (, ale, Adaax, russian: Адак), formerly Adak Station, is a city located on Adak Island, in the Aleutians West Census Area, Alaska, United States. At the 2020 census the population was 171, down from 326 in 2010. It is the westernmo ...
or even
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making it ...
.
As a result, COM had a high turnover rate as the military discharged or transferred its members.
This, combined with its focus on active duty officers, meant the national organization was relatively short-lived, tapering off considerably by the end of 1971.
Controversial activity
In early 1971 COM created quite a stir by holding press conferences on both coasts calling for an investigation into the military's top brass for possible war crimes. Under the auspices of The National Committee for a Citizens Commission of Inquiry on U.S. War Crimes in Vietnam (
Citizens Commission of Inquiry), COM held press conferences on January 12 in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
and January 20 in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...
calling for an investigation into the "responsibility for war crimes of key military figures", including Generals
William Westmoreland
William Childs Westmoreland (March 26, 1914 – July 18, 2005) was a United States Army general, most notably commander of United States forces during the Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in V ...
and
Creighton Abrams
Creighton Williams Abrams Jr. (September 15, 1914 – September 4, 1974) was a United States Army general who commanded military operations in the Vietnam War from 1968 to 1972, which saw United States troop strength in South Vietnam reduce ...
, and Admiral
Elmo Zumwalt
Elmo Russell "Bud" Zumwalt Jr. (November 29, 1920 – January 2, 2000) was a United States Navy officer and the youngest person to serve as Chief of Naval Operations. As an admiral and later the 19th Chief of Naval Operations, Zumwalt played a ...
. While formally they were only calling for an investigation, they presented evidence of war crimes and catastrophic environmental damage, leaving the impression they were accusing their own commanders of war crimes. The
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
COM members involved were CPT Robert Master, USA, CPT Grier Merwin, USA, Fox, Font and LTJG Peter Dunkelberger, USN. In
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...
were LT Norman Banks, USAF, LTJG Ted Shallcross, USN, LT James Skelly, USN, and Kent.
Later that same year COM members used the military's own practice of encouraging the wearing of uniforms to religious services to conduct antiwar demonstrations in uniform, a prohibited activity under military regulations. On April 23, 1971, ignoring warnings from higher ups that their actions would be considered a political demonstration, COM organized a memorial service at
Washington's National Cathedral involving more than 250 officers in uniform honoring all the war dead, on both sides of the war.
On May 2, 45 officers and enlisted men from the
San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...
Chapter wore their uniforms to a similar antiwar "religious" event in
Exposition Park in Los Angeles led by a prominent antiwar Episcopal minister,
George Regas
George Thomas Regas (Greek: Γεώργιος Θωμάς Ρεγάκος; November 9, 1890 – December 13, 1940) was a Greek American actor.
Biography
Regis was born in the village of Goranoi near Sparta, Greece, the brother of actor Pedro Rega ...
.
As one of the men who participated later recalled in his memoir: "Thus, with one of our men playing the haunting lament on his bugle that is heard at military funerals, we marched with
coffin draped with the flags of the Viet Cong, North Vietnam, South Vietnam, and the United States."
No one was ever reprimanded or punished for these actions, probably because the military decided it would be better to ignore the whole thing and pretend it never happened.
The San Diego Chapter
The San Diego COM, located in the principal homeport of the Pacific Fleet, may have been the most active chapter and was certainly the longest lasting, continuing actively until late 1973.
The Chapter was initiated by Kent and local antiwar activist Jeannie Boyle and formally founded in July 1970 by Kent, LT Harold Appel, USN, Skelly and Shallcross.
Very quickly it broadened its outreach to include enlisted men and women and by 1972 had changed its name to Concerned Military.
On May 15, 1971, which they called ''Armed Farces Day'', they hosted the touring
FTA
FTA may refer to:
Arts and media
* ''The Faery Tale Adventure'', a computer game
* Festival TransAmériques, an annual dance and theater festival in Montreal, Quebec, Canada
* Free The Army tour, the F.T.A. Tour or F.T.A. Show, an American anti-V ...
"political vaudeville" antiwar show, known to most GIs as the "Fuck The Army" Show, featuring
Jane Fonda
Jane Seymour Fonda (born December 21, 1937) is an American actress, activist, and former fashion model. Recognized as a film icon, Fonda is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Jane Fonda, various accolades including two ...
,
Donald Sutherland
Donald McNichol Sutherland (born 17 July 1935) is a Canadian actor whose film career spans over six decades. He has been nominated for nine Golden Globe Awards, winning two for his performances in the television films '' Citizen X'' (1995) a ...
,
Peter Boyle
Peter Lawrence Boyle (October 18, 1935 – December 12, 2006) was an American actor. Known as a character actor, he played Frank Barone on the CBS sitcom '' Everybody Loves Raymond'' and the comical monster in Mel Brooks' film spoof ''Youn ...
,
Dick Gregory
Richard Claxton Gregory (October 12, 1932 – August 19, 2017) was an American comedian, civil rights leader, business owner and entrepreneur, and vegetarian activist. His writings were best sellers. Gregory became popular among the Afr ...
, and
Country Joe McDonald
Joseph Allen "Country Joe" McDonald (born January 1, 1942) is an American musician who was the lead singer of the 1960s psychedelic rock group Country Joe and the Fish.Richard Brenneman"Country Joe McDonald Revives Anti-War Anthem", '' Berkeley ...
. The show, held in the auditorium of
San Diego High School
San Diego High School (SDHS) is an urban public high school located on the southern edge of Balboa Park, in San Diego, California, United States. It is the oldest high school in the San Diego Unified School District, one of the oldest public sch ...
, was a tremendous success with a capacity crowd of over 2,400 enthusiastic sailors and marines, and contributed to the growth and reputation of the chapter.
Efforts to stop an aircraft carrier

They also joined with other antiwar activists in major efforts to mobilize opposition to the departure for Vietnam of several aircraft carriers. The first of these projects attracted antiwar activists from all over California and was aimed at trying to keep the
USS ''Constellation'' from sailing. The project was initiated by a group called San Diego Nonviolent Action, which united with COM to focus on the role of aircraft carriers. They had the initial goal of stopping the ''Constellation'' from returning to Vietnam through education and non-violent activity like a blockade or by preventing military personnel from getting to the naval base. Very quickly, this effort expanded into a multi-faceted campaign.
Constellation Vote
As veteran antiwar activists, including
Joan Baez
Joan Chandos Baez (; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing more ...
and
David Harris, became involved, Harris suggested organizing a citywide referendum on whether the Constellation should set sail. This Constellation Vote became a major antiwar campaign over several months that led to a citywide straw vote in late September 1971 with 54,721 votes counted. Over 82% of voters elected to keep the ship home, including 73% of the military personnel who voted. While not a "real" vote, the impact on public opinion was appreciable.
Even an unsympathetic observer deemed the overall effort to stop the Constellation "an impressive campaign", and the commander-in-chief of the Pacific Fleet was quoted as saying "never was there such a concerted effort to entice American servicemen from their posts."
A considerable amount of research was conducted into the role of aircraft carriers in modern warfare by Professor William Watson of
MIT
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...
who was then a visiting Professor of History at
UC San Diego
The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego or colloquially, UCSD) is a public land-grant research university in San Diego, California. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego is th ...
. He argued in a widely distributed pamphlet that aircraft carriers had become weapons "used to crush popular uprisings and to bully the weaker and poorer countries of the world."
Creative protest methods
The involvement of large numbers of antiwar officers and enlisted men created significant debate in the traditionally pro-military town. It also permitted creative methods not normally available to other antiwar groups, such as the CONSTELLATION STAY HOME FOR PEACE banner frequently seen being towed over the city by recently retired navy flight instructor LT John Huyler, and the Constellation Vote stickers found everywhere on board the USS ''Constellation'', including in the captain's personal bathroom.
Bathroom stickers weren't the only complication the captain had to deal with. Over 1,300 of the ship's sailors signed a petition requesting the
FTA
FTA may refer to:
Arts and media
* ''The Faery Tale Adventure'', a computer game
* Festival TransAmériques, an annual dance and theater festival in Montreal, Quebec, Canada
* Free The Army tour, the F.T.A. Tour or F.T.A. Show, an American anti-V ...
Show be allowed on board. The captain refused this request but then got himself in hot water by intercepting and destroying 2,500 pieces of U.S. mail sent by antiwar activists to crewmembers. Faced with a possible court of inquiry and health problems, the captain was removed from command before the ship sailed.
Connie 9
When the ''Constellation'' actually did sail for Vietnam, no visible blockade occurred but nine of its crew publicly refused to go and took sanctuary in a local Catholic church
Christ the King with the support of COM members and other activists. The "Connie 9" as they were quickly dubbed, were soon arrested in an early morning raid by
US Marshals and flown back to the ship, but within weeks were honorably discharged from the navy.
Kitty Litter (USS Kitty Hawk Newsletter) 1972 This action led to other
Stop Our Ship (SOS) campaigns in
San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...
and other Navy ports in a wider effort to prevent navy ships from heading to Southeast Asia. "A strong resistance movement within the
Seventh Fleet
The Seventh Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It is headquartered at U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of ...
was led by COM and its local chapter."
The Kodiak Chapter

The chapter in
Kodiak, Alaska
Kodiak ( Alutiiq: , russian: Кадьяк), formerly Paul's Harbor, is the main city and one of seven communities on Kodiak Island in Kodiak Island Borough, Alaska. All commercial transportation between the island's communities and the outside ...
was the only one started from the beginning to include all ranks, modifying its name accordingly to Concerned Servicemen’s Movement (CSM). It was initiated by Lt(jg) Norman Bleier from the San Diego COM chapter after his commanding officer deemed him such a problem that he was transferred to Kodiak "to freeze until your enlistment is up." This was not an unusual tactic for the Navy as another member of the Kodiak group, EM3 James Kelly, was also ordered there after initiating a Congressional investigation against the Navy for ignoring his medical condition.
And Kent, from the San Diego chapter, had also been given orders to Adak, Alaska, which he only avoided when a Federal Judge ordered the Navy to discharge him.
Kodiak CSM, which included both U.S. Navy and Coast Guard personnel, became the most influential GI dissent group in Alaska, both by publishing a well written underground newsletter, FID,
and by playing a role in the founding of the influential environmental group
Greenpeace
Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning network, founded in Canada in 1971 by Irving Stowe and Dorothy Stowe, immigrant environmental activists from the United States. Greenpeace states its goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth ...
. The group’s newsletter was named after a
Fid
A fid is a conical tool traditionally made of wood or bone. It is used to work with rope and canvas in marlinespike seamanship. A fid differs from a marlinspike in material and purposes. A marlinspike is used in working with wire rope, natural ...
, a traditional sailor's tool still used with knots and ropes. CSM considered FID a means to express its members First Amendment rights, while promoting discussion of the war, officer-enlisted relations, racism, and the ecology.
The group had a number of sympathizers onboard the ''
U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Confidence''. Ironically, the ''Confidence'' was ordered to intercept and board the very first ''Greenpeace'' boat which was on its way to protest a powerful U.S. nuclear underground test on the island of
Amchitka
Amchitka (; ale, Amchixtax̂; russian: Амчитка) is a volcanic, tectonically unstable and uninhabited
island in the Rat Islands group of the Aleutian Islands in southwest Alaska. It is part of the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife R ...
in 1971. Eighteen ''Confidence'' crewmen penned and then smuggled aboard a letter of support for the Greenpeace crew and voyage. Its message was clear, "Good luck. We are behind you one hundred percent." Shouts of "The U.S. Coast Guard is on our side" were heard on the protest vessel. This sympathetic action helped influence the members of the Greenpeace crew to found the organization we know today.
Significance
At its height, COM had as many as 28 chapters in all the military branches and has been estimated to have "had approximately 3,000 members, including many supporters from the enlisted ranks." At one point it even had a chapter in the
Pentagon
In geometry, a pentagon (from the Greek language, Greek πέντε ''pente'' meaning ''five'' and γωνία ''gonia'' meaning ''angle'') is any five-sided polygon or 5-gon. The sum of the internal angles in a simple polygon, simple pentagon is ...
.
It had no formal leadership, although various people stepped forward at different times to play central roles.
COM did not attract the media attention as dramatically as its more well-known partner and ally,
Vietnam Veterans Against the War
Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW) is an American tax-exempt non-profit organization and corporation founded in 1967 to oppose the United States policy and participation in the Vietnam War. VVAW says it is a national veterans' organizatio ...
, but it played a key and underappreciated role in the antiwar movement of the early 1970s. The fact that officers not only resisted the war, but spoke out publicly and formed a significant organization, speaks to the depth of the anti-Vietnam War and anti-U.S. military sentiment in the U.S. at the time.
See also
* ''
F.T.A.'' – documentary film about the FTA Show
*
GI's Against Fascism
*
GI Coffeehouses
*
GI Underground Press
*
Intrepid Four
The Intrepid Four were a group of Navy seamen who grew to oppose what they called "the American aggression in Vietnam" and publicly deserted from the ''USS Intrepid'' in October 1967 as it docked in Japan during the Vietnam War. They were among th ...
*
Movement for a Democratic Military
*
Presidio mutiny
The Presidio mutiny, one of the earliest instances of significant internal military resistance to the Vietnam War, was a sit-down protest carried out by 27 prisoners at the Presidio stockade in San Francisco, California on October 14, 1968. The ...
* ''
Sir! No Sir!
''Sir! No Sir!'' is a 2005 documentary by Displaced Films about the anti-war movement within the ranks of the United States Armed Forces during the Vietnam War. The film was produced, directed, and written by David Zeiger. The film had a theatr ...
'', a documentary about the anti-war movement within the ranks of the United States Armed Forces
* ''
The Spitting Image
''The Spitting Image: Myth, Memory and the Legacy of Vietnam'' is a 1998 book by Vietnam veteran and sociology professor Jerry Lembcke. The book is an analysis of the widely believed narrative that American soldiers were spat upon and insulted ...
'', a 1998 book by Vietnam veteran and sociology professor Jerry Lembcke which disproves the widely believed narrative that American soldiers were spat upon and insulted by antiwar protesters
*
United States Servicemen's Fund
The United States Servicemen's Fund (USSF) was a support organization for soldier and sailor resistance to the Vietnam War and the U.S. military that was founded in late 1968 and continued through 1973. It was an "umbrella agency" that funded GI ...
*
Waging Peace in Vietnam
*
Winter Soldier Investigation
The "Winter Soldier Investigation" was a media event sponsored by the Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW) from January 31, 1971, to February 2, 1971. It was intended to publicize war crimes and atrocities by the United States Armed Force ...
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Donald W. Duncan
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Fort Hood Three
The Fort Hood Three were three soldiers of the US Army – Private First Class James Johnson, Jr. Private David A. Samas, and Private Dennis Mora – who refused to be deployed to Vietnam on June 30, 1966. This was the first public re ...
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Fort Lewis Six
The Fort Lewis Six were six U.S. Army enlisted men at the Fort Lewis Army base in the Seattle and Tacoma, Washington area who in June 1970 refused orders to the Vietnam War and were then courts-martialed. They had all applied for conscientious o ...
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Court-martial of Howard Levy
References
External links
''Sir! No Sir!'', a film about GI resistance to the Vietnam WarA Matter of Conscience - GI Resistance During the Vietnam WarWaging Peace in Vietnam - US Soldiers and Veterans Who Opposed the WarWaging Peace in Vietnam Interviews with GI resisters
{{Authority control
Anti–Vietnam War groups
American military personnel of the Vietnam War
United States military support organizations
Organizations established in 1970
1970 establishments in the United States
Resistance Inside the Army