Past VPCC Events

As VPCC developed its network of past and present anti-war activists, it decided to organize a national gathering in Washington, DC, to recall the importance of the Vietnam era from the perspective of the anti-war movement, along with the lessons for today.

On May 1-2, 2015, at the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church, not far from the White House, over 650 participants joined in a variety of workshops and plenary sessions. Included in the program were Dan Ellsberg, Mark Rudd, Peter Yarrow, Staughton Lynd, Cora Weiss, Tom Hayden, Pat Schroeder, Ron Dellums, Phil Donahue, and dozens of others. Scores of former anti-war activists were in attendance.

All 40 sessions were recorded and can be viewed on YouTube here.

At the memorial for Tom Hayden in February 2017, VPCC committee members and others met to discuss future plans. We decided to promote activities focused on the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr’s, eloquent and important speech opposing the Vietnam war on April 4, 1967, delivered at the Riverside Church in New York City. In “Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence” King argued that militarism and war abroad were undermining the struggle against poverty and racism at home. And he warned that a nation continuously spending more money on the military than on social uplift, “is approaching spiritual death”.

We coordinated over 40 local events and cooperated with other groups to generate local programs across the country. We were also successful in placing an op-ed piece in the Philadelphia Inquirer.