ANTI-WAR MOVEMENT
America’s involvement in the Vietnam War during the 1960s is still one of the most controversial topics in history. All over the country were protests against the war. The youth were the main participants, and they aimed to spread a message of peace. Opposition to the war was a leftist view, so it is no surprise that it ends up on the pages of the Bird in pieces like “Saigon Free Press” and “An invocation and a stringent appeal to the prevailing eternal spirits of goodness in the universe to protect all life and liberate John Wilson and his persecutors.”
SAIGON FREE PRESS
Reported here are violations of the free press in Vietnam. It is said that the government is yet again controlling the rights of the people during wartime, this time censuring a newspaper for “carrying a picture of Ho Chi Minh and a North Vietnamese negotiator, Thuan Tui, on the front page.” (Page 2) This came after the government had censured several other newspapers. As a result, Saigon created the Liberation Radio Station. It broadcasted three times a day for 15 minutes. The attempt from the people of Vietnam to regain freedom of the press was modeled after the Czechoslovakians during the Russian occupation.
It is fitting that an underground newspaper that prides itself on freedom of the press and accurate news reporting would include a piece like this. This issue helps connect the American readers to those in Vietnam, as they both value freedom of the press. The author understood their audience and was able to report on a topic that hits home with a lot of readers.
American soldiers joining South Vietnamese ground troops during the Vietnam War in 1965
AN INVOCATION AND A STRINGENT APPEAL TO...LIBERATE JOHN WILSON AND HIS PERSECUTORS
steven bush
This piece is a playwright based on the event of the arrest of John Wilson. Wilson was a young man who was sentenced to three years at hard labor for refusing to wear his uniform. The playwright is said to be available to be performed on stage and is a chant between the Cantor and the Chorus. The Cantor is describing the injustices of the military in regards to the war, with the Chorus following up with, “Let John Wilson go! We want the world, and we want it now!” (Page 8) The chant ends with an italicized indicator saying, “This chant can continue infinitely until the good angels arrive, the demons leave, the chantors ascend, or the authorities shut you up somehow.” (Page 8)
The chant demonstrates the many types of mediums that are used within the Bird to communicate its messages. This non-traditional method of communication is appropriate for this context because a broad audience of activists views the paper. The content of the chant represents one of the main issues that radical young activists were countering, the US involvement in the Vietnam War. It is therefore assumed that the audience agrees with the actions of John Wilson and his refusal to wear his uniform to show his lack of support for the US intervention in Vietnam.