Moratorium to End the War in Vietnam

October 15, 1969

Overview

An informal coalition mobilizes the largest nationwide day of protest against the war. Over two million people across the United States participate in marches, rallies, teach-ins, religious services, vigils, casualty memorials, and candlelight events. These widespread and overwhelmingly peaceful civil protests attract many who are new participants in the public antiwar movement. At least 100,000 people gather in Boston, the largest event. Print media covers the Moratorium heavily, reporting that it is orderly, supports moderate views, and essentially non-violent.

With polls suggesting that six out of ten Americans consider the war a mistake, the Nixon administration takes steps to solidify support for its policies with a series of information releases, public statements, and speeches by administration officials.¹

Spencer C. Tucker, ed., The Encyclopedia of the Vietnam War: A Political, Social, and Military History (2nd edition; Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2011), 773–74 (for “100,000 people” see p. 773); David L. Anderson, The Columbia Guide to the Vietnam War (New York: Columbia University Press, 2002), 143; George C. Herring, America’s Longest War: The United States and Vietnam, 1950–1975 (4th edition; New York: McGraw Hill, 2002), 282–83. William M. Hammond, Public Affairs: The Military and the Media, 1968–1973, United States Army in Vietnam (Washington, D.C.: Center of Military History, 1996), 148, 150, 152–53 (for “six out of ten Americans,” see p.148). William W. Scranton, et. al., “The President’s Commission on Campus Unrest,” (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1970), 496.