A Journey of Peace, Justice, Culture, and Environment
I had the great fortunate of being an undergraduate at Rutgers University during the late 1960s, when institutions, such as Rutgers, Cornell, Columbia, and UC Berkeley, created environments for students to develop independent minds and critical thinking. Education was well-rounded and focused on students becoming responsible, informed adults. Hence, my participation in the first Earth Day 55 years ago and my demonstrating against the unjust war in Vietnam were expected for the times. The health of the Earth was in trouble after a century of abuse following the industrial revolution, and as a member of a peace-loving generation, war is never the answer.
Upon graduating in 1970, and having received a low military draft lottery number, I was confronted by ethical, moral, and ecological crises. I was a conscientious objector, against all wars, and would refuse to fight in the Vietnam War, the focus of which was to perpetuate colonialism and thus preserve access to rich natural resources, cheap labor, and markets for the sale of our goods. The cultural and ecological impacts resulting from our involvement in Vietnam linger today, 50 years after the end of America’s Vietnam War. I was the chair of the Rutgers-Camden “Save the Earth Committee” responsible for organizing the on-campus Earth Day events on April 22, 1970, and thus I was quite aware of the many deleterious impacts from modern warfare. Cornell University faculty and students were among the leaders in exposing many of the dangers.
After a complex process with my draft board, I was granted a classification of conscientious objection. In May 1971, I began my alternative civilian service in lieu of military service. I recount details of these and other life-changing experiences in my memoir, Conscientious Objector – A Journey of Peace, Justice, Culture, and Environment, which recently was honored with a Literary Titan Gold Book Award and an International Impact Book Award. Throughout my life I have worked for Peace on Earth and Harmony with Nature, the roots of which were nurtured through my well-rounded education.
My commitments and experiences are of no surprise: the training, freedom, and support I received from my university allowed me to mature as an informed young man and to become responsible for my actions, while knowing my institution was there for me if I needed it. Rutgers was fully committed to the Earth Day celebrations and provided space and funding for programs and events. The student run campus paper, The Gleaner, was fully onboard. When I was confronted by the military draft and applied for a conscientious objector status, Rutgers supported my claim with a letter of recommendation to the draft board from the Dean and Assistant Dean of Students. Following the murder of students at Kent State University in Ohio and Jackson State University in Mississippi by U.S. National Guardsmen, Rutgers and other institutions across the nation supported a National Strike by students and faculty, during which we set up alternative classes to work against the Vietnam War and provide a broadening of cultural awareness, civil rights, and the environment. Institutions, faculty, and students worked together in a united front against the war, racism, and classism. We worked for profoundly important and progressive goals of peace, multiculturalism, and equity.
I am proud to be a member of a generation that helped stop the Vietnam War, that organized Earth Day, and worked towards the passage of the Civil Rights Act, Voters Rights Act, and environmentally conscious legislation such as the Environmental Quality Act, the Clear Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act, and other progressive legislation to improve the quality of life in our country and on our planet. With the rapid advance of climate change, and the simultaneous dismantling of federal programs by the current self-serving administration to address it, we face dire consequences.
Today, however, I am deeply disappointed in the lack of any serious response by many institutions, faculty, and students to the wars in Ukraine, Gaza, and other regions of the world. Furthermore. I am equally disappointed, even outraged, at the near lack of support by institutions for students and faculty who object to war, and who fight against a racist and classist administration in Washington D.C. These same institutions fear losing federal funding if they encourage diversity, equity, and inclusion, or defend students and faculty who speak out against injustices. They would rather be silent on DEI or remove it from university standards, and refuse to support students who demonstrate or speak out on important themes, rather than face restrictions and loss of funding from an unjust government that practices illegal and inhumane immigration policies; derides diversity, equity, and inclusion programs; and denies science.
Where is the courage to act in defiance against such tyranny? Fortunately, Harvard University has taken a stand and has refused to cower to the Trump administration’s unconstitutional and illegal efforts to invade the educational process with hatred and authoritarian demands, despite the freezing of federal funds and threats by the president to remove Harvard’s tax-exempt status. Such leadership is vital to thwart the campaign to deny human rights at all levels of society. Congratulations Harvard!
But where is the national outrage? Some demonstrations have begun; however, we must emphatically support students, faculty, staff and their institutions that stand up against this authoritarian administration, and that actively challenge any effort to jail or deport those students who speak-out against injustices. Fear of losing federal funding should not be a higher priority than the doing the right thing, ethically and morally. Many institutions, particularly private ones, have large endowments. They should spend some of it if federal funds are restricted rather than cower to the federal government just to keep dollars flowing.
Once again, it is time for our educational institutions, students, and faculty to work together to defy and root out evil practices and policies that discriminate, limit Constitutional Rights, ignore courts, diminish healthcare, facilitate environmental degradation, and deny DEI programs. We must do that which is right and support universal love, empathy, and science. It is time to show leadership and defeat any powers that aim to set back our progress toward an equitable, compassionate society and a harmonious world. To do anything less than stand up for freedom for each individual is to deny freedom for all. Education must take a stand. There must be a resounding, defying national response to this authoritarian, racists, and ignorant regime!
NBC News: Columbia student detained rights https://apple.news/Amj0m7pD_TZuOtKH6_4whtA
CNN: Harvard rejects policy changes https://apple.news/AS7zrOFvlRVC76cAjlNInLQ
Politico: Harvard’s tax-exempt status threatened https://apple.news/ArliN6u28QcyF9QbeL-7IIg
Axios: pressure campaign against universities https://apple.news/AvuavP0EETwaNJKqP_9nBcA
