Student Issue, 1969—Vietnam Moratorium Day

The Student Government Association endorsed the October 15, 1969, Vietnam Moratorium Day on October 1 “as a means of showing the desire of students for a speedy peace” and added in the resolution of support that the “endorsement extends only to those activities sponsored by the Vietnam Moratorium Committee at UT.” The campus chapter of Young Americans for Freedom officially “condemned” the moratorium, stating their belief that the moratorium would aid the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong and contribute to a decline in the morale of the Americans serving in the war. The Interfraternity Council declined to endorse the moratorium, with extensive debate centering on what implications such an endorsement might have on the individual fraternity chapters. The moratorium was held, with special seminars throughout the day and a rally in Circle Park at noon. The activities drew to a close as a crowd of more than one thousand gathered at Circle Park to plant a “Tree of Life” in honor of the people—soldiers and civilians—who had died in Vietnam. The crowd then marched from Circle Park to the Presidential Complex for a final program.