Winter Soldier Investigation

Template:Totallydisputed The "Winter Soldier Investigation" was a 3-day media event of American Vietnam War veterans, civilians and media orchestrated by the Vietnam Veterans Against the War that took place in Detroit, Michigan, from January 31-February 2, 1971. It was intended to publicize alleged war crimes committed by Americans and allies in Vietnam. In all, 109 Vietnam veterans and 16 civilians gave testimony about war crimes they had allegedly committed or witnessed during the years of 1963-1970. Journalists and film crews recorded the event, and a transcript was later read into the Congressional Record at the request of Senator Mark Hatfield of Oregon.

Organizers described the event as "anti-war", not in the sense of opposing all wars (compare pacifisim) or as a statement that North and South Vietnam should not have been fighting each other, but as strictly in the sense of opposing America's involvement in the Vietnam War.

Critics of the event claimed that it was aimed more at forcing a US withdrawal from Vietnam, rather than any ethical reforms in the conduct of the war. Some went so far as to accuse Jane Fonda, who organized a number of benefit concerts for the event, and John Kerry of "aiding the enemy" and treason. Supporters of the event felt that it crystallized their sentiments, while disagreeing on the extent to which it influenced US policy.

A documentary film of the event, called "Winter Soldier," was first released in 1972. It got little domestic distribution and support at that time and had been archived by its creators, collectively called the Winterfilm Collective, although it was shown widely in Europe. In September, 2005, it was re-released across the U.S. in small art house theatres.

Background

The investigation was launched by the Vietnam Veterans Against the War(VVAW) based on the reports of the Russell Tribunal, National Veterans Inquiry, among others, which exposed American actions in Vietnam. At the time, the My Lai Massacre and the CIA's Phoenix Program were being known to the public, and VVAW leaders sought to use the momentum these events created to reinforce to the public that these were not isolated cases.

Organizers

The groundwork for the Winter Soldier Investigation was laid by Jeremy Rifkin, Tod Ensign, Michael Uhl and Bob Johnson of the Citizens Commission of Inquiry (CCI). In search of first hand information on alleged war crimes, they contacted the Vietnam Veterans Against the War and gained the support of VVAW co-founder Jan Crumb. During the summer of 1970, the CCI were approached by Al Hubbard who had become a full-time organizer with VVAW. Hubbard suggested that CCI combine their efforts with Jane Fonda, Rev. Dick Fernandez of Clergy and Laymen Concerned about Vietnam (CALCAV), Mark Lane and Donald Duncan (who had previously participated at the Russell Tribunal in Denmark). An initial steering committee formed of Duncan, Ensign, Fonda, Lane, Hubbard, Rifkin, and Fernandez continued to organize the WSI through September, 1970.

Among the organizers, differences of opinion and direction arose concerning the planned public event. The VVAW leaders felt it should be an all-veteran event, to maintain its credibility. Less than three months into planning for the Winter Soldier Investigation, most of the Vietnam veteran organizers and Jeremy Rifkin had become adamant that WSI disassociate itself from Mark Lane. Lane had recently published a book, Conversations with Americans, in which Lane relied on unverified interviews with veterans, some of which were later exposed as frauds by Neil Sheehan in a New York Times book review [1]. Lane was removed from the project, and a new six-member steering committee for WSI was composed of three national office leaders (Al Hubbard, Craig Scott Moore, and Mike Oliver) and three members of the growing list of chapters (Art Flesch, Tim Butz, and William F. Crandell).

The organizers of the national hearings separated into two groups, each developing their own events. The CCI advanced its plans for a December event in Washington, DC, while the WSI's new organizers continued with the original plan to hold its hearings in Detroit. The Washington, DC, event would be called The National Veterans Inquiry. The Detroit event would be called the Winter Soldier Investigation. Seven of the 142 total participants would provide information at both events.

The support of antiwar celebrities was considered crucial to generate both money and publicity. A series of benefit productions, "Acting in Concert for Peace", were created, featuring performances by Jane Fonda, Dick Gregory, Donald Sutherland, and Barbara Dane. Two concerts by Crosby, Stills and Nash, as well as folk singer Phil Ochs, also raised funds.

The WSI also relied on considerable support from the Detroit community. Dean Robb and Ernie Goodman solicited donations from their fellow local attorneys, and several clergymen arranged housing for the witnesses. In the words of the Director of Missions for the Detroit Metropolitan Council of Churches, Dr. John B Forsyth, "It is important that the public realize that American atrocities in Vietnam are an every day occurrence." The Secretary-Treasurer for the United Auto Workers, Emil Mazey and Michigan Secretary of State Richard Austin also helped raise funds for the event. [2]

Purpose

The purpose of the Winter Soldier Investigation was to show that American policies in Vietnam lead to war crimes. In the words of one participant veteran, Donald Dzagulones, "We gathered not to sensationalize our service but to decry the travesty that was Lt. William Calley's trial for the My Lai Massacre. The U.S. had established the principle of culpability with the Nuremberg trials of the Nazis. Following those principles, we held that if Calley were responsible, so were his superiors up the chain of command — even to the president. The causes of My Lai and the brutality of the Vietnam War were rooted in the policies of our government as executed by our military commanders."

The name "Winter Soldier Investigation" was derived from Thomas Paine's first Crisis paper written in December 1776, Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. Future Senator John Kerry, then a decorated Lieutenant in the Naval Reserve (Inactive), while later speaking before a Senate Committee, further explained "We who have come here to Washington have come here because we feel we have to be winter soldiers now. We could come back to this country; we could be quiet; we could hold our silence; we could not tell what went on in Vietnam, but we feel because of what threatens this country, the fact that the crimes threaten it, not reds, and not redcoats but the crimes which we are committing that threaten it, that we have to speak out."

Planning

The collecting of accounts from veterans had begun under the auspice of the Citizens Commission of Inquiry the previous year, and it took almost two months of on-site planning in Detroit to organize the conference. Detroit was proposed by Fonda because of its central location in the American heartland, and the "blue-collar" social status of most of the residents. The steering committee set up a collective in a house on the industrial east side of Detroit with the help of Catholic antiwar activists; and five clergymen of different denominations, including the director of missions for the Detroit Metropolitan Council of Churches, offered housing for the participants.

109 Vietnam veterans appeared on panels arranged by unit so they could corroborate each other's accounts of their conduct. Event organizers had hoped that grouping these veterans by unit would establish that events and practices were unit-wide policy, and not just random and rare occurrences. Several civilians who had been to Vietnam were also to speak during this event. Arrangements had been made to include the stories of several expatriated Vietnamese students residing in Canada, but they were denied visas to the United States by the Canadian government.

Organizers also investigated the legal implications of veterans publicly admitting to criminal acts which they had allegedly witnessed or participated in. The Center for Constitutional Rights informed the organizers that the armed forces could not charge or try veterans for alleged crimes committed while they were on active duty. The veterans were also instructed not to reveal the specific names of others involved in the alleged war crimes.

Verification of participants' credibility

The organizers of the Winter Soldier Investigation took several steps to check the validity of the participants.

The organizers claimed to have authenticated each veteran's status before the inquiry. After the severe criticism of the accuracy of Mark Lane's book a month before the event, the organizers of the Winter Soldier Investigation made the credibility of the participants a top priority. All veterans participating in Winter Soldier were required to bring their discharge papers (DD-214's) and IDs. In addition, they also gave specific details about their units and the locations where the alleged events had occurred.

Although military documentation was provided, some media organizations such as the Detroit News made further inquiries into the hearings by questioning the authenticity of the participating veterans. The Detroit Free Press reported daily of participants that had been confirmed by the Pentagon as veterans.

NBC News later reported that VVAW executive and Winter Soldier co-organizer Al Hubbard had lied about being an officer, his service in Vietnam, and the circumstances involving his medical disability. William Overend states he had met Hubbard and he had been introduced as being a former Air Force captain and that he had been wounded in Vietnam. Overend later learned Hubbard was only an E-5 Staff Sergeant. Hubbard could also not document any service in Vietnam, contrary to what he had claimed. Hubbard did not did not directly participate in Winter Soldier.

Seven years after the hearings, historian Guenter Lewy wrote in his book, America in Vietnam, that a Naval Criminal Investigative Service report discredited several of the veterans that testified at the Winter Soldier Investigation. Lewy concluded that "many of the veterans, though assured that they would not be questioned about atrocities they might have committed personally, refused to be interviewed. One of the active members of the VVAW told investigators that the leadership had directed the entire membership not to cooperate with military authorities. A black Marine who agreed to be interviewed was unable to provide details of the outrages he had described at the hearing, but he called the Vietnam War "one huge atrocity" and "a racist plot." He admitted that the question of atrocities had not occurred to him while he was in Vietnam, and that he had been assisted in the preparation of his testimony by a member of the Nation of Islam. But the most damaging finding consisted of the sworn statements of several veterans, corroborated by witnesses, that they had in fact not attended the hearing in Detroit. One of them had never been to Detroit in all his life. He did not know, he stated, who might have used his name. Incidents similar to some of those described at the VVAW hearing undoubtedly did occur. We know that hamlets were destroyed, prisoners tortured, and corpses mutilated. Yet these incidents either (as in the destruction of hamlets) did not violate the law of war or took place in breach of existing regulations. In either case, they were not, as alleged, part of a "criminal policy." The VVAW's use of fake witnesses and the failure to cooperate with military authorities and to provide crucial details of the incidents further cast serious doubt on the professed desire to serve the causes of justice and humanity. It is more likely that this inquiry, like others earlier and later, had primarily political motives and goals." [3]

Government officials today cannot verify the NIS report's existence, and no other historian has seen it.^[4] Lewy later said that he could not recall if he had actually seen the alleged report or simply been told of its contents although he believes the information to be authentic. [5][6]

According to Nicholas Turse, a doctoral candidate at the Center for the History & Ethics of Public Health , the US Army's CID investigators found the allegations made by 46 veterans at the hearings to merit further inquiry, and were able to identify 43 of the complainants. The CID also attempted to contact 41 of the people who participates; of the 36 they were able to locate, 31 submitted to interviews. [7]

Winter Soldier panels

See Opening statement excerpt in wikiquote

The three days of activities was presented by unit:

• Sunday, January 31st, there were speakers from the 1st Marine Division, 3rd Marine Division, and 1st Air Cavalry Division
  
• Monday, February 1st, from the 101st Airborne Division and 5th Special Forces
  
• Tuesday, February 2nd, from the 25th Infantry Division, 1st Infantry Division, 4th Infantry Division, 9th Infantry Division, and Lieutenant Calley's Americal Division

In addition to the panels, the veterans also held open discussions on related subjects such as "What We Are Doing to Vietnam," "What We Are Doing to Ourselves," violations of international law, Prisoners of War, racism in the military, and also press censorship. A special panel of psychiatrists was convened, many of whom had served in Vietnam, to discuss the impact of the war on American society. Midway through the hearings, the organizers insisted that no one make statements on behalf of the Vietnam veterans except for vets. It was presumed by reporters that this was to separate the participation of veterans from that of people like Mark Lane.^[8]

Testimony from veterans

Testimony was given during the three day event covered both broad policy concerns, such as the use of chemical agents, indiscriminate bombing, and free-fire zones as well as more specific and unusual war crime incidents, including allegations of rape, torture and desecration of the dead. The participants were usually grouped by branch of military service, and geographic location of service. Excerpts from the transcripts:

Stephen Craig: "...My testimony covers the maltreatment of prisoners, the suspects actually, and a convoy running down an old woman with no reason at all..."

Rusty Sachs: "...my testimony concerns the leveling of villages for no valid reason, throwing Viet Cong suspects from the aircraft after binding them and gagging them with copper wire..."

Scott Camil: "...My testimony involves burning of villages with civilians in them, the cutting off of ears, cutting off of heads, torturing of prisoners, calling in of artillary on villages for games, corpsmen killing wounded prisoners..."

Kenneth Campbell: "...My testimony will consist of eyewitnessing and participating in the calling in of artillery on undefended villages, mutilation of bodies, killing of civilians, mistreatment of civilians..."

Fred Nienke: "...My testimony includes killing of non-combatants, destruction of Vietnamese property and livestock, use of chemical agents and the use of torture in interpreting prisoners..."

After giving their brief initial statements, a moderator had each of them elaborate upon their testimony, and then the press and observers were given time to ask questions of the veterans. [9]

Other Veterans testified on the treatment they received as POW’s under North Vietnamese control. Unlike accounts from other POW’s describing widespread mistreatment, torture and starvation, from Veterans such as John McCain and Admiral James Stockdale, WSI participants such as George E. Smith described their captivity under the North Vietnamese as humane and lenient. Although it was later revealed that two Special Forces POW’s held in captivity with Smith, Sgt Kenneth Roraback and Captain Humbert Versace, had been executed in retaliation for the execution of 2 Viet Cong in Saigon, [10] [11], and Smith was charged with violation Article 104 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice after his release.

Dewey Canyon Operation revealed

The previously secret U.S. invasion of Laos in February, 1969, code-named Operation Dewey Canyon I, became a controversial subject at this event since the Pentagon had denied that any American troops had crossed the Laotian border and carried out military operations. Almost immediately, five veterans from the Third Marines who had returned from the war refuted the claims of the Pentagon. They described their operations in Laos where it had been claimed that they were given orders to hide the fact that they were American including, but not limited to, the removal of identification and switching to Russian arms that were used by the NVA. However, the Marine Corp then issued a statement saying "that no platoons or any large number of marines ever crossed the border." This quickly prompted investigations by American media such as the Detroit Free Press, St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the Boston Globe which were successful in turning up accounts from other veterans that they had crossed into Laos throughout a 16 month period. It also revealed that the operation extended beyond the Marines as helicopter pilots from the 101st Airborne admitted participation in the American coordinated secret operation called Prairie Fire.^[12]

Winter Soldier results

See the full text of Senator Hatfield urges Congress, State Department and Defense Department to act in wikiquote

Senator Mark Hatfield’s comments

See the full text of Senator Hatfield's address to Congress urging State Department and Defense Department to act in wikiquote

On Monday, April 5, 1971, Senator Mark Hatfield of Oregon made an address on the Senate Floor urging Congress, the State Department and Defense Department to act. Hatfield commented on the recurrent theme in the WSI testimony of institutionalized racist attitudes of the military in their training, as well as the allegations made at WSI that war crimes were the result of military policy. Hatfield noted that some of these allegations would place the United States in Violation of the Geneva Convention and international laws of war.

Senator Hatfield made several recommendations. He asked that a transcript of the Winter Soldier Investigation be read into the Congressional record and made available to the public. Hatfield also asked congress to hold hearings discussing the use of military force in Vietnam and their relation to international agreements our country has ratified. He urged the appropriate committees of the Congress to conduct hearings on the policies governing the use of military force in Indochina and their relation to international agreements our country has ratified. He transmitted the testimony to the Department of Defense, the Department of State and the Marine Commandant, Leonard F. Chapman, Jr., in particular and urged that the evidence and allegations it contains be fully investigated. He also recommend consideration be given to forming a special commission that would investigate in full these matters and would provide a forum to assess the moral consequences of our involvement in Indochina.

Media coverage

The mainstream media gave little attention to the Winter Soldier Investigation. Other than a New York Times story a week later, few papers carried the details of the event. A local field reporter for the New York Times is said to have commented that, "this stuff happens in all wars." Several of the VVAW representatives claimed that there was an "official censorship blackout", although they provided little in the way of evidence to back this. Several sympathetic articles appeared in lesser-known publications, and Pacifica Radio, known for its left-wing perspective, gave the event considerable coverage. The CBS television crew that showed up were impressed, but only three minutes made it to the nightly news on the first night -- three minutes that were "mostly irrelevant to the subject," according to VVAW. ^[13]

The Detroit Free Press printed several stories about the event, including comments from the military. This included confirmation by the Pentagon that the names of the WSI participants investigated by reporters matched the names and descriptions of Vietnam veterans.

The words of the participants have been permanently recorded in the Congressional Record. Portions of the event, as well as some photos, appear in a book produced by the Vietnam Veterans Against the War and John Kerry entitled The New Soldier.

In addition, film footage of the event, as well as some pre-event and post-event footage, and commentary can be found in Winter Soldier: A film / Winterfilm Collective in association with Vietnam Veterans Against the War. Winterfilm, Inc., 1972.

• Film version: 1972, B&W, 16mm, 93min.
• Videotape: 1992, B&W with some color, 110 or 130 minutes
• The Winterfilm Collective consisted of: Fred Aranow, Nancy Baker, Joe Bangert, Rhetta Barron, Robert Fiore, David Gillis, David Grubin, Jeff Holstein, Barbara Jarvis, Al Kaupas, Barbara Koppel, Mark Lenix, Michael Lesser, Nancy Miller, Lee Osborne, Lucy Massie Phenix, Roger Phenix, Benay Rubenstein, Michael Weil.

Despite significant fund raising efforts by supporters of the VVAW, the cost of the Winter Soldier Investigation event financially bankrupted the organization. Organizers of the event hoped to recoup some of their expenditures through the above mentioned book, film and recording deals. Orders were taken at the event for copies of the film footage, which was to be made available for $300.

In 2005, a website wintersoldierfilm.com was established to spread information about this documentary and to spread information about further showings of the film (in the United States). [14]

Winter Soldier controversy

See wikiquote for a transcript of one WSI participant

The U.S. participation in the Vietnam conflict was the source of much deeply divided sentiment among Americans. The Winter Soldier Investigation produced a conglomerate of information implying that American leadership was involved in widespread in criminal conduct, further dividing proponents and opponents of the war. Many people viewed the Winter Soldier proceedings with a critical eye, and questions have been raised about the information given at the Winter Soldier Investigation. Details have been questioned, as have the identities of participants, since the first day of the three day investigation.

Footnotes

1. ^ From John Kerry and VVAW
2. ^  ; Column Sixty-Eight; February 1, 2002 (Article with exerpts from the book); . ISBN 0812991036. {{cite book}}: Missing or empty |title= (help); Unknown parameter |Author= ignored (|author= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |Publisher= ignored (|publisher= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |Title= ignored (|title= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |Year= ignored (|year= suggested) (help)

See also

• Going Upriver - Documentary detailing John Kerry's participation in the Vietnam war and subsequent antiwar movement.

External links

• Winter Soldier Investigation Testimony Partial Congressional Record of Testimony online
• World On Fire Columnist Rick Freedman on Winter Soldier
• VVAW Archives Winter Soldier Viewpoints
• Baltimore Sun Article Vietnam Vets Stand by Kerry Today
• Wintersoldierfilm.com Re-released documentary of the event
• Pitkin's latest 2004 statement Second affidavit by Steve Pitkin

Further reading

• Kerry, John & Vietnam Veterans Against the War (1971). The New Soldier. CA: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 002073610X
• Nicosia, Gerald (2002). Home to War: A History of the Vietnam Veterans' Movement. CA: Three Rivers Press. ISBN 0609809067
• Lewy, Guenter (1978). America in Vietnam. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0195023919. ISBN 0195027329 pbk.

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