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Vietnam Veterans Protest in Calif.

By VVAW

Hunger Strike and Sit-In

James Hopkins was found dead a few days before Memorial Day. He had complained of lack of VA medical care and indifference about victims of Agent Orange poisoning. He had gone to the VA, been give medication and turned loose. His death sparked a sit-in at the Wadsworth VA in Los Angeles and later a hunger strike by vets demanding decent medical care, treatment for Agent Orange poisoning and a meeting with President Reagan.

Taking over the VA lobby they called a march on Memorial Day which attracted 200 people including some Hollywood notables. They also began a hunger strike, a liquids-only diet. News of the action spread and vets in Santa Rosa began a sympathy strike, while other vets were arrested in an attempt to sit-in at the VA in Washington, DC. The LA strikers continued their sit-in for 18 days before being evicted by police.

Michael McCarthy, the vets' spokesman, left Los Angeles, moving the hunger strike to LaFayette Square across from the White House. At the same time a group working with the Community for Creative Non-Violence in Washington was arrested at the White House; they sat down on the White House lawn during a White House tour and refused to leave. Five of those arrested were Vietnam vets; one was a Gold Star Mother whose son was killed in Vietnam.

VA doctors looking into the charges stated that the Wadsworth VA was as good or superior to other VA facilities. Of course, this is like comparing quality in a POW compound. And Reagan has said, not surprisingly, that he will no meet with the strikers.

There has been a lot of support from the Vietnam veteran community for the sit-in and protest though the hunger strike has met with less enthusiasm. But regardless of the tactics, it is important for vets and others concerned about vet's health to support actions calling on the VA and federal government to carry out their commitments to veterans.

The following statement was released by those arrested during the sit-in on the White House lawn:

"As veterans and supporters of veterans, we are especially affected by the proposed Reagan budget cuts. Slashes in benefits and assistance will push many closer to the edge of physical and metal survival. The lack of jobs and job training means crushing despair for others. We who have been victimized by chemicals such as Agent Orange, as well as by nuclear radiation, face a long struggle, because of a government which refuses to take responsibility for the consequences of its actions.

"At the same time, veterans—many of whom are survivors of US foreign policy in action—see dollars pumped into an already bloated military budget. El Salvador threatens to become another Vietnam, and the cloud of nuclear war hangs over the survival of mankind..."