May Day demonstrations of 1971
The May Day demonstrations of 1971 were significant protests in Washington, D.C., organized by a group known as the Mayday Collective, aimed at closing down the federal government as a statement against the Vietnam War. Starting on May 3, these protests drew around 12,000 participants who sought to disrupt traffic and government operations. In response, authorities deployed a substantial force of police and military personnel, leading to the arrest of over 13,000 individuals, many of whom were charged with "disorderly conduct" without proper legal procedures. The handling of these arrests raised concerns about civil rights, as many detainees experienced inadequate conditions and were released without formal charges the following day.
As the demonstrations progressed, tactics shifted, leading to further arrests and a declaration of "unlawful assembly" by police. Ultimately, litigation stemming from these events affirmed the protesters' constitutional rights to free speech and assembly, challenging the government’s justification for maintaining order at the expense of legal protections. The May Day protests are viewed as a pivotal moment marking the decline of large-scale anti-war activism. The events contributed to the broader context of the United States' eventual withdrawal from Vietnam and the signing of a peace treaty, reflecting the ongoing societal debates around civil liberties and government response to dissent.
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Subject Terms
May Day demonstrations of 1971
The Event Anti-Vietnam War protesters descend on the U.S. capital
Date May 3-5, 1971
Place Washington, D.C.
Demonstrators’ attempts to disrupt government activity in the U.S. capital were countered by indiscriminate arrests that violated civil liberties, resulting in the largest mass detentions in U.S. history.
Two weeks before the May Day peace demonstrations in Washington, D.C., more than 250,000 people had marched in that city to protest the war in Vietnam. The May Day demonstrations, beginning Monday, May 3, were carried out by a much smaller and more militant group of protesters, whose stated goal was to close down the federal government by blocking the city’s traffic flow. A loose-knit organization called the Mayday Collective organized the event and publicly announced twenty-one sites where demonstrators would gather. District police and federal government officials decided that the capital would be kept open at all costs and determined that this could be accomplished only by suspending normal arrest and detention procedures.
When about 12,000 protestors moved into position Monday morning, they were met by 5,100 city police and 1,400 National Guard soldiers, with 10,000 more Army and Marine troops held in reserve. About 7,200 arrests were made that day, and many who were arrested had nothing to do with the demonstrations. Most of those detained had no real arrest information recorded and were charged with “disorderly conduct.” They were held at makeshift detention facilities without adequate food, water, and sanitation, and the majority were released by the next day by posting a ten-dollar collateral. By midday on Tuesday, even the collateral requirement was abandoned, and the rest were released without being processed.
On Tuesday, the demonstrators changed tactics and 3,000 gathered at the Justice Department to listen to speeches. Police announced that anyone who did not leave would be arrested, and about 1,500 were taken to jail. Another 1,200 protesters marched from the Mall to the Capitol Building. This gathering was called an “unlawful assembly” by the chief of police, and 1,146 people were arrested. Standard arrest procedures were followed, and the charges were more serious. There were a couple of small protests later in the week, but nothing on the scale of the first two days.
Altogether, more than 13,000 protesters were arrested during the May Day demonstrations. Almost all detained on the first day had charges dropped, and litigation on subsequent arrests resulted in rulings that protesters’ rights of free speech and assembly had been violated, and their charges were also dropped.
Impact
The May Day peace demonstrations of 1971 marked the end of large-scale protests against the war in Vietnam. The constitutionally guaranteed rights of free speech, assembly, and due process were affirmed by the courts, rendering invalid the argument made by government officials that the need for social order overrode the rule of law. The United States withdrew all combat troops from Vietnam in 1972 and signed a peace treaty with North Vietnam in 1973.
Bibliography
Hixson, Walter L. The Vietnam Antiwar Movement. New York: Garland, 2000.
Nicosia, Gerald. Home to War: A History of the Vietnam Veterans’ Movement. New York: Crown, 2001.
Wells, Tom. The War Within: America’s Battle over Vietnam. New York: Henry Holt, 1996.