CAS has welcomed Linda J. Yarr, director of Partnerships for International Strategies in Asia (PISA), as a research affiliate to expand opportunities for new program offerings on Asia. To launch this collaboration, CAS and PISA will sponsor the Waging Peace in Vietnam exhibit in Norlin Library in early November. During America’s War in Vietnam, tens of thousands of GIs and veterans created a robust movement in opposition to the war. Yet its history is largely unknown. The Waging Peace in Vietnam exhibit and its companion book show how the GI movement unfolded, from the numerous anti-war coffeehouses springing up outside military bases, to the hundreds of GI newspapers giving an independent voice to active soldiers, to the stockade revolts and the strikes and near-mutinies on naval vessels and in the air force.
Waging Peace in Vietnam Exhibit and Events October 27-November 8, 2023
November 8, 5:00-7:00 PM, British and Irish Studies Room, Poetry of the War in Vietnam and its Consequences
Poetry helps us speak the unspeakable and feel deeply. Award-winning poets whose poems of war, memory, and reconciliation will arouse our empathy and understanding of the war in Vietnam and its profound consequences.
Professor Julie Carr, Department of English and Creative Writing, Moderator
Poets Reciting Via ZOOM:
Jan Barry, Teresa Mei Chuc, Wayne Karlin, Yusef Komunyakaa, Hoa Nguyen, Kimberly Nguyen, Doug Rawlings, Bruce Weigl
November 7, 5:30-7:30PM, British and Irish Studies Room, Book Talk: Defending Black Sailors from Discriminatory Prosecution
Racial tension was high when a fight broke out between White and Black sailors aboard the massive Kitty Hawk aircraft carrier that serviced the bombing missions over Vietnam. Discovering the unfair, unequal, and frankly discriminatory treatment to which Blacks were subjected, Marv Truhe, the JAG officer assigned to the case, mounted a vigorous defense of the Black sailors. His book draws on the original documents he collected and saved.
Marv Truhe, former Navy JAG officer, author of Against All Tides: The Unknown Story of the USS Kitty Hawk Race Riot
November 6, 5:00-7:00PM, Humanities 250, Panel Discussion on the Legacies of War
War does not end when the last shots are fired. The Vietnamese population, as well as American soldiers and their families, continue to this day to bear the costs of war. This panel will investigate consequences of the war in Vietnam and efforts to mitigate those impacts.
Steven Dike, Arts and Sciences Honors Program, CU Boulder, Moderator
Five-Minute film on Project RENEW featuring Ho Van Lai, victim of unexploded cluster bomb.
Susan Hammond, Founder and Executive Director, War Legacies Project
Linda J. Yarr, Research Affiliate, Center for Asian Studies, CU Boulder
November 3, 12:00-1:30PM, Chamber Hall, Film Screening, The Whistleblower of My Lai
This outstanding documentary takes us through the process of creating an opera commissioned by the renowned Kronos String Quartet. The opera is based on the experience of Hugh Thomson, the helicopter pilot who witnessed the killing of civilians at My Lai and did his best to rescue survivors.
Professor Mutsumi Moteki, Co-Chair, Voice and Opera, College of Music, Moderator
November 2, 5:00-6:30 PM, CASE Building E340, Talk by Ron Haeberle, former Army photographer, whose photos of the My Lai Massacre published in Life Magazine helped to shift public opinion
Ron Haeberle will share his experience of coming upon the massacre of Vietnamese civilians by US soldiers, and the effort to share his photos with the world.
Ross Taylor, Assistant Professor, College of Media, Communications and Information, Moderator
November 1, 4:30-6:30PM, Humanities 135, Screening of documentary on GI Antiwar Movement Sir! No Sir!
This remarkable documentary tells the story of soldiers and sailors who actively opposed fighting in the war in Vietnam, and their ultimate impact on the prosecution of the war.
Professor Steven Dike, Arts and Sciences Honors Program, Moderator
David Zeiger, Producer and Director, Commentary and Q&A via ZOOM
View discussion of the film here.
October 30, 5:00-7:00PM, British and Irish Studies Room, Norlin Library, Opening Reception
Introduction to an exhibit that depicts the important, but largely unknown, role of U.S. active duty military and returning veterans in opposing the war in Vietnam.
Professor Rachel Rinaldo, Faculty Director, Center for Asian Studies, Welcome Remarks
Ron Carver, Exhibit Curator, Director, Waging Peace in Vietnam Education Fund
Curt Stocker, UC Boulder Alumnus and Veteran, publisher of underground GI Newspaper, "aboveground"
October 27, 2:30 PM, Norlin Library, Underground West Gallery, Soft Opening for Faculty and Media
Ron Carver, Curator, Director, Waging Peace in Vietnam Education Fund
Professors Steven Dike and Vilja Hulden, UC Boulder, on Teaching the War in Vietnam
Curt Stocker, UC Boulder Alumnus and Veteran, publisher of underground GI Newspaper, "aboveground"
Mark McVay, local Vietnam Veteran, who voluntarily enlisted
Student Essay Contest, Deadline, December 13, 2023
Students are invited to submit a 500-word essay with their reflections and impressions after having viewed the Waging Peace Exhibit. The student with the winning essay, as selected by the guest judge, will receive an award of $500. Nick Ut, Pulitzer-Prize winning photographer of the “Napalm Girl” image, will serve as the Guest Judge. Please submit essays to Linda Yarr (Linda.Yarr@colorado.edu).