THE WASHINGTON POST Thursday, July 7, 16 63 An Open Letter to the American People A COUNT OF BROKEN PROMISES “The air attacks on military targets in North Vietnam have imposed and will continue to impose a growing burden on those who wage war against the freedom of their neigh- bors... ‘And if you are too busy or not inclined to help, please count 10 before you hurt.” Lyndon B. Johnson, President of the United States, Omaha, Nebr., June 30, 1966 FELLOW AMERICANS: We have counted ten, long past ten. It is a count of broken promises and endless guile. Ten times we were told that our government seeks no military solution to the tangled issue of Vietnam. Ten times and more we have seen the use of force exclude all else. Ten times we were told that our allies support us. We count more than ten allies who will not follow us into the Vietnam adventure. Ten times we were told “we seek no wider war.” For 20 months our government has widen- ed the war. American planes from Guam and Thailand now bomb up to the frontiers of China. We are coming closer to the brink of ultimate war. Ten times we were told that Americans are in Vietnam to help a legitimate government defend itself. More than ten times we have seen the rulers in Saigon exposed as a military clique that is not a government, not legitimate, and not really defending itself. We were told that we are fighting aggression. Yet the leading experts on Vietnam say this is a civil war among South Vietnamese. The chief outside military force consists of American troops, ships, and planes. We were told: “We want the killing to stop.” Yet, we have seen it grow in scale and proliferate in technique. Daily our newspapers give us the count of the victims of bombs and napalm. WE HAVE COUNTED ENOUGH TIMES We will not consent by default to a policy so self-righteous, so unseeing, so ineffective, so danger- ous and so cruel. We call for a clear change in policy, with the resignation of those Cabinet officers most responsible for the current crisis. We call upon our government: 1. To cease all bombing, North and South, and all other offensive military operations immediately; 2. To negotiate with the National Liberation Front and all other interested parties for a peaceful settlement; 3. To encourage and in no way interfere with the free exercise of popular sovereignty in Vietnam; 4. To realize that the interest of self-determination for the Viet- namese, as well as our own national interest, will best be served by termination of our military presence in Vietnam. Many of us actively supported the President in 1964 because we believed him to be a man of peace. It now appears we were misled. - | WE EARNESTLY PLEDGE THAT UNLESS THE PRESIDENT MOVES TO HALT THE ES. | CALATION OF WAR IN VIETNAM AND TO SEEK A NEGOTIATED SETTLEMENT WITH (| THE NATIONAL LIBERATION FRONT AND ITS ALLIES, WE WILL BEGIN NOW TO i = WORK FOR HIS DEFEAT AT THE POLLS IN 1968 AND WE WILL ACTIVELY OPPOSE § HIS SUPPORTERS IN THIS ELECTION YEAR. | ; Comments and contributions toward the cost of publication will be welcome. {| This Open Letter can be reprinted without permission. We suggest the widest publication, distribu- tion, and use in letters to Senators, Representatives, and the President of the United States. j S. Alexander, M.D., Harvard Medical School H. Amos, Harvard Medical School F. Anderson, Tufts University H. L, Anderson, New York University . J. L. Anderson, Stevens In- stitute ‘R. Arnowitt, Northeastern K.. C. Atwood, Untversity of Illinois M. L. Bade, M. I. T. 8. L. Baird, Jr., Oregon State University : E. Baylor, Woods Hole Ocean- ographic Institute M. Baylor, Marine Biological Laboratory . ad. Beckwith, Harvard Medical - School E. Bell, M. I. T. T. L. Benjamin, Institute for Biomedical Research, Chi- cago M. L. ¥. Bennett, Columbia University H. W. Bentley, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute E. Berczeller, Boston Univer- sity F. Bisshopp, Brown University A. Blum, Boston University T. G. R. Bower, Harvard Uni- vesity E. J. Brier, UCLA R. F. Brightbill, Northeastern University J. M. Brinnin, Bostoh Uni- versity J. E. Brown, M. I. T. A. F,. Bunker, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute A. L. Burnett, Western Re- serve University F. G. Carey, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute R. Carnap, UCLA B. Chasan, Boston University B. G. Chevigny, Queens Col- lege S. Childress, New York Uni- versity N. Chomsky, M. I. T. S. L. Chorover, M. I. T. E. Cfark, Cotumbia University dg, Cochin, Boston Univ. Sch. of Medicine Philadelphia E. P. Cohen, College of Art 8. Cohen, Univ. of Pennsyl- vania. Cc. T. Cole, M. I. T. : P. Coltoff, Hunter College J. O. Crane, Woods Hole A, Cromer, Northeastern Uni- versity D. Cross, Harvard Univ. E. Daner, Boston Univ. B. D. Davis, Harvard Medical School P. Deats, Jr., Boston Univ. D. Deykin, Harvard Med. Sch. A. S. Dibner, Boston Univ. M. Diskin, M. I. T. R. M. Dowben, M. I. T. H. L. Dreyfus, M. I. T. P. B. Dunham, Syracuse Univ. G. B. Dworkin, M. I. T. J. D. Ebert, Carnegie Inst. for Embryology M. V. Edds, Jr., Brown Univ. E, §. Epstein, Harvard Univ. W. Epstein, Harvard Med. Sch. F,. Ervin, Harvard Med. Sch. R. Erwin, Harvard Center for International Affairs M. Filson, Northeastern Univ. J. Fine, Harvard Univ. D. Finkelstein, Yeshiva Univ, A. E. Flanigan, UCLA J. A. Fodor, M. 1, T. D. Fraenkel,’ Harvard Med. Sch. Vv. A. Fromkin, UCLA M. G. F. Fuottes, Marine Biological Laboratory S. Gelfant, Syracuse Univ. G. L. Gerstein, Univ. of Penn- sylvania L. Gerstein, Haverford College S. Gifford, Harvard Med, Sch. G. Glass, Northeastern Univ. H. Goldfine, Harvard Med. Sch. P. Goldreich, UCLA R. Goldwin, Harvard Med. . Seh. R. Goodman, M. I. T. L. Gorini, Harv. Med. Sch. J. C. Grannis, Harvard Univ. Cc. Grobstein, Univ. of Cali- fornia at San Diego Cc. G, Gross, Harvard Univ. J. Gross, Harvard Univ. M. Grossman, Harvard Univ. H. Grundfest, Columbia Univ. H. Guggenheim, New York . _ University K. Gunderson, UCLA Victor Gurewich, Med. Sch. Vladimir Gurewich, New York College of Med. R. Guttman, Brooklyn College R, J. Hamby, Univ. of Chicago A. E. Haschemeyer, Harvard Med. Sch. J. W. Hastings, University of Tilinois J. Hay, Smith. College T, Hayashi, Columbia Univ. A. Hein, M. I. T. R, Held, M. I. T. H. Hiatt, Harvard Univ. M. Hoagland, Harvard Med. Harvard Sch. H,. Holtzer, Univ. of Pennsyl- vania L.‘N. Howard, M. I. T. N. Howell, Harvard Univ. T. Humphreys, Univ. of Cali- fornia, San Diego I. Isenberg, Oregon State Uni- versity G Jacobson, Newton L. Jaffe, Univ. Pennsylvania E. W. Jones, M. I. T. J. Kagan, Harvard Univ. D. Kalish, UCLA L. Kampf, M. I. T. G. M. Katz, Columbia Univ. J. L. Katz, M. I. T. E. F, Keller, New York Univ. J. B. Keller, New York Univ. Affiliations given for purposes of identification only.’ J. Keosian, Rutgers, The State Univ. I. W. Konigsberg, Univ. of Virginia Cc. Kornetsky, Boston Univ. Sch. of Med. F. Koss, Boston University P, Krupa, City Univ. of New York J, Lash, Univ. of Pennsylvania H. Laufer, Univ. of Conn. J. H. Lavely, Boston Univ. R. Lee, Harvard Univ. L. Letbowitz, Northeastern Univ. M. Leitenberg E. Lenneberg, Harvard Univ. J. Levine, Harvard Univ. J. Levine, Woods Hole Ocean- ographic Institute Cc. Levinthal, M. I. T. ¥. Litman, Harvard Univ. R. Llinas, University of Min- nesota Jd. H. Lochhead, Univ. of Ver- mont R. B. Loftfield, Univ, of New Mexteo I. London, Albert Einstein Coll. of Medicine B. Lown, Harvard Sch. . of Public Health S. E. Luria, M. I, T. Z. H. Luria, Tufts University B. Magasanik, M. I. T. H. Mahut, M. I. T. W. V. RB. Malkus, UCLA Pp. C. Mangelsdorf, Jr., Swarth- more College D. Marsh, Woods Hole Ocean- ographic Institute J. B. Marsh, Univ. of Pennsyl- vanig * A, Mattuck, M. I. T. A. Mauro, Rockefeller Univ. DeF. Melion, University of Virginia M. Mendelson, New York Univ, Medical School A. FE. Mirsky, Boston Univ. of Medicine . E. E, Moise, Harvard Univ. G. P. Moore, UCLA N. Morlock, Columbia Univ. L. J. Mullins, University of Maryland M. Nameroff, Pennsylvania M, Nasatir, Brown University Pp. Nash, Boston University L, Nelson, Emory University P. Nossiter, Sea Pines School Mrs. P. Nossiter, Sea Pines School G. D. Pappas, Columbia Univ. K, V. Peeter, Harvard Univ. H. L. Pick, dr., Univ. of Min- nesota M. A. Pinsky, M. I. T. B, Qualls, M. I. T. Cc. Rappaport, Yale University C. P. Read, Rice University W. Read, Boston University L. I. Rebhun, Princeton, Univ. R. Reeder, M. I. T. P. Reich, Harvard Med. Sch. J. Reuben, Columbia Univ. University of P. W. Robbins, M. I. T. J. K. Rosenthal, M. I. T. J. S. Roth, Univ. of Con- necticut L. P. Rowland, Columbia University 8. I. Rubinow, Cornell Univ. Rk. J. Rutman, Univ. of Penn- sylvania I. Samuels, Northeastern Univ. G, Santas, Brandeis Univ, J. W. Saunders, Jr., Univ. of Pennsylvania ‘L. Saunders, Philadelphia Col- lege of Pharmacy R. Schiller, Stevens Institute of Technology H. A. Schneiderman, Western Reserve University B. G. Schoepf, Fairleigh Dick- inson University . LL. Schwartz, University J. R. Seeley, Brandeis Univ. D. Shemin, Columbia Univ. D. Shepro, Simmons, College M. I, Shoul, Harvard Med. Columbia Sch. Y. Sidel, Harvard Med. Sch.. A. Slegel, Woods Hole Ocean- ographic Institute S. B. Simpson, Western Re- serve University J. Stachel, Boston University Pp, Stansky, Harvard Univ. N. Starr, Mathematician M. R. Stein, Brandeis Univ. A. Steinberg, M. I. T. W. Stell, Univ. of Chicago M. Stodolsky, M. I. T. $. Stodolsky, Harvard Univ. H. Stommel, M. I. T. N. Sullivan, Rhode Island College S$, Switzer, Albert Einstein Col. of Medicine A, Szent-Gyorgyi, Marine Bi- ological Laborator L. Titt, San Fernando Valley State College J. P. Trinkaus, Yale Univ, K. E. Van Holde, Univ. of Hilinols M. P. Vaughn, Northeastern Univ. . J. Viertel, M. I. T. ‘ W. S. Vincent, Univ. of Pitts- burgh G. Wald, Harvard Universit R. Wald, Haryard University L. Warren, Univ. of Pennsyl- vania . M. Wartofsky, Boston Univ. A. G.. Wasserman, Harvard University W. B. Watson, M. I. T. J. A. Weston, Western Reserve University H. C. Willett, M. I. T. T, H. Wilson, Harvard Med. G. Wolf, M. I. T. Pp. H. Wolff, Harvard Med. School H. Zinn, Boston University E. Zwilling, Brandeis Univ. This Open Letter is being published in The Washington Post as a public service by the individual signers listed above. AD HOC COMMITTEE FOR OP EN LETTER TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE, Post Office Box 95—Belm ont, Massachusetts 02178, Professor Howard Zinn, Chairman; Profess or Salvador E. Luria, Treasurer.