Fort Hood Three
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The Fort Hood Three were three soldiers of the US Army –
Private First Class Private first class (french: Soldat de 1 classe; es, Soldado de primera) is a military rank held by junior enlisted personnel in a number of armed forces. French speaking countries In France and other French speaking countries, the rank (; ) ...
James Johnson, Jr.
Private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...
David A. Samas, and Private Dennis Mora – who refused to be deployed to Vietnam on June 30, 1966. This was the first public refusal of orders to Vietnam, and one of the earliest acts of resistance to the war from within the U.S. military. Their refusal was widely publicized (it was covered, for example, at least 20 times in the ''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'') and became a
cause célèbre A cause célèbre (,''Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged'', 12th Edition, 2014. S.v. "cause célèbre". Retrieved November 30, 2018 from https://www.thefreedictionary.com/cause+c%c3%a9l%c3%a8bre ,''Random House Kernerman Webs ...
within the growing
antiwar movement A peace movement is a social movement which seeks to achieve ideals, such as the ending of a particular war (or wars) or minimizing inter-human violence in a particular place or situation. They are often linked to the goal of achieving world pea ...
. They filed a federal suit against Secretary of Defense
Robert S. McNamara Robert Strange McNamara (; June 9, 1916 – July 6, 2009) was an American business executive and the eighth United States Secretary of Defense, serving from 1961 to 1968 under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson. He remains the ...
and Secretary of the Army Stanley Resor to prevent their shipment to
Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...
and were
court-martial A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...
ed by the Army for insubordination.


Background

The three were stationed together at
Fort Hood Fort Hood is a United States Army post located near Killeen, Texas. Named after Confederate General John Bell Hood, it is located halfway between Austin and Waco, about from each, within the U.S. state of Texas. The post is the headquarters ...
,
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, in the 142nd Signal Company, 2nd Armored Division. They were all from working-class backgrounds and have been called "a cross-section of Americans of color" because Johnson was black from
Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...
in
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, Mora was Puerto Rican from East or Spanish Harlem, and Samas was Lithuanian and Italian from
Bakersfield, California Bakersfield is a city in Kern County, California, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Kern County. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley and the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's populat ...
and
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
. Mora, a graduate of the
Bronx High School of Science The Bronx High School of Science, commonly called Bronx Science, is a public specialized high school in The Bronx in New York City. It is operated by the New York City Department of Education. Admission to Bronx Science involves passing the Spec ...
and the
City College of New York The City College of the City University of New York (also known as the City College of New York, or simply City College or CCNY) is a public university within the City University of New York (CUNY) system in New York City. Founded in 1847, Cit ...
where he received a B.A. in history, joined the Welfare Department as a caseworker prior to being drafted into the Army. He had been in the antiwar movement before being drafted and even passed out antiwar leaflets at the induction center on his first day of processing. He also refused to sign the
loyalty oath A loyalty oath is a pledge of allegiance to an organization, institution, or state of which an individual is a member. In the United States, such an oath has often indicated that the affiant has not been a member of a particular organization or ...
arguing that it was a violation of his Constitutional rights to be asked about organizational affiliations, but the Army insisted on taking him anyway. He came from a poor family and said, "the first war I knew was against the poverty of Spanish Harlem." He grew up angry at the discrimination, poor education, police brutality and unemployment he and his fellow Puerto Ricans experienced, describing the fight for "the reconstruction of our country's ghettoes and the meeting of our social and educational needs" as "the only battle which makes sense". Samas grew up on the West Coast, the son of a trucking company employee who later went into the furniture business. He graduated from
Bakersfield High School Bakersfield High School (BHS) is a public four-year high school located in Bakersfield, California, United States. Opened in 1893, Bakersfield High School serves grades ninth through twelfth within the Kern High School District. Notable alumni ...
in
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
, spent time at
Modesto Junior College Modesto Junior College (MJC) is a public community college in Modesto, California. It is part of Yosemite Community College District along with Columbia College. MJC, and Columbia College, belong to the California Community College system al ...
, and was living in Chicago, IL when he was drafted. Johnson's family came from the
Virgin Islands The Virgin Islands ( es, Islas Vírgenes) are an archipelago in the Caribbean Sea. They are geologically and biogeographically the easternmost part of the Greater Antilles, the northern islands belonging to the Puerto Rico Trench and St. Croix ...
. His father worked in direct mailing while his mother made $35 a week working such long hours the family "seldom saw her". He went to Saint Cecilias Parochial School and Rice High School and spent a year at
Bronx Community College The Bronx Community College of the City University of New York (BCC) is a public community college in the Bronx, New York City. It is part of the City University of New York system. History The college was established in 1957 through the eff ...
before becoming a teller at the Bronx Savings Bank and getting drafted. Upon finding out they were to be sent to Vietnam, they prepared a joint statement which they delivered during a press conference in
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.


Public statements

On June 30, 1966, Mora read the public statement from all three about their refusal to be sent to Vietnam. They denounced the war as “immoral, illegal and unjust” Their statement read in part: Mora also read his own statement where he proudly defended the right of "
cannon fodder Cannon fodder is an informal, derogatory term for combatants who are regarded or treated by government or military command as expendable in the face of enemy fire. The term is generally used in situations where combatants are forced to deliberately ...
" to speak out and, more, defended the right of the
Vietnamese people The Vietnamese people ( vi, người Việt, lit=Viet people) or Kinh people ( vi, người Kinh) are a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to modern-day Northern Vietnam and Dongxing, Guangxi, Southern China (Jing Islands, Dongxing, Guangxi ...
to national self-defense: Johnson directly tied his antiwar stance to racial discrimination at home: "When the Negro soldier returns, he still will not be able to ride in
Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
or walk down a certain street in
Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
." He also pointed out to a ''NY Times'' reporter the similarity between the fight of the Vietnamese and that of black people in the U.S.: "Just as the Negroes are fighting for absolute freedom and self-determination in the United States, so it is with the Vietnamese in their struggle against the Americans." On July 7, 1966, the Three were once again scheduled to speak to supporters. Nearly 800 people turned out to the event, but on their way there Samas, Mora, and Johnson were arrested by the military police.


Civilian support

When the Three received orders to report to the Oakland Army Terminal for assignment to Vietnam they used Mora's connections in the antiwar movement to contact the Vietnam Peace Parade Committee, a large coalition of antiwar activists in New York City, for help. The antiwar activists, anticipating a reaction from the military, proceeded to form the Fort Hood Three Defense Committee and mobilized legal help for the Three. The June 30 press conference where the Three presented their initial statement was attended by
Stokely Carmichael Kwame Ture (; born Stokely Standiford Churchill Carmichael; June 29, 1941November 15, 1998) was a prominent organizer in the civil rights movement in the United States and the global pan-African movement. Born in Trinidad, he grew up in the Unite ...
, chairman of the
Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC, often pronounced ) was the principal channel of student commitment in the United States to the civil rights movement during the 1960s. Emerging in 1960 from the student-led sit-ins at segrega ...
and Lincoln Lynch the public relations director of
Congress of Racial Equality The Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) is an African Americans, African-American civil rights organization in the United States that played a pivotal role for African Americans in the civil rights movement. Founded in 1942, its stated mission ...
. Within weeks the antiwar movement, nationally and internationally, had taken up their cause.
Pete Seeger Peter Seeger (May 3, 1919 – January 27, 2014) was an American folk singer and social activist. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, Seeger also had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of the Weavers, notably ...
, the folk singer and
social activist Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived greater good. Forms of activism range fro ...
, wrote a song for them called the ''Ballad Of The Fort Hood Three'', which included the lines: During the court cases and prison time for the Three numerous demonstrations were held in their support. Shortly after their arrest, some 250 protesters marched at the main gates to
Fort Dix Fort Dix, the common name for the Army Support Activity (ASA) located at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, is a United States Army post. It is located south-southeast of Trenton, New Jersey. Fort Dix is under the jurisdiction of the Air Force A ...
in
New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
where they were being held in the military prison. Once the Three were transferred to Leavenworth military prison in Kansas,
Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...
antiwar activists organized protests outside the prison. On January 7, 1967, close to 100 demonstrators marched and sang songs to show their support for the Three.


Legal cases

The court cases of the Fort Hood Three were among several early legal trials during the Vietnam War involving U.S. military personnel refusing orders and going to jail. The Three underwent two separate legal proceedings with numerous stages as they both sued the government in Federal Court while being court-martialed by the military. They argued in their suit and court-martials that the war was illegal and immoral, while the military charged them with refusing direct orders to board a plane bound for Vietnam. The Federal suit was filed on June 30, 1966, in
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, the same day as their initial public announcement. The suit, an application for a permanent injunction to bar the military from shipping them to Southeast Asia, was filed by their attorney, Stanley Faulkner. However, because the Three were ordered to board the plane before their suit could be heard, they were court-martialed before their hearing in Federal Court. The military at first considered charging the Three with the "uttering of disloyal statements with intent to cause disaffection and disloyalty among the members of the military service and civilian population." They had been arrested and held under "administrative restriction" at
Fort Dix Fort Dix, the common name for the Army Support Activity (ASA) located at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, is a United States Army post. It is located south-southeast of Trenton, New Jersey. Fort Dix is under the jurisdiction of the Air Force A ...
in
New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
while the Army deliberated. Instead, on July 14, 1966, the Army released them with orders to board a plane at
McGuire Air Force Base McGuire AFB/McGuire, the common name of the McGuire unit of Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, is a United States Air Force base in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States, approximately south-southeast of Trenton. McGuire is under the j ...
bound for Vietnam. When the Three refused this order, they were rearrested and charged with "insubordination." The Three's attorney said "he believed the Army carefully maneuvered his clients into a court-martial situation", probably preferring to avoid the legal issues around free speech.


Federal suit

Meanwhile, the suit in Federal court had already run into serious trouble. On July 11, a Federal District judge had thrown it out without even allowing arguments to proceed for more than 15 minutes. The judge cut off the Three's attorney in mid-argument and read from a prepared opinion, "it is not the function of the judiciary to entertain such litigation which challenges the validity, the wisdom or the propriety of the Commander in Chief of our armed forces". The ''NY Times'' noted that "it was rare for a judge here to dismiss a case on his own motion at such an early stage in the proceedings." The Three quickly appealed to the
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (in case citations, D.C. Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. It has the smallest geographical jurisdiction of any of the U.S. federal appellate cou ...
, but were again rebuffed. On November 6, 1967, the case made its way to the
Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
as '' Mora v. McNamara'' () which refused to hear it.
William O. Douglas William Orville Douglas (October 16, 1898January 19, 1980) was an American jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, who was known for his strong progressive and civil libertarian views, and is often ci ...
and
Potter Stewart Potter Stewart (January 23, 1915 – December 7, 1985) was an American lawyer and judge who served as an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court from 1958 to 1981. During his tenure, he made major contributions to, among other areas, ...
, however, dissented arguing that the Court should look into the issue of the legality of the war.


Courts-martial

Their courts-martial, the first of their kind in the U.S. military during the Vietnam War, took place quickly in late September 1966. During three separate trials over three days, they each argued the war was illegal and immoral. They all cited the
Nuremberg Code The Nuremberg Code (german: Nürnberger Kodex) is a set of ethical research principles for human experimentation created by the court in '' U.S. v Brandt'', one of the Subsequent Nuremberg trials that were held after the Second World War. Tho ...
as precedent and Samas said, “The way I was brought up was to judge things with my conscience, and that is what I did.” The men were defended as "counterpoints to
Adolf Eichmann Otto Adolf Eichmann ( ,"Eichmann"
''
Their appeal the next September before the
United States Court of Military Appeals United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...
was denied. The court's opinion said, "The legality under international law of the American presence in Vietnam is not a justiciable issue." Stanley Faulkner, the Three's lawyer, responded, "Sustaining the President's power to conduct an undeclared war 10,000 miles from our shores resembles the unlimited powers once held by kings and more recently in our history by dictators." In July 1967, both Samas and Johnson had their sentences reduced to three years by a military review board.


Impact

The actions of The Fort Hood Three, because they occurred so early in the war, have been called "a turning point in the broader antiwar movement" and "the beginning of a rank-and-file upsurge against military authority and hewar." Because they reached out to and received significant support from the civilian antiwar movement, they "helped to forge an enduring alliance between antiwar GIs and the civilian antiwar movement that encouraged thousands more GIs to join the resistance." Further, as they made clear in their initial statements, their opposition to the war was connected to their recognition of racial disparities in the military and the country as a whole. "They were some of the earliest antiwar protesters to really connect opposition to the war abroad to the fight for racial equality at home." Years later, Johnson pointed out the parallel between the Three's position and
Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, a ...
's famous statement made the same year: "No Vietcong ever called me nigger." By defending the right of the Vietnamese people to self determination, they were also setting an early precedent for future military resisters.


See also

*
Concerned Officers Movement The Concerned Officers Movement (COM) was an organization of mainly junior officers formed within the U.S. military in the early 1970s whose principal purpose was opposition to the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. Very quickly, however, it al ...
*
Donald W. Duncan Master Sergeant Donald Walter Duncan (March 18, 1930 – March 25, 2009) was a U.S. Army Special Forces soldier who served during the Vietnam War, helping to establish the guerrilla infiltration force Project DELTA there. Following his return ...
* Fort Lewis Six *
FTA Show The ''FTA Show'' (or ''FTA Tour'' or ''Free The Army tour''), a play on the common troop expression "Fuck The Army" (which in turn was a play on the army slogan "Fun, Travel and Adventure"), was a 1971 anti-Vietnam War road show for GIs designed ...
- 1971 anti-Vietnam War road show for GIs * ''
F.T.A. ''F.T.A.'' is a 1972 United States, American documentary film starring Jane Fonda and Donald Sutherland and directed by Francine Parker, which follows a 1971 Opposition to the US involvement in the Vietnam War, anti-Vietnam War road show for G.I ...
'' - documentary film about the FTA Show *
GI's Against Fascism GI's Against Fascism was a small but formative organization formed within the United States Navy, U.S. Navy during the years of conscription and the Vietnam War. The group developed in mid-1969 out of a number of sailors requesting adequate quart ...
*
GI Coffeehouses GI coffeehouses were a consequential part of the anti-war movement during the Vietnam War era, particularly the resistance to the war within the U.S. military. They were mainly organized by civilian anti-war activists as a method of supporting an ...
*
GI Underground Press The GI Underground Press was an underground press movement that emerged among the United States military during the Vietnam War. These were newspapers and newsletters produced without official military approval or acceptance; often furtively dist ...
*
Movement for a Democratic Military The Movement for a Democratic Military (MDM) was an antiwar and GI rights organization during the Vietnam War. Initially formed in late 1969 as a merger of sailors from San Diego and marines from the Camp Pendleton Marine Base in Oceanside, CA, i ...
*
Opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War Opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War (before) or anti-Vietnam War movement (present) began with demonstrations in 1965 against the escalating role of the United States in the Vietnam War and grew into a broad social move ...
*
Presidio mutiny The Presidio mutiny, one of the earliest instances of significant internal military resistance to the Vietnam War, was a sit-down protest carried out by 27 prisoners at the Presidio stockade in San Francisco, California on October 14, 1968. The s ...
* ''
Sir! No Sir! ''Sir! No Sir!'' is a 2005 documentary by Displaced Films about the anti-war movement within the ranks of the United States Armed Forces during the Vietnam War. The film was produced, directed, and written by David Zeiger. The film had a theatr ...
'', a documentary about the anti-war movement within the ranks of the United States Armed Forces * Stop Our Ship (SOS) anti-Vietnam War movement in and around the U.S. Navy *
Vietnam Veterans Against the War Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW) is an American tax-exempt non-profit organization and corporation founded in 1967 to oppose the United States policy and participation in the Vietnam War. VVAW says it is a national veterans' organization ...
*
Waging Peace in Vietnam ''Waging Peace in Vietnam: U.S. Soldiers and Veterans Who Opposed the War'' is a non-fiction book edited by Ron Carver, David Cortright, and Barbara Doherty. It was published in September 2019 by New Village Press and is distributed by New York U ...
*
Winter Soldier Investigation The "Winter Soldier Investigation" was a media event sponsored by the Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW) from January 31, 1971, to February 2, 1971. It was intended to publicize war crimes and atrocities by the United States Armed Forces ...


References


External links


''Sir! No Sir!'', a film about GI resistance to the Vietnam War

A Matter of Conscience - GI Resistance During the Vietnam War

Waging Peace in Vietnam - US Soldiers and Veterans Who Opposed the War
{{Anti-Vietnam American anti–Vietnam War activists Opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War Anti–Vietnam War groups * Military personnel from New York City Resistance Inside the Army 3