Vietnam Protest Rally Draws 250

"Johnson's dirty war in Vietnam should be condemned," Barry Sheppard, editor of the Young Socialist, told 250 onlookers yesterday at the May Second Committee's largest rally to date.

Sheppard, the opening speaker, said that the war is illegal, since it has never been declared by Congress nor discussed by the American people. "The war was started by Eisenhower, escalated by Kennedy, and brought to a peak by Johnson," he continued.

The term "dirty war" was repeated several times. "We say the Communists are haters of freedom," said Rory Ellinger, field secretary of the Young Christian Movement. "But the United States has been the oppressor, covering its actions in hypocrisy with outright lies."

During Ellinger's harangue, the rally's largest applause came when a freshman stepped behind the speaker with a sign reading "These views here are not necessarily those of the American people."

David M. Kotz '65, a former president of the Harvard's Students for Democratic Society, argued for negotiations to end the war. "As long as the United States supports a repressive dictatorship in South Vietnam, it is forcing majority sentiment to the Chinese side," he said.

Most of the crowd watched in silence, but a vociferous group of hecklers continually hurled comments like "Red herring," and "We want poison gas" at the speakers.