|
|
January 1987 may have been a pivotal moment in the struggle to prevent the Pentagon's development of a first-strike nuclear arsenal, due to disarmament activists' focussed attention to the first flight test of the Trident II/D-5 submarine-launched nuclear missile at Cape Canaveral.
A 7000-strong march with civil disobedience was held 17 January, but the protests had been building for a year. Initiated by Peter Lumsdaine of California's First Strike Prevention Project, coordinated nationally by Mobilization for Survival and statewise by the Florida Coalition for Peace and Justice, the Cancel the Countdown campaign drew organizers and participants from all over the country. The American Peace Test and War Resisters League also lent staff people to the campaign, which was the first national peace demonstration in the South.
The campaign began 28 December with a 200-mile Peace Pilgrimage from Kings Bay, Georgia (the future Atlantic home base of the Trident submarine fleet), which drew up to 250 walkers.
Activists had planned to prevent the launch through the presence of unauthorized people in the security zone by occupying the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Although the precise test date was a carefully-kept secret, leaks indicated the missile test would take place on 15 January. As the demonstrations grew, however, there were indications that there might be an earlier test, perhaps on 10 January. The occupation began.
Beginning 9 January, ten to fifteen occupiers entered the base each night. While some were arrested, others went in and out freely, leaving ribbons and notes for the Air Force to find. Many stayed on the base for days before being caught, causing the media to label security a "sieve" and provoking Congressional concern over the Air Force's inadequate security. One woman had to telephone security guards twice before being arrested on the 13th floor of a Titan missile launch tower. Frustrated Air Force officials repeatedly tried to scare demonstrators with warnings about wild boars, rattlesnakes, and alligators.
Court appearances, the continuing Peace Pilgrimages, daily new arrests, and the impending 17 January events dominated the Florida media for a week. In the final week, local organizers across Florida doubled their bus reservations. Press reports threatened 5000 counter-demonstrators. The missile was tested on Thursday, accompanied by a massive traffic jam as police closed exits and rerouted cars to avoid several dozen demonstrators at the gate. It was delayed several days by protesters or technology. Although this first of 25 scheduled tests was depressing, activists vowed to step up their nonviolent opposition. By then, sixty occupiers were in county jails across Florida.
The Peace Train left Boston 16 January, picking up 120 activists throughout New England, New York, Washington, D.C. and the Southeast. Many cities held support actions as the train passed through, and nonviolence training sessions were conducted. Bishop Thomas Gumbleton of Detroit, Michigan held a service in Melboume, a town south of Cape Canaveral.
The action's highlight was 17 January. Seven thousand demonstrators, more than twice the number expected, converged on Port Canaveral for the rally. More than half of the demonstrators came from Florida; for 40 percent it was their first peace demonstration. Following the rally, the Peace Pilgrimage led demonstrators the last three miles to the main gate of Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
While Air Force helicopters circled dangerously low, 138 demonstrators were arrested for climbing over the fence, bringing the total in custody to over 200. After two hours, the 500 people remaining joined in a massive spiral dance and left the area, promising to return.
Back at the rally site, Seeds of Peace (the logistical core of the Pilgrimage, which had evolved from the Great Peace march) set up their kitchen and served food to hungry activists. The dishwashers were two young airmen from the Air Force. They had piloted a helicopter earlier in the week to spot occupiers and decided to join the Trident H protest. First strike policy had been a major topic of discussion among the local military that week, and many agreed with the protesters.
A week later, most of the demonstrators had gone home. But more than 100 remained in Broward County Jail, strong in their commitment to break the backbone of the Pentagon's first-strike nuclear strategy. Cape Canaveral has joined Groton, Connecticut and Bangor, Washington as a focus of sustained anti-Trident protest. Strong statewide and national networks will sustain this struggle, as Americans become more and more aware of the military intrusion in their lives.
By Charles Scheiner, member of Mobilization for Survival's Coordinating Committee. Contact: Judy Freiwirth at the national office, 853 Broadway, Suite 418, New York, N.Y. 10003. Tel. 212/995-8787.
