William Sloane Coffin

On April 12th, 2006, the Peace and Justice movement lost one of its most stalwart proponents when the Reverend William Sloane Coffin died in Strafford, Vermont. Rev. Coffin, an ordained Presbyterian minister, and later a minister for the United Church of Christ, was known by many as a strident champion of civil rights in the 1960's, an anti war advocate during the Viet Nam war, a strong supporter of gay rights and founder of SANE, The Committee for a Sane Nuclear Policy, the oldest and largest peace organization in the nation.

I had the fortunate experience of working for the organization, SANE/FREEZE, which grew out of SANE, and is now the organization, PEACE ACTION. The organization function was to get word out to the people by going door to door asking people if they were satisfied with their government spending an inordinate amount of their tax dollars on defense, while monies for education, healthcare, good jobs and environmental concerns were put on the back burner. The canvasers would also try to engage in conversation with the people the idea that we had enough nuclear weapons in our arsenal to blow up the world many times over, and that we needed their support in lobbying through SANE/FREEZE in Washington, D. C., to stop the proliferation of nuclear armaments. My experience brought me in conflict with the local police department in El Cerrito, California across the bay from San Francisco, as they stopped to question me and proceeded to search me, and then told me to put my hands on the top of the squad car. They told me to cease my activities and to leave the area. The organization had been given permission to do their work in that area, nevertheless, the area patrol felt they had their right to harass.

The policemen were doing what they felt was their job and the bidding of supposed "security apparatus," while I was trying to inform and enlist help from American citizens regarding our nuclear arsenal and the insanity of perpetuating the proliferation of yet more bombs at the expense of this country's and the rest of the world's real safety.

On April 20th, at Riverside Memorial Church in New York City, Bill Moyers gave a wonderful and sincere eulogy to Bill Coffin, as he was called by his friends. Bill Moyers ended his words by saying, "I hear his voice in my heart, don't tarry long, in mourning. ORGANIZE."

Today, when this country's madmen surrealistically contemplate a preemptive nuclear strike on Iran we cannot be silent. Can anyone possibly think of a more insane scenario for the world? William Sloane Coffin maintained his commitments to the end, opposing the war in Iraq and the proliferation of nuclear weapons. We must continue the fight and do whatever it takes to stop this government from the very imminent possibility of total destruction. There can be no more pressing engagement.