'"The Gulf War was [not about oil]," Mr. Bush replied.
"I'm glad to take a shot at... those pickets
standing out there beating those damn drums
in front of the White House
when I was trying to have dinner."
PARADE MAGAZINE - DECEMBER 1, 1996

Proposition One

Proposition One is a grassroots voter initiative movement for disarmament of nuclear weapons and the conversion of the arms industries to human and environmental needs. The concept was proven viable by the victory of DC Initiative 37 in 1993, which inspired DC's Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton to introduce a House Bill, "The Nuclear Disarmament and Economic Conversion Act" in 1994, 1995-96, 1997-98, 1999-2000, 2001-02, 2003-2004, 2005-2006, 2007-2008, 2009-2010, 2011-2012, 2013-2014, 2015-2016, 2017-2018, and 2019-2020 sessions. Proposition One and similar ideas are gaining international support, especially since the United Nations nuclear weapons ban treaty of 2017. You can sign a petition to your Representative asking for co-sponsorship of Eleanor Holmes Norton's bill, and petition your Senators and the President to ratify the UN ban treaty, and learn more about Norton's bill here.

Legal Section

Over the years the play of judicial games has resulted in transforming "constitutionally protected" free thought and expression into "criminal activity." The vigil has been one of few critical voices claiming that this transformation is irrational and factually unjustifiable. Upon retiring, Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall noted, "This court no longer rules by reason, it rules by force." As if to illustrate Justice Marshall's premise, the Park's excellent adventure in the halls of justice sheds some light on how "national security," "aesthetics," and "official immunity" have effectively created a state where police vigilantism has become "official" business.

Peace Park

Since June 3, 1981, eight years to the day (EST) before tanks rolled into Tiananmen Square, signs calling for "Wisdom and Honesty," justice and nuclear disarmament have stood every day and night in front of the White House. To those who maintain perhaps the longest continuous vigil in human history, the signs represent the ancient right -- Thomas Jefferson may have termed it "the duty" -- of people in a democracy to voice opinions on issues of broad public concern. According to National Park Service figures the signs have been seen by nearly fifty million people. Lafayette Park (Peace Park) is America's premier, historic location for individuals and organizations to bring grievances before the president and the public. This section contains information on People, Protests and the Current Situation in Lafayette Park. (Well, maybe you should go to William Thomas Memorial page on Facebook for the truly current situation in Lafayette Park. Share YOUR photos and memories there as well!)

Democracy

"Knowledge will forever govern ignorance;
and a people who mean to be their own Governors,
must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives."
[Inscription on the Library of Congress, Quote by James Madison]

When framing the Constitution for a democratic society, there were diverse opinions as to the actual wording of the document. Many felt that "Government," as Tom Paine said, "has of itself no rights; they are all together duties" ("The Rights of Man", Part II, chap. 4). James Madison, who introduced what became the "Bill of Rights" in the First Session of Congress, probably thought he answered all objections by the language of the Fourth Resolution, which became the Ninth Amendment:

"The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights,
shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people."
(Annals, 1st Cong., 1st sess., I, 456).
 
Many people felt that they already had the rights before they were written down, and writing them down gave those rights no more authority than already conveyed naturally. Over time, the Constitution has been shadowed by numerous regulations which seem to deny or threaten the individual rights our framers tried to protect.

Forest Service Regulations

After finding refuge from ideological persecution in the wilderness of the "New World," the people who founded this country would be shocked at a current National Forest Service power/land grab. In September, 1995 the FS published a final "group use" rule to criminalize the assembly of more than 75 people without a FS permit in any National Forest. Although this rule might not seem to be a serious imposition for most people in this country, it is important to consider that NO PERMIT REQUIREMENTS PREVIOUSLY EXISTED TO RESTRICT FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY IN THE NATIONAL FORESTS. Until this rule, and ever since this country began, every person has had the "right" to "peaceably assemble" in public forest lands. A "right" like assembly is and has always been distinguished from a "privilege," like driving.

Anti-Nuclear

Our vigil is dedicated to the elimination of all weapons of mass destruction, as a first step towards peace. We have compiled a tremendous amount of information about disarmament in general, and nuclear weapons abolition specifically, which we would like to share. We have provided an index list to make articles, activists, and subjects easier to find. We also send information to subscribers to the daily "NucNews" - a survey of articles about nuclear, plutonium, uranium, and radioactivity issues - and recently have begun a NucNews Archive.


Write to Us

Information about the Website
click on "1601 Pennsylvania Ave." bar to return here

This Web Domain is created and maintained by volunteers of the anti-nuclear vigils in Lafayette Park, at 1601 Pennsylvania Avenue, since June 3, 1981. We exercise our First Amendment Rights by maintaining a 24-hour-a-day vigil in front of the White House. Contained in the Web Domain is information concerning the current Anti-Nuclear Movement, Protests in Lafayette Park, and encroachment on First Amendment Rights.
Produced by Volunteers of the:
Proposition One Campaign