Seattle Liberation Front
This article needs additional citations for verification. (November 2008) |
Seattle Liberation Front | |
---|---|
Leaders | Anti-war Marxism–Leninism |
Size | ~15 militants |
Allies | Weather Underground |
Opponents | United States |
The Seattle Liberation Front, or SLF, was a radical anti-Vietnam War movement, based in Seattle, Washington, in the United States. The group, founded by the University of Washington visiting philosophy professor and political activist Michael Lerner, carried out its protest activities from 1970 to 1971.[1] The most famous members of the SLF were the "Seattle Seven," who were charged with "conspiracy to incite a riot" in the wake of a violent protest at a courthouse. The members of the Seattle Seven were Lerner, Michael Abeles, Jeff Dowd, Joe Kelly, Susan Stern, Roger Lippman and Charles Marshall III.[2][3][4]
Formation
After the nationwide organization
Affiliation with Weather Underground
The relationship between the Weather Underground and the Seattle Liberation Front remains somewhat ambiguous. Both groups shared many of the same political viewpoints, where they participated in protests and demonstrations, and there was overlap in membership.[6] The violent, confrontational style of protest at events sponsored by SLF was identical with that of the SDS Weatherman faction before the latter went underground at the end of 1969. There were no official ties between the Seattle Liberation Front and the Weather Underground. Chip Marshall was one of the leading members of the Seattle Liberation Front. In an interview with Time magazine in 1980, Marshall commented on the takeover of the SDS by Weatherman, a violent radical left faction. He said Weatherman had established cultural standards to which members were to adhere. Marshall did not agree with destroying monogamy, cutting family ties, and devaluing personal relationships.[7] SLF founder Michael Lerner was never known to be affiliated with the Weather Underground or to endorse its strategy of bombing and arson.
Demonstrations
SLF planned a demonstration to be held at the Federal Courthouse in downtown Seattle on February 17, 1970. It is commonly referred to by former SLF members as "The Day After" or "TDA." The roughly 2,000 protesters in attendance escalated their protests into violence, throwing rocks and paint bombs at both the courthouse and at police responding to the scene. Twenty were injured in the riot, and 76 were arrested. Michael Lerner stated that it was a different sequence of events: "when it [the demonstration] was attacked by police, it turned into a riot." In March 1970, the Seattle Liberation Front, UW Black Student Union, and the Weathermen organized hundreds of protesters at the University of Washington's campus.[8] The groups wanted the university to sever its athletic links with Brigham Young University, a Mormon school that was accused of racism. Seattle Liberation Front and Black Student Union supporters initiated a riot that moved through eleven buildings at the University of Washington's Seattle campus.[7] Around 200 chanting demonstrators left a trail of damage throughout the campus.[8] Members of the SLF collective based at 814 South Weller Street spoke at a design hearing for the then-proposed I-90 freeway in June 1970, denouncing the project as "racist" and advocating revolution.
Indictments and trial
Two months later, on April 16, a federal
The original charges of inciting a riot, or of intent to incite to riot, and conspiracy to damage the Seattle Federal Building, were unsuccessfully prosecuted. Lerner stated the reason for the failure to win a conviction was "because it was revealed that the FBI agents who were infiltrating the anti-war organization were themselves the people who had precipitated the violence." Most observers agreed that the prosecution's case was floundering (aided by the admission of government witnesses on the stand that they would "go to any length" to combat the radicals).[citation needed] It is believed by some that the Seattle Seven would have been freed if some of them had not provoked the elderly judge with catcalls during the proceedings.[7]
Aftermath and recent activities
Due to the publicity of the trial, the Seattle Liberation Front faced ideological dissension, personality conflicts, and charges of "male chauvinism." In the fall of 1970 SLF sponsored a short-lived weekly underground newspaper,
Cultural references
In the movie The Big Lebowski, the main character Jeffrey "The Dude" Lebowski says, "Did you ever hear of the Seattle Seven? That was me ... and six other guys." This refers to Jeff Dowd's involvement in the Seattle Seven. He was a friend of the Coen brothers and the inspiration for the character "The Dude."[14]
References
- OCLC 76897663.
- ^ Hollingsworth, Josie (February 17, 2017). "How a protest spawned the Seattle Seven, a contentious court battle — and 'The Big Lebowski'". The Seattle Times. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
- ^ FBI Surveillance Files 212
- ^ "Seattle Liberation Front (SLF)". TRAC Terrorism. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
- ^ OCLC 45731115.
- ^ University of Washington Libraries Digital Collections- Vietnam War Era Ephemera "Protest UW affiliation with BYU" and "Off BYU"
- ^ ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved June 30, 2021.
- ^ Seattle Times.
- ^ "Nation: Infiltrating the Underground". Time. January 9, 1978. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved May 23, 2010.
- ^ Hannula, Don (November 23, 1970). "Judge Ousts Two at Conspiracy Trial". Seattle Times. Seattle. p. D6.
- ^ a b c Anarchy in Tacoma Time magazine, December 28, 1970
- ^ Denial of Bail to Seattle 7 Assailed Here by Attorneys The New York Times, January 5, 1971
- ^ Susan Stern, a Radical Activist And Writer, Dies at 33 on Coast The New York Times, August 2, 1976
- ^ "The Dude, The Port Huron Statement, and The Seattle Seven". www.mentalfloss.com. January 10, 2011. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
Additional Reading
- Federal Bureau of Investigation, "Weather Underground Organization (Weatherman)", (Illinois: Chicago Field Office 1976).
- Biographical Notes on Rabbi Lerner (Tikkun Magazine, 2342 Shattuck Avenue, #1200, Berkeley, CA 94704) 2012.
External links
- HistoryLink.org Seattle Liberation Front
- University of Washington Libraries Digital Collections – Vietnam War Era Ephemera This collection contains leaflets and newspapers that were distributed on the University of Washington campus during the decades of the 1960s and 1970s. Includes ephemera from the Seattle Liberation Front.
- Biographical Notes on Rabbi Lerner – Tikkun Magazine.