Daniel Berrigan

Daniel Berrigan (born May 9, 1921) is an internationally renowned peace activist and Roman Catholic priest. Daniel and his brother Philip performed non-violent actions against war and were, for a time, on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.

Protests against the War in Vietnam

Daniel Berrigan, his brother Philip Berrigan, and the famed Trappist monk Thomas Merton founded an interfaith coalition against the Vietnam War, and wrote letters to major newspapers arguing for an end to the war.

Related Topics:
Philip Berrigan - Trappist - Monk - Thomas Merton - Vietnam War

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In 1969, Philip Berrigan was arrested for non-violent protest actions and sentenced to six years in prison. Afterwards, Daniel Berrigan seriously considered taking more direct action against the war. Howard Zinn, professor emeritus at Boston University, invited Berrigan to accompany him on a trip to Hanoi to negotiate the release of three pilots held prisoner by the North Vietnamese. Although the mission had a high chance of success, it was opposed by the FBI on the grounds that it violated their policy of non-negotiation with North Vietnam. J. Edgar Hoover went so far as to publicly call Zinn and Berrigan "traitors". U.S. planes even bombed locations where they were scheduled to be. Despite the opposition, three pilots were returned home. They were the first American POWs released unharmed by the North Vietnamese. The lack of acknowledgement and appreciation by the U.S. government helped to radicalize Berrigan.

Related Topics:
1969 - Howard Zinn - Boston University - Hanoi - North Vietnam - FBI - J. Edgar Hoover - POW

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In 1969, Berrigan decided to participate in a more radical non-violent protest. A local high-school physics teacher helped to concoct homemade napalm. Nine activists, who later became known as the Catonsville Nine, walked into the draft board of Catonsville, Maryland, and removed 378 draft files, which they brought outside and burned. The Catonsville Nine, who were all Catholic, issued a statement:

Related Topics:
1969 - High-school - Physics - Teacher - Napalm - Catonsville Nine - Catonsville - Maryland

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:"We confront the Catholic Church, other Christian bodies, and the synagogues of America with their silence and cowardice in the face of our country's crimes. We are convinced that the religious bureaucracy in this country is racist, is an accomplice in this war, and is hostile to the poor."

Related Topics:
Catholic Church - Racist

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Berrigan was arrested and was sentenced to three years in prison, but he refused to serve his time. Instead, he went underground, living discreetly among like-minded individuals. The FBI, to its great embarrassment, was not immediately able to apprehend Berrigan, although he frequently showed up briefly at public events, made impromptu speeches, and went back into hiding.

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Eventually, the FBI managed to find and arrest Berrigan. He was released from prison in 1972.

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