Peace Now and Then

By Herb Bardavid

On the night of August 4, 1964, President Lyndon Johnson went on national television and stated that American destroyers in the gulf of Tonkin had been attacked by North Vietnamese forces. The Washington Post, The New York Times and The Los Angles Times all reported the government's statements as fact.
The Gulf of Tonkin incident never took place. In the absence of independent journalism, the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution sailed through Congress on August 7, 1964.
50,000 Americans died in that war, with millions of Vietnamese casualties.
People were outraged and in the 1960s began to organize and take to the streets. They took to the streets in millions and spoke out against the Government's policies. Perhaps, the earlier Civil Rights movement and its grass roots organizational skills gave strength to the Peace Movement.
On March 20, 2003, the United States began bombing Iraq, claiming that Iraq's alleged possession of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) posed an imminent threat to the security of the United States. After the invasion of Iraq the U.S. led Iraq Survey Group concluded that Iraq had ended its WMD programs in 1991. Again, the press and the media relied on the U.S. government for its facts, and did not question these assertions.
In 2003, it was to be again. People took to the streets. Demonstrations aimed at getting the truth out occurred all over the country, and the world. The Government's lies were exposed, yet the war continued.
To date, 4,232 American combat troops have been killed in Iraq and countless Iraqi's have died.
The following are some of the photographs of the Peace Movement for the two wars, not so distant in time or style. Now and Then.
In Peace:
Herb Bardavid

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Jun 3, 2010
• ISBN: 9781481749688

Herb Bardavid

Herb Bardavid has been passionate about photography since he converted his family's only darkroom at age 12. Since then, he has taken courses in photography and darkroom techniques at Projects Incorporated in Cambridge, MA., a school started by Minor White; the New School; and most recently, at the International Center of Photography in NYC. Herb has had six shows. His first was in Cambridge, MA., in 1969, followed by The Third Eye Gallery in NYC, two shows in Great Neck, NY a group show at the Umbrella Arts Gallery in NYC, and a juried show by the Long Island Center of Photography exhibited at the African American Museum in Hempstead, NY. He has been published in the WBAI Folio, the Gotham Gazeette, and PDN Photo magazine. As a psychotherapist, Herb sees thing that others may not. He views the world and its people through his own set of lenses, seeking change.

Book preview