TONIGHT! | norman morrison vigil

Today marks the 46th anniversary of Norman Morrison's act of martyrdom. At 5:20pm he set himself on fire, with his baby daughter by his side, making an eternal statement about the war. To commemorate his death, we will be holding a candlelight vigil at 5:20pm here at PT. Information about the vigil below, performance of RE:UNION to follow.

Norman Morrison was an American Quaker who sacrificed his life by self-immolation at 5:20 pm on November 2, 1965, in a act of protest over the Vietnam War. As an act of witness that inspired and catalyzed a nation into protest, his life and death inspired poets across the world to attempt to capture his mysterious final act.

As part of our outreach series The Activist City, Horseshoes & Hand Grenades wishes to commemorate the memory of Norman Morrison’s action with a reading of several of these poems, including “Chautauqua” by Hugh Ogden and “Emily, My Child” by Vietnamese poet laureate To Huu. We appreciate the participation of Kaitlin Gordon, Thai-Hoa Le, Stacy Sherlock, Aslam Husain, Diane Tucker and Evan Frayne (who plays Norman Morrison inRe:Union).

Following the poetry reading, we are very proud to present our special guest speaker Dr. Jerilynn Prior, who will present “The Spiritual Activist: A contemporary Quaker talks about conscientious refusal to pay military taxes.”

Doors Open 5:10pm / Candle Lighting 5:20pm / Poetry Reading 5:30pm / Special Guest Talk 6:00pm / Suggested Donation $5 / a performance ofRe:Union will follow at 8:00pm