Peace
High School: Grades 9–12
Story
Page: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7
At the dinner table the talk turned to current events as it often did. Lydia's and Julia's parents didn't like Julia's choice of music, or the multiple strands of love beads she wore, or the tie-dye t-shirts, or that she read underground newspapers, but to their credit, they didn't ignore Julia's ideas just because she was a teenager. Lydia noted that Julia and her parents seemed to clash and clash more often as Julia got closer to going to college. Her opinions were stronger than they had been; she was also more forceful in stating them. Tonight the talk was about the convention and the television coverage.
Julia was saying, "I know the city doesn't want to show people protesting the convention. But you can't tell me what is going on inside the Amphitheater is representative of how people are feeling in this country about the war. If enough people gather in Grant Park to go protest the Democratic Convention, then it will get covered on television."
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Lydia stopped eating. She noticed Julia pause; she knew what was coming next. Julia calmly stated, "I am going to join the anti-war demonstrators in Grant Park tomorrow."
Their mother put down her fork. Their father looked at Julia with a very serious face and said, "I knew you were bound to bring up this idea. I know you and I disagree about our country's presence in Vietnam, and I respect your choice to protest the war, but I really do not want you to go to Grant Park. You know that the protesters do not have permits to march on the Amphitheater. There are already police in riot gear. There is talk that the mayor is going to call in the National Guard. There has already been rioting..."
Lydia winced because she knew Julia's exasperated look would be followed by a shriller tone. "You know, Dad, if I were going to go down to Grant Park to show my support of the Vietnam War, you'd let me go."
Their mother interjected, "Calm down, Julia. Remember that you were only a baby during the Cold War. We lived through it."
"I know, Mom," Julia said in a slightly less shrill tone.
Her mother continued, "We feel that communism is still a very real threat to our national interests. Let's try and have a discussion. Shall we?"
Julia took a deep breath. Looking down at her plate she said, "Sorry, Dad. I just really want to go. You know I believe in protesting peacefully."
Their father looked thoughtfully at Julia. "I know you have every intention of protesting peacefully. It's not you I don't trust. There are going to be all sorts of wackos there."
Julia quickly interjected, "Mark is going, too." Julia prayed to herself that this might calm her father. She knew, however, that if her father was aware Mark would not hesitate a second before burning his draft card, he wouldn't let her out the door.
"I guess that makes me feel slightly better," her father conceded. There was silence at the table. Her father continued in a less admonishing tone.
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"Look Julia, I am having a hard time swallowing the fact that you are not a little girl anymore and that in a few months you won't be living under my roof. I know you have to make your own decisions; I can't stop you from going to Grant Park. I just don't ever want to see you get hurt. Can you assure me that you and Mark will stick together?"
Feeling a little sorry that she had started to give her father a hard time, Julia nodded silently, then said, "All I can tell you is that I am going there to march peacefully."
"If you feel at any time that the situation is getting out of hand I want you two to come home as quickly as possible. Take a cab if it seems to be the best way."
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