Thomas (activist)

William Thomas
Thomas with his dog Sophie
Born
William Thomas Hallenback Jr.

(1947-03-20)March 20, 1947
Tarrytown, New York, US
DiedJanuary 23, 2009(2009-01-23) (aged 61)
OccupationAnti-nuclear activist
Spouse
​
(m. 1984)​
Thomas started the White House Peace Vigil, the longest-running peace vigil in US history, in 1981.

William Thomas Hallenback Jr., known as Thomas (March 20, 1947 – January 23, 2009), was an American anti-nuclear activist and simple-living adherent who undertook a 27-year peace vigil – the longest recorded vigil in US history at the time, with the title passing to his co-protester Concepción Picciotto after Thomas' death  – in front of the White House.[1]

Thomas was born in Tarrytown, New York, and became a truck driver, jewelry maker, and carpenter.[2] Inspired by the Sermon on the Mount, he became a pilgrim and began traveling the world[when?] in the interest of world peace.[3]

In 1978, having tried to swim across the Suez Canal on his way to Israel, Thomas spent eight months in an Egyptian prison. Later, in response to United States foreign policy, he destroyed his passport while trying to renounce his American citizenship in London.[3] The British authorities deported him to the United States in 1980.[2]

In 1981, Thomas traveled to Washington, D.C., and spent several months at Mitch Snyder's Community for Creative Non-Violence. On June 3, he launched the White House Peace Vigil in Lafayette Square.[2] A couple of months later, in August 1981, he was joined by Concepcion Picciotto and then, in April 1984, by Ellen Benjamin.[4] The following month, on May 6, 1984, Thomas and Ellen were married at a Quaker wedding.[2]

During the first three years of the vigil, the Park Police had arrested Thomas sixteen times. The charges ranged from illegal camping to disorderly conduct.[2] In subsequent years, Thomas and Ellen protested with numerous other activists, including representatives from the Catholic Worker and Plowshares movements.[5]

Thomas died on January 23, 2009, aged 61, of pulmonary disease.[6]

  1. ^ Colman McCarthy (February 8, 2009). "From Lafayette Square Lookout, He Made His War Protest Permanent". The Washington Post.
  2. ^ a b c d e Lloyd Grove (December 14, 1984). "Birth of a street person". The Washington Post.
  3. ^ a b Tim Wilkerson (director) (2012). The Oracles of Pennsylvania Avenue. Al Jazeera Documentary Channel.
  4. ^ "Thomas, Peace Park Vigiler and Antinuclear Activist". Prop1.org.
  5. ^ "Significant Peace Park Vigilers from the Past". Prop1.org.
  6. ^ John Kelly (November 6, 2011). "For 30-year peace activist, a new battle". The Washington Post.