George Winne, Jr.
George Winne, Jr., (April 2, 1947 – May 11, 1970) was born in Detroit, Michigan. His father was a captain in the U.S. Navy. Winne is remembered as a protester of the Vietnam War who, inspired by the self-immolation of Buddhist monk Thích Quảng Đức, set himself on fire in a deliberate act of self-immolation in Revelle Plaza on the campus of the University of California, San Diego on May 10, 1970, to protest the United States involvement in the war. The 23 year old student, a former member of a ROTC unit at the Colorado School of Mines, had no previous affiliation with any organized protests. Winne had recently completed his studies towards a degree in History in March, and had joined the History department as a graduate student. He would have attended graduation in June.
Slightly after 4 p.m. on May 10, Winne ignited gasoline-soaked rags in his lap next to a sign that said "In God's name, end this war." He began to run and was knocked down by physics graduate student Keith Stowe who tried to smother the flames. Winne died ten hours later at Scripps Hospital, after asking his mother to write a letter to President Nixon. His last words were "I believe in God and the hereafter and I will see you there." After being buried, he was given the ensign "Most Beloved".[clarification needed]
At noon on May 11, a memorial service was held in Revelle Plaza. Speakers included history professor and chair of the faculty senate Gabriel Jackson and philosophy professor Herbert Marcuse.
Throughout the 1980s, student groups asked that a plaque be placed in memory of Winne. Although the Associated Students approved the proposal, it was blocked by the Revelle College Council. The UCSD Disorientation Manual 2001-2002 (p.43) says that the bricks upon which he lit himself on fire were removed from their original location in Revelle Plaza and currently rest next to a small memorial plaque, located in a grove of trees east of the campus library. However, the clay sculpture was made in 1976 by Visual Arts graduate student, Virginia Maksymowicz, now a sculptor and professor at Franklin & Marshall College. The metal sculpture in the grove is by Michael Todd, a sculptor who lives in the Los Angeles area and who had been on the UCSD faculty.
[edit] See also
- Norman Morrison
- Alice Herz
- Florence Beaumont
- Roger Allen LaPorte
- Thích Quảng Đức
- Self-immolations in protest to the Vietnam War
[edit] References
- Keen, H. "San Diego student who set self afire in war protest dies", Los Angeles Times, May 12, 1970
- Joyner, Owen. "Student Sets Self Afire; Dies to Protest War," UCSD Triton Times, May 12, 1970
[edit] External links
- Images Of War - Bricks from the site of Winne's immolation
- Social Architectures - Memorial to George Winne, Jr.
