What Happened to Tom Hayden, The Famous Anti-War Activist?
His later career in politics was quieter than his crusading efforts as an organizer
“Let us make sure that if our blood flows, it flows all over the city!” Tom Hayden said during the 1968 antiwar protests at the Democratic National Convention.
I recently watched The Trial of the Chicago 7 by Aaron Sorkin, and one historical figure enthralled me the most — Tom Hayden. I read about him in my history textbooks but didn’t know much about him, so decided to do research into his life.
Hayden led a protest that led to police beating down protestors before the 1968 Democratic National Convention. He penned the Port Huron Statement while in prison for being a Freedom Rider. Later, married actress Jane Fonda, as the two of them made several visits to North Vietnam during the Vietnam War, which famously led to Fonda being called “Hanoi Jane.”
“At a moment in history — June 1962…Mr. Hayden emerged as one of the most articulate spokesmen of youthful angst,” wrote Elaine Woo at the Washington Post.
According to Woo, Hayden’s Port Huron Statement made hundreds of thousands of idealistic and restless young people anti-authoritarians. At only 22, he wrote the Port Huron Statement while he led the Students…
