Respectability

At the disarmament conference a subdued group of young men and women considered the potentially cataclysmic consequences of the proliferation of nuclear and conventional weapons. Representing 22 different colleges and universities, the 40 delegates unanimously resolved that "all countries, because of the loss of life which could result in a holocaust, must act decisively in support of ongoing and upcoming ... arms control negotiations." The resolution was sent to world leaders and to the heads of delegations at the United Nations.

Despite the conference's modest attendance, the principal organizer of the four days of workshops, addresses and panel discussions, Dartmouth senior John McGrath, noted a "resurgent activism brewing among today's undergraduates, expressing interest in America."

Speakers at the conference were experts of both a liberal and conservative stripe, from both in and outside the U.S. and foreign governments. McGrath said the "organizers sought a balance of ideas to raise awareness of the constraints as well as the dangers involved in the stockpiling of armaments for national security." He also acknowledged that the conference was planned "with a liberal orientation."

William Sloane Coffin was there calling for individual action against the arms race, Daniel Ellsberg talked about the neutron bomb and who might use it first, Professor James Dornan from Catholic University pointed to the Soviet military buildup around the world, and Lt. Colonel Thomas Gorman from the Pentagon explained the strategy behind the sale of weapons to the Middle East and the developing world. In addition, a panel of U.S. and United Nations diplomats discussed nuclear nonproliferation. Keynote speaker Adam Yarmolinsky, one of America's top arms negotiators, observed that "arms control is getting to be a more respectable activity."