c Boyd Lewis/Atlanta History Center
In May, 1970, the great Mobilization against the war against Vietnam drew thousands into the streets of Atlanta. The crowds converged at the statue of early 20th century senator and rabble rouser Tom Watson. Watson, a key figure in the revival of the Ku Klux Klan, was likely less pleased with this interracial gathering at his feet than the pigeon poop on his bronze head.
Hippies were more political in Atlanta than in many cities, probably because of the lingering influence of the city's hometown hero Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
This also helped the antiwar movement in the city attract many black supporters. Dr. King had delivered sermons against the war and the military spending that crowded out the needs of the cities and rural poor. His great break with President Johnson came with the speech delivered in 1967 in New York.
