An Unknown Maoist Reveals the Unknown Media

Stockholm, Dec. 20,1972. At least 20 000 people marched through the dark early evening in a torch-light procession to the American Embassy. FNL’s anniversary in Vietnam functioned as a national day for resistance to the war. The number of marchers were not significantly more than the previous year, but this march was different because the main speaker would be Jane Fonda, one of the biggest Hollywood stars of the day. She had recently visited Vietnam.

When the head of the procession was about 500 meters from the embassy, a young woman threw a balloon filled with red paint hitting not only Ms. Fonda, but also her fiancee Tom Hayden on her right and ”an unknown Maoist” on her left. The darkness exploded in flashes from cameras. In the following days pictures of the event would appear in almost every major newspaper and magazine in the world. All of them would mention the unknown Maoist in the trio wearing splashes of red paint.

Who was this unknown Maoist? And, if he was unknown, how did they know he was a Maoist? They didn’t. He wasn’t. I know this with absolute certainty because I was that person designate as a Maoist. Not one of the flock of journalists or paparazzi bothered to ask who I was. Not that they needed to ask. Who, beside an interpreter would be close to the ear of this English speaking celebrity in a Swedish speaking country. Was I wearing, doing or saying anything to indicate a Maoist affiliation? Don’t be naive! The media was ”shooting a script” that was written before the paint was thrown.

The purpose of the event was to associate Jane Fonda with a Maoist in an attempt to blemish her credibility, or should I say draw (splash) a red line across her reputation. AND divert attention from the real event. Pictures, headlines and columns of comments about a single woman who threw paint at a celebrity (with an unknown Maoist at her side) and barely a word about the 20 000 people who abandoned the height of Christmas preparations to march in cold and darkness to protest against an imperial war.

There’s the media in a nutshell. 20 000 people expressing a common opinion means nothing whereas as pseudo-event grabs all the attention. That was 42 years ago. Have things changed? Of course they have. The media has improved the quality of its bullshit considerably.

BTW. What did Jane tell the crowd when she did speak to them in front of the embassy? She said that she was surprised to learn that the Vietnamese guerilla theater groups performed plays by known American writers. When she questioned this, she was told that it was important for the Vietnam people to be aware of the difference between the American people, who were also suffering because of the war, and the American government who was conducting the war.

It’s fascinating to realize that this powerful insight could be buried with a little red paint and ”an unknown Maoist” if bulldozed by a massive media apparatus.

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“The corporate media in a profit-obsessed corpocracy,
shouts, ”Complain all you want!”
speaks, ”Trust us!”
and whispers, ”Give us your money!””
Dartwill Aquila

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