BED-INs and Other Protests Needed Now

By Kevin Stoda, Germany

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The German radio station, Radio BOB, in Frankfurt is approaching the 40th Anniversary of John Lennon and Yoko Ono's famous Bed-Ins in Holland and Canada, i.e. performed during the U.S. and its allies' War in Vietnam in 1969.

In an attempt to promote more peace and togetherness, Germany's Radio BOB's most popular talk-show host-couple will reenact the weeklong bed-ins this March in the Presidential Suite at the Hilton Hotel in Frankfurt. http://bedin.bobblogger.de/was-ist-das-bed-in/ and http://blog.radiobob.de/

The original Bed-In was first performed by Yoko and Lennon in Amsterdam's Hilton in March 1969. http://www.johnlennonbedin.com/

Later, the week-long Bed-In was repeated in Montreal, Canada-i.e. after Lennon had trouble booking in New York City and in the Niagara Falls area. (Part of Lennon and Ono's trouble with the US authorities was John' 1968 conviction for possession of a handful drugs in London-this crime, combined with Lennon's opposition to the U.S. war in Vietnam and his opposition to Nixon escalation policies, made it difficult for Yoko and John to enter the USA in 1969.)

One can see several videos of the Lennon-Ono Peace Bed-In at this link.

Meanwhile in Montreal a local Fine Arts Museum is currently holding an exhibition on the Lennon-Ono Bed-Ins-which were an example of "artistic happenings". (Happenings left their marks on the art world of the 1960s.) Click here.

History recalls that these particular peace activist events are to be recalled this 40th Anniversary: "On March 20, 1969, the couple wed in Gibraltar. The following week, the two master media manipulators used their celebrity for good, hosting a honeymoon "bed-in" for peace in room 902, the presidential suite of the Amsterdam Hilton. The press avidly pursued them, assuming that the famous nudists would make love for their cameras. Instead, the pajama-clad newlyweds spoke out about world peace. It was the honeymoon as performance art, interlaced with a protest against the Vietnam War." Click here.

In May 1969, the second bed-in took place in Canada. The Bed-In for peace has been repeated several places around the world and by different media stars. Green Day's Billy Joe Armstrong and his wife Adrienne performed a bed-in in 2006. Click here.

NOTE: The Bed-In is one of 33 forms of popular protest tactics described on this weblink. That same 1969 year spawned many other forms of creative protests. Interestingly, this recent global focus on Bed-Ins dovetails this 2009 with the first international visit of George W. Bush to Canada (this week) and the 6th anniversary of the U.S. allies invasion of Iraq.

Meanwhile, lawyers in Canada "are trying to block Bush's entry into their country. Lawyers Against the War says Bush should be either barred or detained for condoning the use of torture at overseas jails. If Canadian officials won't deny Bush entry, the lawyers say Bush should be arrested and tried for war crimes and crimes against humanity." Click here.

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