Harold Willens

The Nation lost a dear friend this week--Harold Willens, age 88. Harold was co-founder of a group of business executives against the Vietnam War (he would later recall with delight LBJ's frustration at not being able to dismiss his group as "softheaded"), and at Paul Newman's suggestion, starting in 1995, he chaired The Nation's Circle of 100 shareholders. He was an inspiration, a mobilizer, an organizer, a miracle worker, mentor, adviser and a sweet man. A vivid recent memory: Harold using his walker to get to his car and then driving door to door to drop personal invitations in his friends' mailboxes to an event where he would put the arm on them on behalf of The Nation. Harold's death when his beloved country was on the brink of a senseless war should remind us of the difference one man's life committed to peace can make. It is fitting that an editorial in this issue is by Jonathan Schell, the Nation Institute's Harold Willens Peace Fellow.

Subscriber Login

User Name

Password

Subscribe Now!

The only way to read this article and the full contents of each week's issue of The Nation online is by subscribing to the magazine. Subscribe now and read this article -- and every article published since for the past five years -- right now.

There's no obligation -- try The Nation for four weeks free.

• Get The Nation at home (and online!) for 68 cents a week!
• If you like this article, consider making a donation to The Nation.
• Reprint this article. Click here for rights and information.