The Shelter Half Explained

The Shelter Half was a GI Coffeehouse that operated at 5437 South Tacoma Way, in Tacoma, Washington, United States, from 1968 to 1974.^[1] Named after a military tent called a Shelter-half, the coffeehouse's purpose was to provide a place for GIs at Fort Lewis military base in Washington State to resist the war in Vietnam. The Shelter Half served as an anti-war headquarters, publishing underground anti-war newspapers, organizing boycotts, connecting civilian activists with local GIs, and leading peace marches.^{[2] [3] [4]}

In November 1969, the Armed Forces Disciplinary Control Board prevented military personnel from attending the coffeehouse by placing it on a list of off-limits places.^{[5] [6]}

The Shelter Half closed in the summer of 1974.^[7]

See also

• Oleo Strut
• GI Coffeehouses

External links

• http://www.coffeestrong.org/ The Coffee Strong coffeehouse is currently operated by Iraq and Afghanistan veterans in the Fort Lewis / McChord AFB / Tacoma area.
• archived publications of The Shelter Half on SirNoSir.org.

Notes and References

1. Book: United States Congressional Serial Set. 1972. U.S. Government Printing Office.
2. Book: Mitchell K. Hall. Opposition to War: An Encyclopedia of U.S. Peace and Antiwar Movements [2 volumes]. 31 January 2018. ABC-CLIO. 978-1-4408-4519-2. 288–.
3. Book: United States. Congress. House. Internal Security. Investigation of Attempts to Subvert the United States Armed Services, Hearings Before ... 92-1... 92-2.... 1972.
4. Book: Christopher H. Pyle. Military Surveillance of Civilian Politics, 1967-1970. 1986. Garland Pub.. 978-0-8240-8290-1.
5. Tacoma Coffeehouse.
6. News: Army Acts to Close Coast Coffee House Where G.I.'s Relax off Duty and Damn the War. The New York Times. 22 January 1970.
7. Book: David L. Parsons. Dangerous Grounds: Antiwar Coffeehouses and Military Dissent in the Vietnam Era. 13 March 2017. University of North Carolina Press. 978-1-4696-3202-5. 119–.