Ruth Mary Reynolds

Overview

Ruth Mary Reynolds Willmarth born Terraville, SD February 29, 1916 (d. 1989). “The American Nationalist.” Nonviolent advocate of Puerto Rican independence. War Resisters League pacifist. Member of Gandhian Harlem Ashram, 1940s. Served as founding Executive Secretary, American League for Puerto Rico’s Independence, 1946; lobbied UN and Congress. Arrested in Puerto Rico, 1950; sentenced to six-year prison term for sedition; released on appeal after 17 months, 1954.

Quotations

“What does the pacifist do when he finds himself set down in No Man’s Land, with bitter battle raging all around? Well, if he’s not a coward, he doesn’t run, but stays and faces the issue. He keeps his sense of values, and, while he condemns violence on either side, he realizes that Empire is in itself the basic violence, and that to oppress with violence is worse than to resist oppression with violence. He tries to play his own role with compassion and understanding, demonstrating in practice, not in theory, that there is a better way. Thus and only thus can he show that pacifism is not irresponsible withdrawal from conflict, but rather a saner, more constructive way of fighting.” (We Have Not Been Moved, p. 54; photo pedroapontevasquez.com)