Edison S. Fisk, A Citizen of the Century

CITIZENS OF THE CENTURY

(A Community Celebration Honoring Kitsap Elders)

Bremerton, Washington

April 8, 2000

EDISON S. FISK

Born May 30, 1915, in Seattle, WA
Kitsap resident since 1970
Career: Electrician

The following excerpts are quoted from The Bremerton Sun, July 15, 1955; articles in full are on file at the Museum and on microfiche at Kitsap Library:

To some, he is Kitsap County’s original anti-war activist.

To others, he is the renegade anti-establishment Buffalo Party candidate who went after the late Henry M. Jackson’s U.S. Senate seat in 1970.

To still others, he is the maker of the most famous protest sign in Bremerton’s history.

…(D)uring the Vietnam War, Fisk’s name often appeared in the pages of The Sun.

It all began in 1965, when the outspoken Fisk began writing letters to the editor—more than 100 in all—blasting the Vietnam War effort. As a result, his name became well known in Kitsap County, if not well loved.

By 1968, Fisk’s name began to appear regularly in the news columns. That was after he began taking part in anti-war protests in downtown Bremerton and at Olympic College.

“We had good, fundamentalist ministers throwing eggs at us.” …

His notoriety skyrocketed when he paraded in front of Bremerton’s Army recruiting office displaying a sign saying: “The Grateful Society: Bombs, Bullets, Battleships and Bullshit.”

Although such a sign would hardly raise an eyebrow today, it was bad enough in those days to get Fisk arrested for disorderly conduct.

And, because the word “bullshit” was banned in the pages of The Sun then, news stories about the sign replaced the word with dots and an explanation describing it as an “eight-letter alliterative vulgarity.”

Fisk eventually was found guilty of the disorderly conduct charge and sentenced to 30 days in jail and a $300 fine… The sentence was dropped five years later after Bremerton city officials delayed in complying with a court order stemming from an appeal of the case…in 1972 (Fisk) burned all of his protest signs in a symbolic renunciation of public protest as a means of social change.

… (H)e feels anti-nuclear protesters (as of 1955) are well-intentioned but “naïve.”

“They’ve got to get beyond that “war is hell” thing,” he said. “A good portion of (jobs in the United States) are war-oriented. What are all those people going to do for a living if we disarm—unless we change our economic policies?”

… “I’ll talk to anybody who will listen,” he said.

Another article on file at the Museum or on microfiche at Kitsap Library is from The Sun, January 18, 1993, headlined Pinky Fisk recalls King’s old idea.

[Excerpt: "Notes from the guests of honor," Kitsap County Historical Society, April 8, 2000, pp. 25-26]

* * * * *

HISTORICAL SOCIETY: Contributions of a lifetime
By Terri Gleich, For The Sun
Published Sunday, April 9, 2000

Kitsap 'Citizens of the Century' get together to remember

http://m.kitsapsun.com/news/2000/Apr/09/historical-society-contributions-of-a-lifetime/

Ocean Trip

I stand on the wet, firm sand
And watch John climb that cliff
Of slippery shale and rotten rock.
         John registered as a C.O. yesterday.

The tide is coming in,
The breakers roar,
The wet sand undercuts a bit.
         John doesn't like the war.

It starts easy on the shale,
But soon grows steep
With few handholds.
         He must make his case on conscience.

A few projecting rocks
Are all the holds there are;
They crumble in his hands.
         He must convince the board with what he knows.

He inches upward,
Rocks slithering, tumbling down.
I could not go so far.
         He has the wrong religion.

The ledge dissolves beneath his feet ---
He's stuck.
He can't go further.
         He can't use God for aid.

He turns his head and asks, "Which way?"
I cannot urge him on
To seek the goal I cannot reach.
         Most of us have feet of clay.

Coming down is even harder;
Rocks flying, coat preceding...
At last he's safe
         Down here with me.

The tide is higher, the wind is up,
The scud is beautiful
Blowing and rolling across the beach.
         The sand is not so firm today.



© Edison S. Fisk, 2009. All rights reserved.