The People of Fire
- averij98
- Jan 8
- 5 min read
Updated: Mar 6
By: Luther Bravo
When you think of protesting you may imagine picket signs and large crowds such as the Black Lives Matter Protest of 2020. Those protests had spanned the nation for weeks in reaction to George Floyd’s murder. Maybe you’ll think of something more intense such as the LA Riots where there was intense violence throughout the city of Los Angeles. Those days of rioting were a reaction to the recorded beating of Rodney King. Perhaps you’ll think of the encampments from the Occupy Wall Street movement of 2011 which lasted two months. This was a protest of endurance to protest the economy and the greed that lead to millions being unemployed and unhoused. It is clear that the way people protest is in direct relation with how powerful the cause is. Which is the reasoning why some protests are considered more extreme than other. However, the most extreme form of protest is one in which few rarely live to share their experience of it.
Self immolation is thought to be the most extreme form of protest. Self Immolation, the act of setting oneself on fire, is most often used as an extreme act of protest. Self immolation is becoming more common in American Citizens. I think our refusal to talk about is telling of the weight of the violence that we Americans have become numb too.
The first American to commit self immolation on record, was 82, a peace activist, a refugee of Nazism who was protesting the bombing in Vietnam. Her name was Alice Herz, it was 1965 and history was made. The next person was Norman Morrison , who set himself a blaze outside of the Pentagon. He was 31 and was also against the US military involvement in Vietnam. While some sources say dozens of people committed self immolation to protest the Vietnam war through the 1960-1970s it doesn’t make it any less tragic.
The Vietnam War sent shockwaves through the American psyche. This was for many reasons including the uncalled for brutality that was demonstrated throughout the war. Techniques used throughout the Vietnam war lead to genocides, permanent and irreversible damage to communities and ecosystems and left many distrustful of their government. Yet, we do not talk about the Vietnam War and the damage and sacrifices that were made much like we do not talk about self immolation and the damage and sacrifice that are made. This should be something we don’t stop talking about, something that is forever looming over our heads. Instead, it is another thing we have decided to look past as if it means nothing .
In protest of thehe Genocide in Gaza several people in The US self immolated. An unknown woman in Atlanta, Georgia was the first recorded on US soil for this issue. She was found dead from her injuries. Serviceman Aaron Bushnell who live streamed his as he stood out the Embassy of Israel shouting “Free Palestine” is the most recognized. He died only hours after. On September 11, 2024 Matt Nelson in front of the Israeli consulate in Boston - he set himself on fire. He died days after. Samuel Mena Jr committed self immolation in front of the a white House - he survived.
To deny the parallels between the Genocide in Gaza and the ones that took place under the Vietnam War is to deny reality. To ignore the fact that we have been here before and rather recently is a disservice to our community. It is a shameful act that will be used to point out how Americans society was complacent in tragedy. America didn’t create Israel , Great Britain did. America didn’t start the Vietnam War, France did. But, in both situations it is America who plays the role of increasing conflict and ultimately making the situation worse by being complacent.
Both, the Vietnam War and the ongoing Genocide in Gaza can be defined by the way they divideAmericans. A majority of Americans see these atrocities as business as usual for America. Whereas for others, these are radicalizing events that alter their lives. A large reason for this is because both the Genocide in Gaza and the Vietnam War allowed access to what is actually happening that has not been seen before by the public. Reports of the deaths, of the bombings , recordings of new technologies made to destroy - all of this is information Americans did not have in prior conflicts. That information is causing division within the American society that will take generations to bridge.
Self immolation is becoming more common as more people cannot stand by and watch these terrors unfold. Unfortunately, this extreme protest is not just limited to war conflicts. In 1972 Willie B. Phillips, a Vietnam War veteran and organizer of Southern Christian Leadership Conference committed self immolation at 27 years old. It has been reported that his was a protest for civil rights in America. In April 2018, David Buckel and then In 2022 Wynn Alan Bruce both self immolated due to our destruction of the environment causing climate change. In 2024 , at least 6 prisoners set themselves on fire to protest the inhumane conditions of Virginia’s prisons.
I think it is important we understand that the wave of self immolation that we are seeing is not new in America. Also that self immolation is not just a form of suicide but it is an act of protest. It is the most desperate cry for help we as humans have been able to use. As we continue our complacency over issues such as climate change, wealth inequality, civil rights we are accepting that this will continue to happen. That more people will feel forced to make the ultimate sacrifice as they beg for change. It is important that we understand that our numbness to this is not normal. That our carry on mindset is ensuring that what divides us will become harder to acknowledge and even harder to to bridge.
Self immolation is not glorious or something to sweep under the rug. If something we must talk about and face as a society. We have to decide in this moment who we are and what we stand for. It will take us stepping away from our individualistic mindsets. It will take serious and thoughtful intervention from us to put an end to use of such extreme measures. No one wants to live in a world of extremes. Yet, if we keep being complacent we will. We all will be subject to the extreme consequences of our inaction. You may not be the one setting yourself on fire but, you won’t be able to escape the flames that come for us all.
Works Cited
Charlotte Rene Woods, Virginia Mercury November 27. “Virginia Department of
Corrections Confirm Inmates Burned Themselves; Lawmakers Want Investigation • Virginia Mercury.” Virginia Mercury, virginiamercury.com/briefs/virginia-department-of-corrections-confirm-inmates-burned-themselves-lawmakers-want-investigation/. Accessed 25 Jan. 2025.
Coburn, Jon. “Willie B. Phillips’ Self-Immolation.” COVE, 4 June 2024,
Jon Coburn Senior Lecturer in American History. “Self-Immolation: Hundreds of People in
the US Have Set Themselves on Fire in Protest since the 1960s.” The Conversation, 3 Jan. 2025, theconversation.com/self-immolation-hundreds-of-people-in-the-us-have-set-themselves-on-fire-in-protest-since-the-1960s-228438.
“List of Political Self-Immolations.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 25 Jan. 2025,
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