Podcast Summary: HISTORY This Week
Episode: The Grinnell 14 Take On the Bomb
Date: November 10, 2025
Host: Sally Helm
Guest: Peter Coyote (formerly Peter Cohan, original Grinnell 14 member)
Overview
This episode dives into the little-known but pivotal 1961 protest of the "Grinnell 14," a group of Iowa college students who traveled to Washington, D.C. to fast and peacefully protest nuclear weapons testing. Through the recollections of Peter Coyote—actor, activist, and one of the original protesters—the episode explores their motivations, strategy, and the lasting impact of their action, including how it sparked the broader student peace movement of the 1960s.
Main Discussion Points & Insights
1. Context: Living Under the Shadow of the Bomb
- Era Anxiety: The episode opens with vivid scenes of young Americans—like the Grinnell 14—growing up with “duck and cover” drills out of fear of nuclear annihilation.
- Scientific Reality: Fallout from weapons tests was contaminating food in the U.S. as late as 1959 and “children were told not to eat fresh fallen snow” due to radiation. (05:00-05:53)
Quote:
"Just the existence of nuclear weapons fueled all sorts of anxiety."
—Peter Coyote [02:34]
2. Roots of Activism: Peter Coyote’s History
- Political Family: Peter grew up amid leftist politics and McCarthy-era trauma in New Jersey.
- Role Models: His primary caregivers were Sue Howard, a Black civil rights activist, and her community, reflecting the intersectionality of peace and civil rights activism.
Quote:
"I came from a very political family. A lot of my mother’s relatives were socialists and communists and labor organizers and pretty much lefty Jews."
—Peter Coyote [05:29]
Quote:
"Sue was put in charge of the whole household. And it's like she took all the sorrow and all the grief and she threw it in the sack over her shoulders… Until I was 14, this woman and her boyfriend were my primary parents."
—Peter Coyote [06:14]
3. Grinnell College: A Breeding Ground for Protest
- Campus Culture: Grinnell College, founded by abolitionists, fostered progressive values and was home to an "early hippie or beatnik" crowd—students already steeped in activism and counterculture (08:04-08:14).
- Bullying of Nonconformists: Long hair and black turtlenecks marked them for ridicule (“jocks shaved my friend’s head for covering his ears with hair” [08:30–08:53]).
4. The Nuclear Issue and The Peace Race
- Kennedy’s Influence: JFK’s calls for a “peace race” (not an arms race) inspired students nationally and at Grinnell. He resonated especially with youth (“He was hip. He brought poets in to read.” [11:23-11:31]).
- Soviet Escalation: Soviet nuclear testing in 1961, including the detonation of the largest bomb ever, pushed the issue to a boiling point.
Quote:
"Like we felt like, wait a minute, you’re taking away the future. This is bullshit. I’m not going to just sit around and watch my future evaporate.”
—Peter Coyote [09:31]
5. Strategy: Student Tactics for Respectability
- Deliberate Mainstream Appearance: To avoid being dismissed as radical “beatniks,” the 14 students wore jackets and cut their hair short; women styled their hair like Jackie Kennedy (13:10–13:34).
- Logistics: Raised money, bought two old cars, and were gifted a new Chevy and walkie-talkies by a supportive Iowan insurance executive (13:43–13:58).
6. The Washington Protest: Fasting and Silent March
- Arrival at the White House: The group marched in silence, holding signs (“Support Kennedy’s Peace Race”), not shouting, to signify gravity and seriousness ([16:24–16:31]).
- Press Coverage: Local and national press began to pay attention almost immediately.
7. The White House Meeting
- Historic Invitation: The Grinnell 14 were the first protest group ever invited into the White House ([17:20]).
- Meeting with McGeorge Bundy: Rather than JFK, students met with National Security Advisor Bundy, who appeared dismissive—offering orange juice (“Gandhi drank orange juice during his fasts”), which Peter refused to “feel the room.” ([19:23–19:55])
- Mixed Reception: Students left feeling like “annoying teenagers” rather than serious political actors ([19:55–20:44]).
Quote:
“The only way that I could get this guy’s attention would be to come back with an army.”
—Peter Coyote [20:44]
8. Facing Counter-Protesters and Nazi Hecklers
- Taunting: Counter-protesters threw fried chicken bones and mocked their fast. Even George Lincoln Rockwell of the American Nazi Party showed up to heckle ([21:00-21:06]).
9. The Ripple Effect: The Student Peace Movement
- Protest Spreads: Students from other campuses joined the protest, making the action contagious ([21:47]).
- Media Coverage: The New York Times later credited Grinnell as the origin point for the student peace movement ([25:18]).
- Influence on Later Movements: Tom Hayden (Students for a Democratic Society) is said to have cited the Grinnell protest as an inspiration ([25:18–25:54]).
Quote:
“It was an affirmation that you could generate something in your imagination and bring it to bear on the physical world, actually make it happen.”
—Peter Coyote [24:44]
10. Encounters on the Road: Cyrus Eaton
- Unexpected Welcome: On their way home, the group was stopped in Ohio and invited for breakfast at the estate of peace activist and industrialist Cyrus Eaton ([23:20-24:19]).
11. Legacy and Larger Impact
- Protest Continues: For a year, protests continued with 120 colleges sending students to the White House ([24:55–25:07]).
- Real-world Results: The activism contributed to the climate that enabled the Limited Test Ban Treaty (1963) and eventually a comprehensive test ban (1996; not ratified by the U.S.) ([26:15]).
- Ongoing Struggle: Peter reflects that the efforts didn’t "overturn the U.S." as they'd hoped, but the peace movement changed culture and persists today ([25:54]).
Quote:
“Although it didn’t completely overturn the United States that we wanted to overturn, it did change the culture… So, you win some and you lose some.”
—Peter Coyote [25:54]
Notable Quotes & Moments
- “No more nuclear testing. We support Kennedy's peace race.” [02:05]
- “The first nuclear explosion made random annihilation a fact.” —quoting Bob Dylan, Peter Coyote [02:34]
- “I will never forget the hamburgers we had that night.” —Peter Coyote on breaking the fast, [21:43]
- “I’d like to be credited as a kind person.” —Peter Coyote [27:28]
Important Timestamps
| Timestamp | Segment/Topic | | --------- | ---------------------------------------- | | 01:02 | Arrival of Grinnell 14 in D.C. | | 02:14 | Introduction of Peter Coyote | | 05:29 | Peter’s political background | | 08:04 | Progressive legacy of Grinnell College | | 09:31 | Nuclear anxiety and its effect | | 12:56 | Strategy: Mainstream appearance | | 16:24 | Washington protest strategy | | 17:20 | White House invitation and meeting | | 19:36 | The Bundy meeting: orange juice moment | | 21:00 | Counter-protesters and Nazi hecklers | | 24:44 | Reflections on protest legacy | | 25:54 | Changing the culture, not the system | | 26:15 | Test ban treaties and recent developments|
Tone & Language
The conversation balances earnest, thoughtful retrospection (Peter Coyote's measured insights) with a lively, anecdotal recounting of the events (campus stories, road trip mishaps, surreal moments with millionaires and Nazis). The tone is sincere, poignant, and subtly humorous, echoing the idealism and grit of the era.
Conclusion
This episode encapsulates the origins of the 1960s student peace movement—demonstrating how a determined group of students, with careful strategy and deep conviction, captured the attention of the nation and helped shift the conversation around nuclear weapons. The Grinnell 14's nonviolent tactics and their legacy serve as a touchstone for how youth activism, even when it falls short of immediate goals, can leave a permanent mark on society and culture.