The White House Peace Vigil is dismantled – why?
The Take
Al Jazeera
4.7 • 748 Ratings
🗓️ 19 September 2025
⏱️ 23 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
For 44 years, 24 hours a day, a symbol of dissent has stood across from the White House – often considered the longest act of political protest in US history. The White House Peace Vigil greets visitors from all over the world, calling for nuclear disarmament and an end to war. Then it caught the eye of US President Donald Trump.
In this episode:
- Marissa Lang, (@Marissa_Jae), Reporter, The Washington Post
- Ellen Thomas, White House Peace Vigil Activist
Episode credits:
This episode was produced by Noor Wazwaz, Sarí el-Khalili, Haleema Shah with Chloe K. Li, Kisaa Zehra, Melanie Marich, Farhan Rafid, and our host, Natasha Del Toro. It was edited by Kylene Kiang.
Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Al Jazeera Podcasts. |
| 0:07.0 | Today, a symbol of free speech in Washington is suddenly in question. |
| 0:16.0 | Take it down. Take it down. Today right now. Nobody's on me that. |
| 0:21.9 | A peace vigil has stood across from the White House for 44 years. What does it's dismantling say about dissent in the U.S. today? |
| 0:33.4 | I'm Natasha Del Toro, and this is The Take. |
| 0:49.4 | Before we get started with today's show, I wanted to remind you to please leave a comment on today's episode. |
| 0:52.2 | Have you ever visited the White House Peace Vigil? |
| 0:59.5 | Leave us a comment on YouTube or Spotify or find us at AJE Podcast on social. I'll be reading through the comments. |
| 1:10.8 | My name is Marissa Lang. I am a local enterprise reporter for The Washington Post. And that means I cover the D.C. region. And I'm based in D.C. |
| 1:16.5 | Well, Marissa, welcome to the take. I know that you've been covering this story of a peace vigil that stood across from the White House since June of 1981. President Donald Trump just |
| 1:22.8 | recently ordered for it to be taken down. Now, we know that he described the vigil as, quote, |
| 1:28.4 | radical left. But over the decades, this vigil has become a real symbol for American descent, |
| 1:35.2 | you know, protesting everything from nuclear war to more recently Israel's war on Gaza. So maybe we |
| 1:41.7 | can start out for listeners that are outside of D.C. |
| 1:45.0 | Tell us what is the White House Peace Vigil? |
| 1:48.1 | White House Peace Vigil is, by many accounts, the longest continuous running political protest in the United States. |
| 1:56.1 | As you mentioned, it has been ongoing for 44 years. |
| 1:59.8 | And it is a stand against nuclear armament. They call for, |
| 2:06.2 | you know, the disarmament of countries who have nuclear weapons. They stand in opposition to |
| 2:12.0 | conflict, to occupations globally. And that has been the case since they began in 1981. |
| 2:20.3 | And obviously as conflicts in the world have evolved and issues have evolved, so too has the messaging of the vigil. |
| 2:26.3 | But at its core, it is a call for peace. |
... |
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