The Rolling Thunder® Story
In the fall of 1987 in a little diner in Somerville, New Jersey, two Vietnam veterans met to discuss their personal concerns about the prisoners of war (POW) and missing in action (MIA) from the Vietnam War. Having honorably served their country, and having taken an oath to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies..." and to "bear true faith and allegiance to same," they were deeply troubled by the abhorrent neglect of attention given to those who did not make it out with their lives or their freedom. These two veterans discussed the more then 10,000 reported sightings of live Americans living in dismal captivity. Intelligence reports of these sightings were generally ignored by the government and the mainstream press. These two veterans were Artie Muller and Ray Manzo.
The First Rolling Thunder® Demonstration
Artie and Ray were ordinary men who understood that they had a right to have their voices heard and proceeded to lay down the plans for a gathering in Washington, D.C., during the 1988 Memorial Day weekend. they reached out to their families, families, fellow veterans and veteran's advocates to unify and form a march and demonstration in our nation's Capital. Their arrival would be announced by the roar of their motorcycles, a sound not unlike the 1965 bombing campaign against North Vietnam dubbed Operation Rolling Thunder. Hence, they would call themselves "Rolling Thunder" a title that would endure time and be trademarked in 1990. The word spread quickly and by Memorial Day weekend in 1988, approximately 2,500 motorcycles from all of the country converged on Washington, D.C. to demand from our leaders a full accounting of all POW/MIA's. As they made their stand that day in front of the Capitol, Artie and Ray reflected thankfully for the people who came in support of the POW/MIA issue, and for the unity that was felt. This was Rolling Thunders first demonstration. Only when ALL POW/MIA's ARE ACOUNTED FOR, it will not be their last. On that day, the foundation was laid for the annual "Ride for Freedom" to the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial Wall (also referred to as the "Ride to the Wall").
Rolling Thunder® Today
The number of participants/spectators in the Memorial Day weekend Ride for Freedom has grown from 2,500 to an estimated 850,000. Incorporated in 1995, Rolling Thunder®, Inc. is a class 501(c)(4) non-profit organization with over 88 chartered chapters throughout the United States and members abroad. While many members of Rolling Thunder® are veterans, and many ride motorcycles, neither qualifications is a prerequisite. Rolling Thunder® members are old and young, men and women, veterans and non-veterans. All are united in the cause to bring full accountability for POW's and MIA's of all wars, reminding the government, the media and the public by our watchwords: "We Will Not Forget." No officers or members of Rolling Thunder® receive compensation; we all donate our time.