Weathermen
In 1969 the SDS was heading in a more radical direction and Jaffe became one of the founding members of the Weatherman Organization, yet never became a leader. Jaffe joined the Weather Underground because the group believed in the self-determination of African American people; that they should have a revolution of their own without the total involvement of white middle class people. She also joined because the group was radically anti-racist and anti-imperialist. As quoted by historian Dan Berger, Jaffe says the Weather Underground was “the most vital show in town.” The organization was also aligned with her Marxist ideals. To join she had to set aside her feminist convictions, yet she always believed that the WUO should have focused more on women’s liberation.
In September 1969 she participated in “jailbreaks”, actions in which high school students were encouraged to leave class and run through the halls as though they were being freed from the prison that was their school. This action was to gain support for the "Days of Rage" also called the National Action. She and 25 other Weatherwomen, including Cathy Wilkerson, were arrested in Pittsburgh, PA for that act. From October 8–11, 1969 Jaffe participated in the "Days of Rage" in Chicago where members of the WUO, after having taken control of the SDS, ran through the streets smashing windows and causing chaos, she was arrested on October 11 for battery and resisting arrest. In 1970 Jaffe was indicted in Detroit, Michigan for her participation in the 1969 Flint, Michigan War Council, the final public meeting of the Weatherman controlled SDS before the dissolution of the SDS in January 1970. According to scholarly researchers, such as Dan Berger, 13 people were indicted on charges of conspiracy to commit bombings and murders. These charges were later dropped.
Read more about this topic: Naomi Jaffe