Who We Are
VDW is a private membership association founded by Max Gibson of Shreveport, Louisiana. Our members are people who have lived through the War on Drugs, the War on Poverty, the War on Crime and the mass incarceration that followed. We did not enlist. Many of us were born into it.
We come together to tell the truth about what we have seen, and to make sure the next generation has a fair chance.
Free membership
No dues, ever. VDW runs only on voluntary gifts.
Not religious
We hold no creed and bind no member to one. Like the Declaration of Independence, our documents acknowledge a Creator.
We Bear Witness
Our motto, and our first duty.
The Declaration 2.0
Excerpts from A Declaration of the Veterans of Domestic Wars.
When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for a people who have lived through war, not war waged upon foreign shores but war waged at home, by their own Government, upon their own streets, in their own homes, and against their own families, to rise and give an account of what they have seen, a decent respect to the opinions of humankind requires that they should declare the causes which compel them to speak.
We are the Veterans of Domestic Wars. We have lived through the War on Drugs, the War on Poverty, the War on Crime and the mass incarceration that followed it, the watching eye of domestic surveillance, and the long occupation of over-policing. These wars were declared in our name and fought on our ground. We did not enlist; we were born into the theater of operations.
“We did not create ourselves, and all creations want to be free.”
Rights are not permissions issued by the State, to be revoked at its convenience; they come before the State, and the State exists to secure them. … The Rights remain. The wounds remain. And the witnesses remain.
Mission: Education
Our mission is simple: every kid should have access to an education of their own interest, whether that's college, a trade, a certification, or a craft.
VDW Education Fund
A separate VDW Education Fund is planned to run scholarships, with its own board and its own books.
Caddo & Bossier pilot
The first awards are planned for kids in Caddo and Bossier parishes who have a parent in prison.
Paid where it counts
Awards are planned to be paid directly to schools and training programs, with veteran volunteers walking alongside each student.
How Posts Work
Local Posts
Members gather in their own communities as Posts, the heart of VDW, where witness is shared and kids are supported.
State Departments
Posts in each state are joined together under a State Department that coordinates and supports them.
National Commander
A National Commander leads the association and keeps every Post true to the Declaration and the mission.
VDW is starting in the Shreveport–Bossier area. Interested in founding a Post where you live? Join below and say so.
Join VDW
Membership is free. There are no dues, and there never will be. If you've lived through it, you belong here.
Submitting opens your email app with a pre-filled message to VDW. Nothing is stored on this site.
Give
VDW runs only on voluntary gifts. Every gift keeps membership free for those who need it most.
Online giving is coming soon. This site does not collect payments. Gifts to the private association are not tax-deductible.