One Day's Frenzied Activity Becomes A Lifetime's Indelible Experience

The following are excerpts from essays written by strike participants on the occassion of the 20th anniversary of the student takeover of University Hall.

"I was a 'step person' on the Northwest steps at the time of the occupation; I remember well that each of the four steps of University Hall had its own leadership and prolonged discussions through the night time hours about what our posture (political and physical) would be if and when a police bust happened. For years afterward, I wore those orangish brown wool pants with pride--my Mom had patched with a big black patch the rip at the knee from getting knocked down the steps by the cops. Did I get clubbed, kicked, or shoved down the steps? I don't know; I shut my eyes when they got within a few yards of me."--Dale Borman Fink '71-'72

"I've spent my life almost constantly devoted to mathematics--with the exception of spring 1969 when I worked full time on the strike. Sometimes when the U. S. government does something particularly nasty, my first inner reaction is a fear that I'll have to spend another semester on politics."--Robert MacPherson

"I believe that the political and cultural work of those who have not abandoned the best of the spirit of '68 and '69 is largely, and consciously, ignored by the 'media' who are desperate to portray a generation of burned out, sold out or 'reformed' radicals."--Charles Bernstein '72

"Yeah, of course we were all against the war, just as it says in those clippings over there on the table. But we also thought ourselves to be for a truly better city, a truly better set of institutions a truly better way of life. The war blocked all those things from being born, so we opposed. In our opposition, we thought ourselves wiser than those who taught us and warmer than those who had nurtured us to maturity. We thought ourselves clean of evil and therefore we acted in an uncompromising manner."

"We wanted to clean up society, and clean it, and clean it, and clean it, until it was either good or dead."--Hal Eskesen '69

"Were we in error on many significant points of understanding American society? Yes. Were our tactical choices sometimes incredibly counterproductive? Yes. Have I moderated some? Yes. But our basic sense of outrage at injustice, clear opposition to the Vietnam War and its devastation and belief in the genuine participation of people in politics were and remain valid."--Miles Rapoport '67-'70

The following excerpts come from Push Comes to Shove: The Escalation of Student Protest by Steven J. Kelman '70. He is now a professor of public policy at the Kennedy School.

"I discovered during the April days that Harvard students were not immune to the same types of emotions which made the Nazi rise to power possible. I regretfully came to realize that SDS had hit upon a tactic which was unbeatable, even at Harvard... The SDS had suceeded in winning at Harvard, in having themselves accepted by all too many of the student body as our moral vanguard."

"The point is that The Crimson didn't adopt its new pro-SDS line because of a duty to tell the truth regardless of fear of favor. It did so because a majority of the editors of the Crimson were incurable intellectual conformists, shifting with amazing sensitivity with what they sensed as the dominant currents."

"[During an SDS meeting] someone rushed in through the door and asked for the floor. 'I've just been over at University Hall. I don't know whether this'll influence people's votes, but there are a lot of university cops guarding University Hall right now. We'd have to fight them to get in.'

" 'Smash ROTC. No expansion! Fight to win!! came the chant from the WSAers.'

"The vote came. It was 180 for a seizure on Monday, 140 for a seizure on Monday, 140 for a seizure right after the meeting, 60 for 'no action' and 40 for a nondisruptive student strike."

" 'Vote! Vote!!' Students [in front of University Hall] were demanding a binding vote of those present on whether the building should be taken over. SDS controlled the microphone, and they controlled the speaker, but the cries were too persistent. Finally one SDSer called for a vote. 'All those in favor of taking the building!'

"Fists and yelled ayes. But pretty pathetic.

" 'All those who favor kicking ROTC off but not taking any militant...'

"A kid up front shouted out, 'That's not what we're voting on!' The chant of Vote! Vote!!' went up again.

"The SDSer was flustered.

" 'OK. All opposed to taking over the building!'

"It was an overwhelmingly obvious nay.

"Jared Israel came out of the door to University Hall and grabbed the microphone. He looked flustered too and stutteringly made the worst harangue I've ever seen him give.

" 'OK. Now you've had your cute little vote. But don't think you're going to stop us from fighting imperialism! Your little vote was ridiculous because it included imperialists deciding on whether we should fight imperialism."

"It was 5 a.m. and already light. The streets were deserted. Many thoughts ran through my mind. I thought of my optimistic conversation with Professor Lipset during the afternoon in the Yard. 'If the administration just plays it cool, maybe Harvard can turn the tide and be the first school to defeat the New Left.' He answered, "The question is whether they will be stupid enough to call the cops.'

"I thought how the people of Prague must have felt when they got up early one morning and saw Soviet tanks all over their city.

"It was all so helpless and so absurd. The police wore baby-blue helmets. They marched in military formation. It was so stupid."