Parts of American college campuses have been overtaken by pro-Palestinian protestors, marking the latest in a decades-long series of demonstrations sparked by political activism, some of which have descended into violence in response to police crackdowns. Free speech sit-ins have already resulted in large-scale rallies, Vietnam War student protests have become fatal, and US civil rights marches have culminated in widespread arrests. Each protest had a unique set of circumstances, but the narrative is often the same: Young people wanted changes on campuses or in society at large, and their passionate protests frequently turned violent when they clashed with the police. Columbia University, the epicenter of the current protest wave, has also witnessed comparable demonstrations in the past, most notably in 1968 during the Vietnam War. Professor of history at Barnard College Rosalind Rosenberg writes for Barnard Magazine that among other changes brought about by the demonstrations were the termination of classified war research and the suspension of military recruitment.
The demonstrators of today also have particular demands, most notably the withdrawal from Israel, in light of the over 34,000 Palestinians who perished in Gaza as a result of Israeli airstrikes and ground assaults. The Oct. 7 incursion by Hamas into southern Israel, which resulted in the deaths of around 1,200 people—mostly civilians—and the kidnapping of over 240 others, set off that military operation. It is unclear, meanwhile, whether or not the present protests will have an impact on the Israel-Hamas conflict, given how quickly campus authorities are responding, claiming safety concerns and deploying police to break up encampments.
Berkeley, California University: 1960s Free Speech
Beginning in 1964, students at the University of California Berkeley demonstrated against the institution’s restrictions on political expression and activities during the Vietnam War and the civil rights struggle. “Public universities in California had enacted numerous regulations limiting students’ political activities in the wake of McCarthyism’s anti-Communist sentiments during the 1950s,” Karen Aichinger wrote for the Middle Tennessee University Free Speech Center. “At the University of California, Berkeley, student groups taking part in any on- or off-campus political activities were banned from campus.”
According to the UC Berkeley website, what started as “small sit-ins and demonstrations” “escalated into a series of large-scale rallies and protests demanding full constitutional rights on campus.” This led to about 800 students being taken into custody by the local police. In the end, the students’ protest proved to be beneficial. Eventually, the college claims, the university reversed rules that would have limited speech or advocacy content. According to the UC Berkeley website, “Today, the Movement stands as a symbol of the importance of protecting and preserving academic freedom and free speech.”
Ohio’s Kent State University: Vietnam War, 1970
In May 1970, Kent State University in Ohio saw the busiest campus demonstration against the Vietnam War. On May 2, students began to demonstrate against the U.S. invasion of Cambodia and the Vietnam War. Two days later, among a plethora of antiwar demonstrators and bystanders, the National Guard opened fire. With their brutality, the soldiers wounded numerous people and killed four young people: William Knox Schroeder, Sandra Scheuer, Jeffrey Miller, and Allison Krause. Thomas Hensley and Jerry Lewis wrote, “The impact of the shootings was dramatic,” for a Kent State University article. “The event triggered a nationwide student strike that forced hundreds of colleges and universities to close.”
According to Lewis and Hensley, the shootings had an impact on national politics as well. “In The Ends of Power, (H.R.) Haldeman, (a top aide to President Richard Nixon), states that the shootings at Kent State began the slide into Watergate, eventually destroying the Nixon administration,” according to the piece. Lewis and Hensley noted that the shootings and protests of today “certainly come to symbolize the deep political and social divisions that so sharply divided the country during the Vietnam War era.”
College demonstrations have a long history in the US. These are some examples from the past
National security spokesman John Kirby stated on ABC News on Sunday that President Joe Biden is aware of the campus protests and the intense emotions the Gaza war has sparked. He also stated that the administration feels “people should have the ability to air their views and to share their perspectives publicly, but it has to be peaceful.” Late on Saturday, Columbia issued a statement stating that there had been a “quiet day on campus” and that negotiations between organizers and university representatives were still in progress. “There is no truth to claims of an impending lockdown or evictions on campus,” read the statement.
In response to concerns raised by “members of the PSU community,” Portland State University in Oregon has decided to stop soliciting or receiving gifts or grants from Boeing, according to a statement released by the university’s president, Ann Cudd. A significant local employer, Boeing, exports armaments to Israel. On Saturday night, demonstrators gathered in front of a hotel that was holding the yearly White House correspondent’s dinner. Speaking at the ceremony, Biden was singled out for his backing of Israel’s war campaign. According to a statement from Arizona State University, campus police detained 69 protestors on Saturday, the majority of whom weren’t employees or students.