This work chronicles Wesleyan from 1968-1970, tracking events and changes over this two-year period. From 1968-1970, Wesleyan University shifted from a campus culture of political apathy and aversion to protest into a school that embraced an activist identity and sincerely supported student demonstration. Students fighting against the Vietnam War as well as Black students fighting for racial justice developed long-term movements that influenced the student body, faculty, and administration. Their methods of protest and language of communication, over time, became more refined and effective. Chapter One explores the fall semester of 1968, a newly awakened consciousness in the student body, and the beginnings of sustained anti-war and racial justice movements. Chapter Two delves into the spring semester of 1969, arguing that this semester differed from the last because students directed their activism toward faculty and the administration instead of toward their peers. Chapter Three discusses the 1969-1970 school year, charting the impact of the previous year through the solidification of protest movements and the development of new activist causes on campus. It finishes with the May 1970 National Student Strike, a culmination of the previous two years of protest that featured mass participation of the Wesleyan community, solidarity with other schools and the Black Panthers, and the implementation of long-term, passionate protest.
"},{"label":"Degree","value":["Bachelor of Arts with Departmental Honors"]},{"label":"Author-supplied Keywords","value":["Student activism","Protest","Vietnam War"]},{"label":"Administrative Note","value":"Drupal Node ID: 33853