Columbia Marks 40th Anniversary of 1968

On the 40th anniversary of the Columbia student protests, alumni returned to campus for a series of events to commemorate the dramatic events of 1968 and debate their relevance today.

The weeklong student uprising at Columbia in April 1968, which culminated in a violent confrontation with police, came to symbolize the disaffection and frustration of the youth of America with the authority figures of the 1960s. The wider context of the protests was the civil rights movement, the feminist movement, and the raging Vietnam War.

The demonstrations were also catalyzed by some local issues: the planned construction of a University gymnasium in Morningside Park, Columbia’s affiliation with the Institute for Defense Analyses, the prohibition of indoor demonstrations, and the issue of disciplinary procedures for certain members of the Columbia chapter of Students for a Democratic Society. The uprising culminated in a student occupation of five campus buildings in April 1968 which was broken up after a week by the New York Police Department.

The 40-year-old specter of factional campus strife, intense political debate interlaced with issues of race, gender, and identity, and finally the physical violence inflicted by police on students and professors alike lingers to this day. As a result, Columbia’s treatment of its Harlem neighbors has been increasingly scrutinized, numerous faculty members left after becoming disenchanted by the administration’s handling of the crisis, and alienated alumni stopped giving money to their alma mater.

Nonetheless, many would argue 1968 strengthened and reformed Columbia. After having been paralyzed for an entire week, Columbia resumed normal operations in the fall of 1968. By the time the semester had started, the school had canceled the proposed gym, broken ties with IDA, and created the University Senate and Student Governing Board.

Due to its widespread impact on the school, sociology professor Allan Silver—who was on the faculty 40 years ago—described the memory of 1968 as “a ghost.”

“I have no interest in nurturing its memory,” he added. “But it haunts the place.”

University President Lee Bollinger said that he believes that the protests branded Columbia for good as a politically engaged school. “You just feel the currents of the time much more powerfully here than elsewhere—the kinds of things that are written, the kinds of things that are taught, the kinds of things that are done, and the issues that are raised are all affected by that,” he said.

While the University did not officially sponsor any particular event this year because many alumni expressed ambivalence about whether the student uprising was something to be proud of, it supported the organization of many them. A conference held at the Heyman Center featured administrators and faculty members involved in the aftermath of spring 1968. Barnard College invited Stanford University history professor Estelle Freedman, BC ’69, to speak, and the Columbia chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union co-sponsored a event examining student activism.

But the most extensively programmed series of events was organized by a group of Columbia alums who were personally involved in the protests. Many alums reunited once more during the last weekend of April this year to reflect and reminisce about their tumultuous and often traumatic experiences. Opened with a keynote speech by Bollinger at the Casa Italiana, the four-day series of commemorations featured discussion panels, screenings of films about the protests, social functions, a tree planting in Morningside Park, and a memorial service for those who have since passed away. Although the commemorations were met with some criticism, many of those who attended felt they came away with a greater understanding. Some attendees said, for example, that they was surprised by the revelation of the difficulties faced by their black peers who suffered racial prejudice on campus.

david.xia@columbiaspectator.com