Student activism at the University of Virginia

The University of Virginia has a long history of student activists who formed radical environmental, religious, and political groups to champion various social changes. An especially intense period of student activism occurred in the 1970s during the May Days strikes against the Vietnam. War. More recently, the Curry School of Education and its Youth-Nex Center held a nation-wide conference in 2019 to promote student activism at UVA and beyond.

Organizations

Southern Student Organizing Committee

UVA students had an active chapter of this regional organization. The chapter's goal was “to direct the attention of [southern] campus populations to the really explosive social crises … at home.” The SSOC claimed that the War "has drawn our attention away from the essential decay of our own society.” The organization strove to “secure racial justice and democratic reforms in the southland and on [their] campuses.”

1968

During 1968, the SSOC’s chapter at the University of Virginia organized activities for the Ten Days of Secession and helped organize a draft counseling program. The Ten Days of Secession occurred during April 21-30. This event was organized by the national organization to promote activism in various localities to protest the Vietnam War, racism, southern poverty, and the draft. SSOC at the University of Virginia successfully put on programs that served this purpose, even though it was short-staffed. Speakers for this event included James “RaP” Brown and James Fisher, two SNCC leaders that organized blacks in Charlottesville. Other notable speakers were John McAuliff of the Institute for the Policy Studies in Washington, Brian Paddock, who was a lawyer with experience in draft cases, Gary Orfield of the Department of Government and Foreign Affairs, David Jordan, and Joseph Kett. The student group also proposed a program for the summer of 1968 that would involve these components: outreach by organizers into local civic and church groups to educate white people about the reality of racism; taking action against institutions that support and contribute to racism; working to put into place a system that would provide services to the community in the event of violence occurring, such as legal and medical aid; and encouraging dialogue between white and black populations.

1969

Early 1969 Campus Reports record that SSOC activity at the University of Virginia at this time was focused on student anger regarding the administration’s refusal to face issues including the recruitment of black students, administrators, and faculty; coeducation, social rules, and automobile regulations. UVA students also expressed anger over the university’s participation in a "military industrial complex, foreign corporate imperialism, and oppression of black and poor people". By February, newsletters report that UVA’s SSOC was assembling a list of demands, principal of which were the racism built into the University's structure and its role as a “servant of corporate interests,” which they would present to the Board of Visitors on February 15, 1969. The UVA coalition expected to be joined by the SSOC groups at George Mason University and the University of Mary Washington. However, two months later, the April newsletter reported that little action regarding the list of demands had taken place, but “escalated action” was being planned for the university's Founder’s Day, April 14, 1969. The newsletters also reported that their underground newspaper at UVA had run into financial difficulties.

Activities

On campus at UVA, the SSOC was especially prominent in opposing the Vietnam War, Racial Oppression, and the draft for the war, key ideas the SSOC stood against in the late 1960s. The SSOC also targeted University of Virginia (UVA) students and encouraged them to argue against racial inequality. In fact, the SSOC also targeted UVA freshmen, claiming to them that the true purpose of the University is to condition people to accept and participate in the state of Virginia's oligarchic, racist, and excursionist political and economic system.

The SSOC also criticized David Rockefeller and Chase Bank's financial investments in South Africa, supporting a country with the current system of apartheid. It also criticized the occupation of Wilmington, Delaware by the National Guard, following the city's riot after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., arguing that the nearly 9 month occupation of Wilmington was an extension of the capitalist power by the DuPont Corporation, one of the largest employers in the state.

The Southern Student Organizing Committee (SSOC) at The University of Virginia focused on sponsoring events and public speakers that relate to their agenda.

The SSOC agenda was composed of opposition to the Vietnam War, the Draft and racial oppression .

Apartheid Protest

The SSOC sponsored and released a letter to David Rockefeller that protested the intimate financial relationship to South Africa during the country’s period of severe apartheid

International Student-Faculty Strike

In 1968, a mass Student-Faculty Strike was sponsored by the SSOC. The strike was against the war (Vietnam War), racial oppression, and draft. The SSOC called for members of UVA Community to participate in the strike and asked for classes to be cancelled on 4/24/1968 .

Demonstration against the Vietnam War

The SSOC states their reasons on why the demonstrate against the war. The SSOC finds that their representatives in the government (senators) have not been consulted about the war. The SSOC states that the government has not proven that the Vietnam War is a fight against communism and believe that should focus on internal problems instead of external .

Virginia Council on Human Relations

The Virginia Council on Human Relations is a group who "believe that Southerns can- and will- work through their problems by constructive, cooperative action." The group was named the “Martin Luther King Jr. Chapter” to commemorate King after his assassination in April of 1968 Council was open to all – black or white; sent out a newsletter to those who were already members emphasizing that they could join MLK Jr Chapter & also asking for five-dollar dues/donations.

The group met in locations around the University of Virginia such as Pavilion VIII and Cocke Hall.

Purpose statement

The Martin Luther King Jr. Chapter of the Virginia Council on Human Relation was started at the University of Virginiato address issues or race at the university. The chapters mission statement is as follows:

“…to carry on in Virginia an educational program for the improvement of economic, civic, and racial conditions in the States; to attain through research and action programs the ideals and practices which will result in the greatest good for all people in the state; to reduce intergroup tensions and their causes; to promote intergroup understanding; to cooperate with local, state, regional, and national agencies in the attainments of these desired objectives.”

Why We Are Here! (May 1968)

The "Why We Are Here!" bulletin is a flyer that was posted around the UVA grounds to attract students, faculty, and staff, to join the council and help promote its views. The flyer states "To make this commitment to the spirit of progress into a policy of positive change, we urge the University to improve conditions for black students by:

1. Actively recruiting additional black students;
2. Appointing a black recruiter in the admissions office;
3. Providing seed money for the King Memorial Scholarship fund recently founded by faculty;
4. Hiring black faculty and administrators;
5. Requiring a unequivocal pledge on discrimination from student-housing landlords
6. Adding and/or expanding courses to include study of Afro and Afro-American culture."

Strike Committee

Facts of the Strike

Several organizations were committed to voicing their opinions against the draft, such as the Union for National Draft Opposition (UNDO), National Council to Repeal the Draft (NCRD) the Charlottesville Draft Resistance. The Charlottesville Draft Resistance hosted an event in which they encouraged citizens to bring their draft cards and promoted Tom Reeves, the National Chairman of the NCRD.

On May 6th, a gathering titled “Freedom Day” took place at University Hall that was advertised to be a “day of peace, music, thought.” Attorney William Kunstler and activist Jerry Rubin spoke at the gathering and about the movement that was occurring on Grounds. These sentiments, among others, caused tension to arise, and eventually build up to the public movement.

In a Letter to the Parents, Alumni, and Guests of UVA, the students explained that the strike was a call to action in which they state “You can no longer afford to be silent - together we can solve our country’s problems”. As far as the strike itself, the Virginia Strike Committee wrote a summary report of the events which occurred on the lawn of UVA the night of May 8 and early morning of May 9, 1970. According to the report, the events were as follows:

• The strike began on major roads, including Rugby Road, Main Street, and the intersection of Routes 29 and 250.
• Once police and officials began to show up, the students headed towards the Rotunda.
• Once on the lawn, the police showed up.
• President Williams gave a statement. Since many students couldn’t hear, they pushed forwards to hear the information, causing the police to charge.
• Several students were trampled seeking safety. Some students hid in lawn rooms.
• There were reports of students being clubbed and dragged away by police.

A number of students said they had been informed that the Virginia Riot Act had been invoked which would make any groups of three or more persons subject to arrest for unlawful assembly. Once the excitement began to dissipate, several students were arrested and charged with illegal assembly, disorderly conduct, and failure to disperse. According to the report, nearly 70 arrests were made with bail set at five to one thousand dollars per person. After the strike, several students worked to raise as much bail money as possible.

Strike Committee Demands

After the events of May 8th and 9th, the Virginia Strike Committee recognized the academic purpose of the school and its goals towards education. Following the events, the committee requested that the faculty make a number of academic provisions, including pushing back requirement deadlines, substituting requirements, and designating certain courses as “pass” or “fail” grades. The Strike Committee also made the following demands:

• As supporters of students throughout America, they wanted to see:
  • A government end to all political repression, especially of Black Panthers, and all political prisoners.
  • A government end to the invasion of Cambodia and the withdrawal of all US forces from Southeast Asia.
  • Universities (including UVA) to end all complicity with the military, specifically ROTC, contractual obligations with JAG, and all defense-related research.
• As UVA students, they demanded the following from President Shannon:
  • Increased recruitment of women and blacks, namely a university-wide goal of 20% black enrollment $100,000 allocated to meet this goal
  • No outside police on grounds at any time and that university police be disarmed.
  • University employees maintain the right to organize and strike to gain a living wage, or in other words, the right to strike.

President Shannon did meet some of these demands. For example, he accommodated those who participated in the strikes with more time to meet their academic requirements. He even commended students for their “magnificent spirit” even though they had attempted to burn down the ROTC building, blocked traffic, and assaulted Shannon’s home. Shannon also endorsed the “demand that called for 20 per cent enrollment quota for black students and allocation of $100,00 for a black admissions program."

Sentiments following the Strike

The Virginia Committee Against Violence at the University of Virginia made a statement regarding the strike on Grounds. They were very adamant about not having the strike represent the University. "It is not fair to represent this Assembly as the voice of the Faculty of the University of Virginia, which the image that has been presented, especially to the news media". Various posters were hung around Grounds claiming the strikes were taking away from the students ability to receive proper education at UVA. Similarly, following the strike, in 1971 a survey conducted among the student body found that about 49% of students supported the involvement of the student council in international matters that impact the student body, such as the War of Indochina. According to the university newspaper, The Cavalier Daily, many students and faculty said that the United States has made a terrible mistake in Indochina and felt that the best way to combat it was through strikes.

Union of University Students

History

The University of Virginia Union of University Students (UUS) was founded as a result of the May 1970 students strikes that occurred across the country. The newly formed Union’s immediate concerns were with, “improvement of the quality of student life in social, political, and academic environments.”

To do this, The Union of University Students (UUS) convened to draw up the Standards of Conduct, a document meant to replace the Code of Conduct. The Union did this to address student concerns with housing, bookstore prices being too high, privacy issues, issues with the strictness of university rules, being arrested for breaking university rules they were not aware of, representatives not voicing the concerns of students, but instead, giving into UVA demands, and UVA’s sexist atmosphere.

Although the Union was created after the May strikes, their first meeting occurred on 28 September 1970 during the Fall semester. A year after the Union was formed, the student body met to decide whether or not to continue the Union for the next year.

UUS Governance

The Union of University Students’ stated purpose was to create a more democratic university for its students. The Constitution drafted by the Union included five Articles. One to form the Union, one to ensure the Union was open to all students regardless of race, one to create a participatory democracy with at least one meeting a month, one to create a coordinating committee of seven elected students, and finally, one to create a caveat that the Union’s Constitution can be amended by a ⅔ majority vote.

In addition, bylaws were created by the Union of University Students based on the US Constitution. The bylaws stated that Union membership was open to all students, Union meetings were open to the public but only members could vote, there would be affiliations by the majority, and that the membership fee was $3 dollars, due on the first day of Fall semester class registration. The bylaws of the UUS were adopted May 25, 1970. (5)

Activism

While the Union of University Students was primarily focused on on-ground student representation, they expanded on the reason why they were formed in the first place and held boycotts protesting the Vietnam War. The Union was also involved in political activism for the Cuban Communist government, the Black Panther Party, and Palestine.

Anti-war efforts

Proclamation from the Veterans of Future Wars

The Proclamation from the Veterans of Future Wars worked to urge for bonuses to be paid expediently before they would die in a different war. They planned a rally at the university's McIntire Amphitheater at 7:15 AM on April 17, 1970, during the Vietnam War. This rally included two parades. One parade ran through the Corner, Chancellor Street, and down Madison Lane. A separate parade was led from the Theta Delta Chi fraternity house and down Rugby Road. The two parades converged at the amphitheater and were led by two bands, including Matt Womber, Harry Rodgers Pratt, Freddie Cramer, Ben Bulaney, John Watts, Bobby Gresham, and Al Johnson. The rally included Congressman Scott of California as the principal speaker.

Vietnam Moratorium committee

The Vietnam Moratorium Committee was a student group at The University of Virginia responsible for putting on university-based programs during the nationwide Moratorium against the Vietnam War on October 15, 1969. Here, a variety of events took place between Monday, October 13 and Wednesday, October 15, including speeches, films, discussions held in student dorms, and a rally. Led by John Israel, a professor of History, university faculty also became involved in the movement, including 36 signees of a statement supporting the Moratorium. Despite the efforts of both faculty and the Student Council, President Edgar Shannon ignored such calls and invited criticism from groups like The New Republic after refusing to cancel classes to observe the Moratorium.

Letter from the Veterans for Peace in Vietnam

In a letter mail sent from the Veterans for Peace in Vietnam at the University Station in Charlottesville, Virginia, the committee expressed their opposition against the ROTC program at the university. They argued that the ROTC program at U.Va went against the University's purpose towards developing independent minds; instead, indoctrinating students with "mindless obedience and the ways of war." The committee believed that the ROTC manipulates students into signing through the students intermediate needs - money for school and fear of the draft. They suggest that the abolition of ROTC would make it more difficult to continue the Vietnam War and also future wars.

Youth Coalition Against Abortion

Circa 1973, a pamphlet advertising the Youth Coalition Against Abortion (YCAA) was written in opposition to the Roe v. Wade decision to legalize abortion in the United States. The Supreme Court justified the right to terminate a pregnancy under the Fourteenth and Ninth amendments, determining a set point where the fetus is granted human rights. The pamphlet was authored by John Buckley, a prior student at the University of Virginia who was both an Echols Scholar and a University Honor Award Scholarship recipient. He later became a member of the Virginia House of Delegates and was a libertarian who was against abortion.  

The Youth Coalition Against Abortion was a student-run organization at the University of Virginia. They existed as a conservative anti-abortion organization, promoting pro-life ideals. One of their main points was forming a distinction between "potential" and "meaningful" life as a basis for abortion. From a biological standpoint, the heart of a fetus begins to beat at day 18 and electroencephalograms can pick up fetal brain waves at six weeks gestation. Buckley builds this argument and presents that the fetus is physically and genetically its own being from the moment of conception. The pamphlet compares the "meaningfulness" of fetal life to that of the mentally retarded, senile, and ill. The coalition argues that slavery, genocide, and revolutionary "programming" in history are no different than the concept of legalized abortion. It poses the question, "WHO shall be the judge of 'meaningful' life, and by what criteria shall the judgement be rendered?". Buckley argues, in step with conservative beliefs, less control is needed to prevent the denial of man's basic human dignity and rights.

It is unclear to what degree the coalition's pamphlet was circulated. The coalition sought to spread their values as an organization, advertising the sale of buttons and bumper stickers displaying anti-abortion sentiments. The YCAA also sought to help plant chapters at other universities. It is not documented whether or not the coalition included members other than John Buckley. The history and impact of the Youth Coalition Against Abortion is still largely unknown; there is no known evidence the organization is still active today.

CIA Protests

The University of Virginia faced many protests in the 1970s regarding the CIA's interference in global politics and allegations of U.S. citizen surveillance.

1975 Protests

On Tuesday January 14, 1975, a CIA recruiter came to the University of Virginia to meet with university students in regards to recruitment for the agency. At this time, there was widespread claims of the CIA spying on U.S. citizens and a high disapproval of the agency to the general public.

In response to the CIA interviews, anti-war activist and coordinator of the Charlottesville Resistance, Steve Squire, led a protest on January 14, 1975 against the presence of the CIA on grounds. It occurred in front of Minor Hall, where the recruiter was scheduled to meet the students. Students held signs with phrases including “No CIA at UVa,” “Is This CIA Intelligence?” and “CIA Recruitment for Murder.” A plainclothes officer from the Department of Security took pictures of the protests, and a uniformed University police officer questioned individuals in the Alderman Library about students carrying CIA posters.

The CIA recruiter moved his student recruitment meetings to a local motel, according to a placement office spokesman. Press located the motel where the CIA recruiter was reported to be, but no one from the CIA was registered. A clerk at the front desk described a man from Washington D.C. staying at the motel who had set up appointments with students. The reporter rang his room, but once the recruiter realized he was speaking to a reporter, he would not answer questions.

Later, the Student Affairs Office discovered a tape and a junk file from the CIA surveilling them.

Discrepancies

According to the Charlottesville newspaper The Daily Progress, the protest occurred on Tuesday, January 14, 1975 . This date contrasts with the date mentioned by Charles P. Finn, an associate of the Alderman Library. He noted that the demonstration occurred Wednesday, January 15, 1975.

Both sources report that they occur at noon, outside of Minor Hall.

1977 Protests

On December 5th, 1977, CIA Director Stansfield Turner, visited the University of Virginia to speak about the “new code of ethics” being implemented towards the CIA’s actions. He spoke to an audience of about 500 in the Chemistry building on Grounds. He stated that the CIA was hoping to become more open and better supervised in attempts to preserve its secrets and combat public distrust. Outside the auditorium, five or six students from the Charlottesville Resistance held signs to protest the CIA’s covert actions in Chile. As Turner entered the building, he stopped to talk to the protestors, assuring them that the CIA’s policies have changed for the better.

Once inside, he was asked whether the United States would be involved with any more covert actions such as those in Chile, Vietnam, and Cuba. He answered, “the CIA has been ordered by the president not to involve itself in any more covert operations.” Students at the University continued to protest the influence of the CIA.

UVA students involved in the Campaign to Stop Government Spying and the Charlottesville Resistance aimed to distribute more literature about their campaign, work toward requesting University CIA files through FOIA requests, and show the film The Rise and Fall of the CIA. This would allow students of the University to further expose the actions of the CIA.

Black Students For Freedom

The Black Student Alliance was a group founded at the University of Virginia in 1969 whose purpose was to:

1)To articulate the problems and to voice the concerns of Black students at the University of Virginia.

2) To establish communication within the Black community and to aid in achieving the common goals of Black students at UVa and Black community in Charlottesville.

3) To conduct political action against unjust policies or programs mandated by the University of Virginia.

4) To serve as an umbrella organization on the grounds of the University of Virginia.

5) To serve as a liaison between Black students, undergraduate and graduate, Black faculty, Black Alumni, and the administration of the University of Virginia."

It’s mission is “To represent the social and political concerns of the African-American student body, and to establish a more perfect union between the African-American, multicultural, and University communities.”

Origins

The Black Student Alliance, formerly known as Black Students for Freedom, attempted to improve UVa's racial atmosphere in several ways. In March 1969, an Ad Hoc Committee of the Black Students for Freedom created a proposal for an Afro-American Studies program at the University. In predominantly white southern institutions of higher education at the time, several elements of Black history were not included due to racial discrimination. They stated that an Afro-American Studies program was necessary because "The recognition of the Afro-American cultural input is required to meet a debt to the Black community". In 1970, the Black Students for Freedom, along with Black faculty at the University, created the annual series "Black Culture Week" In 1970. In the second annual Black Culture Week, many notable African American writers, poets, academics, and even government legislators came to UVa, including Julian Bond, Nikki Giovanni, and Arna Bontemps. These were large scale events, being held in some of the University's largest venues, like Newcomb Hall Ballroom and the Chemistry Building Auditorium. Black Culture Week is an event that still takes place at the University today.

Legacies

One of the legacies implemented by the Black Student Alliance is the Office of African American Affairs. The Black Student Alliance advocated for the creation of the Office of African American Affairs in 1975, and a year later, the University created the OAAA.

In April 2015, the Alliance created a document named “Towards a Better University” in protest to the violent arrest of Martese Johnson. The document, which was aided by students in the Frank Batten School of Public Policy and Leadership, outlined ways that the University’s administration could provide tangible support to the black student body. Additionally, in its guide for the University to improve the lives of the black students on grounds BSA called on former President Teresa Sullivan to create mandatory online modules to teach students on cultural competency.

BSA maintains itself in world issues revolving around race in the current age as well. In times of police brutality, the organization has continued to put out statements in which they condemn the unjust systems in place and encourage the student body to continue to stand in objection to such institutions. These statements can be seen recognizing cases such as Eric Garner, Martese Johnson, Alton Sterling and Michael Brown.

Students for a Democratic Society

History

The group created a constitution for the newly created Virginia Chapter that was drafted on November 6,1969. It included a statement of purpose to further discussion on aspects of a participatory democracy that should be part of the university community. Members included anyone who shared the commitment of the organization to democracy. They also stated that they were civil to those who disagreed with their values but were clear about their opposition to nondemocratic bodies. The governing body was called the executive committee, made up of three members that were elected by the group as a whole. Elections were held in May, and the Executive Committee chose a chairman who would represent the chapter nationally. Everything about the group was very democratic, from the elections to choosing when meetings were held. The constitution listed some policies referring to removal of executive committee members, and there was a note for any situations that were not addressed to refer to Robert's Rules of Order. The group had a strong history of activism in the late 60s in response to the Vietnam War, especially America's involvement.

SDS Activism in Response to the Vietnam War

The organization frequently wrote letters to the community expressing their discontent with America's involvement in the Vietnam War. One letter was extremely accusatory and called for students at the University of Virginia to take a stand against the war, and to prevent future wars. It also included an announcement for a vigil for peace. Another open letter called out the Dow Chemical Corporation for the production of napalm, a chemical used in Vietnam that had the power to burn and kill people. The SDS says in this letter that it is their responsibility to speak out and separate themselves from these "horrors". In the opinion of the SDS, the company hid behind their patriotic claims in order to cover up the criminality of the use of napalm.

Another major point of discontent for SDS was regarding the 1968 elections of Nixon, Humphrey, and Wallace. The students claimed that this election was heavily influenced by the money interests in the country, and neglected the true democratic decision making process. Claims in the letter were also made that the Paris Climate Agreement was intended to conceal aggressive military actions in Vietnam. The students conclude the letter with several demands such as democracy, peace, freedom, and an end to racism.

Another point of activism from SDS was support of the Catonsville Nine. On May 17, 1968, a group of nine men and women in Maryland took 378 draft files and burned them in an act to stop the drafting for the Vietnam War. The motives of the Catonsville Nine aligned with the pro-democratic views of the SDS group. They called for support of these men and women who were going to be prosecuted.

In addition to writing letters to the community, SDS also held several gatherings during the time of the Vietnam War. For example, they held a vigil for peace in front of Alderman Library. Alderman library is a large central area on grounds, showing that the group intended to have a substantial audience.

References

This article "Student activism at the University of Virginia" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Student activism at the University of Virginia. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.

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