It may be old news to most that UC, Berkeley was once the hosting site to campaign civil rights. Sproul Plaza (which we now associate with aggressive tablers throwing unwanted flyers in our faces) invited students, community members and notable leaders of the Free Speech movement to gather in protest of racial inequalities of the time. It wasn’t until taking Professor Munoz’s Comparative Survey of Protest Movements Since the 1960s course (ES 41AC) last fall that I knew these hugely historical happenings and the stake Berkeley had in them with totality. Not just the involvement in Berkeley, but the involvement at our very campus. Though our current generation of students missed the Free Speech Movement by nearly 30 years, we can collectively take pride in knowing we walk the same ground which was once chosen to progress racial equality by legendary activists. In honor of this week representing 50 years passing since the Free Speech Movement at UC, Berkeley, here are a few pictures capturing the fight for civil rights on our campus across the years. We have never been so proud to call ourselves Golden Bears:
1. Philosophy professor John Searle leading a group of protesters in front of Sproul Hall in 1964
2. Mario Savio gathering a crowd as he speaks on top of a car on October 1, 1964
contracostatimes.com
3. Jack Weinberg, Michael Lerner, Marvin Garson and others gather on Sproul during peaceful protests
The Rag Blog
4. Student Jack Weinberg crowded by media after being arrested for violating UC, Berkeley’s rules against political activity on campus.
museumca.org
5. Martin Luther King, Jr. speaking on Sproul about the Vietnam War in 1967
sfgate.com
6. Martin Luther King, Jr. speaking on Sproul about the Vietnam War in 1967
sfgate.com
7. Chancellor Robert Birgeneau stands on top of a police car during the 40th anniversary of the Free Speech Movement 10 years ago
berkeley.edu
8. Student Heather Adams sings “Why Am I Treated So Bad?” during a sing-along in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Free Speech Movement on September 23, 2014.
latimes.com
9. Tatianna Peck (holding sign) and students protest on sproul in 2011 in response to a controversial ‘diversity bake sale.’
latimes.com
10. The most recent rally commemorating the Free Speech Movement on October 1, 2014
sfgate.com
11. Jack Weinberg, famously trapped in the police car in 1964 on Sproul, returns to speak at the rally on October 1, 2014.
sfgate.com