A rally in Deering Meadow, sparked by the 1969 nationwide Vietnam moratorium. Courtesy of University Archives.
Campus Rallies, Sit-ins and Violence
Student protests against the Vietnam War had their roots in 1965, when students organized a chapter of the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS). With chapters at colleges and universities nationwide, the SDS was pivotal to student activism at the time.
Anti-War Demonstrations
Northwestern's first massive anti-war rally was a teach-in held in April 1967. That same month, a student rally was held on the steps of the administration building. The rally started as a demand for a voice in academic issues and financial aid decisions, but it turned into an anti-war protest when students asked to discontinue the National Reserve Training Officer program, which had existed on campus since 1926.
The tempo of protests took a more radical turn in 1969. In May, demonstrators tried to block the entrance to the ROTC Review at McGaw Hall.
In the fall of that year, Chancellor J. Roscoe Miller issued a statement that the University would not countenance any disruptions. A month later the SDS students stepped up their demands and tried to force their way in to see the Chancellor. Forced back by security, the students staged a sit-in at the NROTC headquarters in Lunt Hall.
Escalation in Violence
In February 1970 William Kunstler, defense lawyer for the Chicago Seven on trial for disruption during the 1968 Democratic Convention, was invited to speak on the campus by the Northwestern Faculty Action Committee. After the lecture, some people went on a rampage in downtown Evanston, smashing windows and causing several thousands of dollars in damage.
Violence broke out again in April 1970, when an arson fire caused extensive damage to the Linguistics building. Arsonists also burned down the Traffic Institute building at Hinman and Clark, and a group of SDS protestors tore up the NROTC offices.
Reactions to Kent State University Protests
Protests stepped up the next month when President Nixon announced U.S. forces were moving into Cambodia, and Ohio National Guardsmen killed four students at Kent State University.
Chancellor Miller closed Rebecca Crown Center as a symbol of Northwestern's participation in the national protest and then ordered all classes canceled for the rest of the week.
Two thousand students rallied on Deering Meadow that night and called for a strike and the cancellation of classes. Some militant students set up a barricade to block Sheridan Road near Scott Hall. The City of Evanston diverted traffic to prevent any violence.
The events thrust ASG President Eva Jefferson into the spotlight. She led the strike in Deering Meadow and became a nationally recognized student leader, later appearing on the David Frost television show with three other students and Vice President Spiro Agnew.
Two days later, students held a second rally at Dyche Stadium. Evanston officials called in the National Guard as a precaution. Approximately 7,000 people attended the peaceful rally. A week later, the barricade was removed and classes resumed.
The campus remained peaceful until 1972, when a rally to protest increases in room and board rates turned into an anti-Vietnam War rally at Rebecca Crown plaza. Students again declared a strike and erected a barricade across Sheridan Road. The barricade was removed three days later.