Joseph McCanna, History 250: The Historian Craft, Spring 2023

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln during the 1960s was a hotbed for activism. During this era, the university experienced social change thanks to the movements of the New Left. Issues that these movements addressed were progress for equality and the United States' involvement in Vietnam. Before to the late 1960s, UNL did not recognize important fields of study such as ethnic studies, women's studies, and homosexuality. These movements united the students and inspired them to protest the Vietnam War. America became involved in 1955 after France’s colonial rule collapsed[1] but protests did not begin until the late 1960s due to the steady escalation of the war and the growing disapproval of the population. Many Americans opposed the war, viewing it as imperialistic and a violation of human rights. Others resisted the draft which disproportionately affected poor and minority communities. This was also the first time the media could substantially cover a war with Americans viewing the horror of napalm and guerrilla warfare on their living room television. Young people were outraged the most. It was their generation that was being sent to fight. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln, like many college campuses, organized a series of protests, these impacted both the University and State as some supported the protests and others attempted to stifle free speech.

The 1960s was a decade of conflict for Civil and political rights. Among the anti-war movements, these fights were for racial equality, women’s liberation, and sexual freedom. The movements were under the umbrella of the term “New Left.” In contrast to the “Old Left,” this ideology was focused not on labor and economic policy. Instead, they anchored solely on social issues. Young people took up these ideals across the nation and at UNL. These ideas were advocated for by the Students for a Democratic Society. Founded in Ann Arbor, Michigan in 1959. This organization spread to most colleges in the nation and the Nebraska Chapter was founded in 1965 by graduate student Carl Davidson.[2] The protests of these new organizations brought new ideas to UNL that would represent the growing diversity of the student body.

These ideas were the basis of the New Left. Nebraska’s African American Collegiate Society protested outside the administration building on April 15th, 1969. They burned a coffin and chanted “The system is dead. Burn, baby, burn.”[3] The president of UNL at the time, Joseph Soshnik, was forced to comment that “the University of Nebraska has a commitment to human dignity and equality.” The University was forced to acknowledge the increasing minority presence and in 1970 the Board of Regents approved the Institute of Ethnic Studies.[4] In 1971 Women’s Studies was also established, as the first chairwoman of The Women’s Studies program, Moira Ferguson stated that “A women’s studies program is an intellectual and political necessity for any self-respecting academic community.”[5]

That same year UNL offered its first course on homosexuality. This was argued in the state legislature with one senator, Henry Pedersen Jr, saying, “I hope this course teaches that homosexuality is abnormal conduct which should be avoided."[6] The social progress of these issues inspired a consciousness among Nebraska’s student population. They had become experienced in organization and protest. However, these protests for social change were much smaller than the Anti-War protests. This was the issue that truly united all the students because of how unpopular the war had become.

The war was unpopular for a variety of reasons. First, it was unclear what the objective was as war was never officially declared. Americans were also getting extensive news coverage as well as the death toll. By November 1967, U.S. casualties had reached 15,058 killed and 109,527 wounded.[7] It was expensive for the taxpayer and for American lives. The war also brought back the draft in the form of a lottery. There were 366 blue plastic capsules containing birth dates placed in a large glass container and drawn by hand to assign order-of-call numbers to all men within the 18-26 age range.[8] Many students had friends that did not make it to college and were therefore drafted. This was enough to send some into action. In 1968, Nebraska philosophy professor, Charles Marxer, established The Nebraska Draft Resistance Union, or NDRU along with a few students. They gave draft counseling and handed out pamphlets to high school students in the area.[9] The chancellor received many letters calling for Marxer to be fired as many believed he was committing an act of treason. UNL’s board of regents allowed his contract to expire rather than fire him to avoid a free speech lawsuit. This set a dangerous precedent. Tensions were rising and the school year of 1969 was perhaps the most chaotic and impactful year for anti-war activism at the university. Before classes began the editor of the Daily Nebraskan stated that the University administration “would be advised to tread softly this year.”[10]

The editor was proved right as the school year began with the largest Anti-War demonstration on record. On October 15, 1969, a nationwide event called the Moratorium to End the War in Vietnam saw citizens across the country participating in teach-ins and protests. Hundreds of thousands gathered in Washington D.C and even more across the nation. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln was no exception, as it held its own series of teach-ins followed by protests and candlelight vigils. The biggest of which being a march that started from the campus and headed to the State Capitol and despite heavy rain that night they drew approximately 4,000 participants. This was just the first protest of the year and was a signal that the school year would not be normal. In late April, President Nixon made a decision that would send college campuses into mayhem. In an address to the Nation, Nixon announced the invasion of Cambodia on April 30th, 1970. Nixon believed that the North Vietnamese were using Cambodia for operations in the South. The decision was a controversial escalation in the already unpopular war. This sparked protests across the nation. One of these protests was at Kent State University. It was set to be a large demonstration, so the governor of Ohio sent in the National Guard as a precaution. On May 4th, 1970, a crowd of protesters was gathered, and it was chaotic with 100 guardsmen to 3,000 protesters.[11]12 The guard was ordered to fire tear gas at the protesters and when that failed, they started shooting. Four people were killed and nine were injured that day, sparking protests on college campuses nationwide, including Nebraska.

The news spread rapidly across the nation and shocked college communities. The outrage was widespread, and the reaction was fast. At Nebraska, there was a rally on the north side of the union, students marched to the draft station and protested and thirteen were arrested for trespassing. That same evening, a group of students marched to the Military and Naval Science building and occupied it for the night, it was described as a “carnival atmosphere.”[12]13 It started small with around 50 students. They approached the building to find little security. One student said that “There was an old man who was campus police standing in the lobby holding the door, trying to hold the door shut, and somebody just jerked it open, and we all went in.”[13]14 The 50 students grew to 1,800 by 10 p.m. and were a mix of serious protesters and curious onlookers. Speeches started and demands were called for. They wanted the ROTC program to be suspended, the release of the draft protest detainees, and University support for a student strike. There was a concern among some that the protest could turn into a tragedy like Kent State. If it wasn’t for campus leadership, it could have turned into one.[14]15

English professor Paul Olson said that UNL president Joseph Soshnick was a huge factor in keeping the peace.[15]16 Soshnick kept a dialogue with the students, faculty, and Governor Norbert Tiemann all night. The Governor wished to send in police to break up the protest, but President Soshnick assured him that he had the situation under control. Thankfully the protest was peaceful and at 10 a.m. the next morning the remaining students left the building with an agreement that discussion would happen at a university-wide town hall meeting. Student attendance at the meeting was around 9,000, half of the student population. Daily Nebraskan photographer Dan Ladely remarked on the reason for the high attendance saying, “They were afraid of the draft, and they were afraid of being shot. And when those students were shot at Kent State, they were afraid that they were going to be shot.” The sit-in and town hall were peaceful other than two unidentified males throwing two firebombs into the union, causing $3,500 in damages.[16]17 Another influential figure during the protests was Steve Tilwald.

Tilwald, the president of ASUN led by example by organizing the students and helped to keep the peace by communicating with the administration and students. He made it known that the proposed strike was not against the University but rather against “Nixon's Indochina Policy.”[17]18 Another important figure was political science professor Stephen L. Rozman. In the fallout of the May protests, the state Legislative Council investigated the incidents and recommended disciplinary measures for the students that participated in the sit-in. They also found that Professor Rozman was with the students that night and strongly disapproved.

Many in the council advocated for swift police action during the protests so it was not surprising that they viewed Rozman’s conduct as inappropriate. He joined the students on the walk to the draft office and stayed with them for the ROTC building occupation. Rozman’s case was a popular subject of discussion on campus. The committee eventually found him not guilty of bad conduct during the week of protests. This was not a shock to many as they thought it was within his right to freedom of speech, however, the Board of Regents, allowed his contract to run out just as they did to Charles Marxer. This decision sparked outrage from the community, and Rozman sued in federal court. Although the court called his dismissal a “harsh punishment.”[18]19 They agreed that the Regents were allowed to dismiss him. This was now the second time the University had allowed outside forces to impact freedom of speech on campus. This was the effect that threats to remove funding had.

That summer, however, the administration began to fight back against these threats. The rhetoric in the legislature was becoming increasingly radical. One senator from Scottsbluff, Terry Carpenter said, “we should bust every student who gets out of line, who violates the law. Any student guilty of misconduct should be kicked out of school… and I’m sick and tired of these long-haired professors… let’s get rid of them too.”[19]20 This type of speech was normal in the months following the May 1970 protests. With two professors already being forced out, Chancellor D.B. Varner fought back. He called the senators that wished to cut the university budget radicals, saying that “if they can cause the legislator to punish the university, to deny funds or the make operations more difficult, this is a victory for them.” Thankfully, UNL did not experience any reduction in funding, and no more students and faculty were targeted. If there were more protests, however, it is likely that the legislature would have reacted harshly.

By 1973 America’s involvement in Vietnam ended with the United States and North Vietnam signing a peace agreement.[20]21. It was clear that protests across the nation, especially ones at Universities like Nebraska-Lincoln, showed Congress and the administration that the war was not worth it in the minds of the people. The impact it had on the University community was immense. From the October 15th Moratorium to the chaotic two weeks in May, UNL experienced a year of demonstrations that inspired thousands to speak out against the war. Although some in the legislature tried to stifle these efforts, they only had marginal success. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln ended the tumultuous decade of the 1960s by establishing ethnic, women’s, and homosexuality studies and held the biggest protests in campus history against the Vietnam War. The University community united to become a voice for change and succeeded in its mission.

Notes

1. HISTORY. “Vietnam War: Causes, Facts & Impact.” Accessed April 27, 2023.
2. Gotfredson, Jillian. “Nebraska U.” Unlhistory, 2008. https://unlhistory.unl.edu/xslt/xslt.php?&_xmlsrc=https://unlhistory.unl.edu/legacy/unl.00021/un l.00021.05.xml&_xslsrc=https://unlhistory.unl.edu/xslt/unlhistory.xsl
3. Rue, Danielle. “Women’s Studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln:” Women’s Studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, October 25, 2014. https://unlwgshistory.wordpress.com/.
4. Rue
5. Rue
6. Rue
7. HISTORY. “Vietnam War: Causes, Facts & Impact.” Accessed April 27, 2023.
8. Selective Service System. “Vietnam Lotteries.” Accessed April 27, 2023. https://www.sss.gov/history-and-records/vietnam-lotteries/.
9. Gotfredson
10. Knoll, Robert E. Prairie University: A History of the University of Nebraska. U of Nebraska Press, 1995.
11.  Lewis, Jerry, and Thomas Hensley. “The May 4 Shootings at Kent State University: The Search for Historical Accuracy.” Kent State University. Accessed March 29, 2023.
12. Knoll
13. Tobias, Mike. “‘We Had to Do Something’: Vietnam Protests at UNL and One Tense Week in 1970.” Nebraska Public Media, September 20, 2017.
14. Tobias
15. University of Nebraska School of Journalism. “Campus in Crisis, Two Weeks in May,” May 30, 1970, Archives & Special Collections, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries RG 52-03-00, Box 12
16. Knoll
17. Lincoln Journal Star, August 14, 1970, RG 52-03-00 Archives & Special Collections, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Box 12
18. Lincoln Journal Star, August 14, 1970, RG 52-03-00 Archives & Special Collections, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Box 12
19. HISTORY. “Vietnam War: Causes, Facts & Impact.” Accessed April 27, 2023.

Bibliography

• Gotfredson, Jillian. “Nebraska U.” Unlhistory, 2008. https://unlhistory.unl.edu/xslt/xslt.php?&_xmlsrc=https://unlhistory.unl.edu/legacy/unl.00021/un l.00021.05.xml&_xslsrc=https://unlhistory.unl.edu/xslt/unlhistory.xsl
• HISTORY. “Vietnam War: Causes, Facts & Impact.” Accessed April 27, 2023.
• Knoll, Robert E. Prairie University: A History of the University of Nebraska. U of Nebraska Press, 1995.
• Lewis, Jerry, and Thomas Hensley. “The May 4 Shootings at Kent State University: The Search for Historical Accuracy.” Kent State University. Accessed March 29, 2023.
• Lincoln Journal Star, August 14, 1970, RG 52-03-00 Archives & Special Collections, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Box 12
• Rue, Danielle. “Women’s Studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln:” Women’s Studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, October 25, 2014. https://unlwgshistory.wordpress.com/. Selective Service System. “Vietnam Lotteries.” Accessed April 27, 2023. https://www.sss.gov/history-and-records/vietnam-lotteries/.
• Tobias, Mike. “‘We Had to Do Something’: Vietnam Protests at UNL and One Tense Week in 1970.” Nebraska Public Media, September 20, 2017.
• University of Nebraska School of Journalism. “Campus in Crisis, Two Weeks in May,” May 30, 1970, Archives & Special Collections, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries RG 52-03-00, Box 12

Photo 1: “Protesting students,” Nebraska U, accessed April 27, 2023, https://unlhistory.unl.edu/items/show/2018. RG 52-03-01, Special Subject Files, Box 13.

Photo 2: University of Nebraska School of Journalism. “Campus in Crisis, Two Weeks in May,” May 30, 1970, Archives & Special Collections, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries RG 52-03-00, Box 12