|
Showing 1 - 1 of
1 matches in All Departments
“Resplendent.... A masterwork of history.”—Ron Jacobs,
CounterpunchIn eyewitness testimonies and hundreds of remarkable
photographs, The Battle for People's Park, Berkeley
1969 commemorates the fiftieth anniversary of one of the most
searing conflicts that closed out the tumultuous 1960s: the Battle
for People's Park. In April 1969, a few Berkeley activists planted
the first tree on a University of California-owned, abandoned city
block on Telegraph Avenue. Hundreds of people from all over the
city helped build the park as an expression of a politics of joy.
The University was appalled, and warned that unauthorized use of
the land would not be tolerated; and on May 15, which would soon be
known as Bloody Thursday, a violent struggle erupted, involving
thousands of people. Hundreds were arrested, martial law was
declared, and the National Guard was ordered by then-Governor
Ronald Reagan to crush the uprising and to occupy the entire city.
The police fired shotguns against unarmed students. A military
helicopter gassed the campus indiscriminately, causing
schoolchildren miles away to vomit. One man died from his wounds.
Another was blinded. The vicious overreaction by Reagan helped
catapult him into national prominence. Fifty years on, the question
still lingers: Who owns the Park?
|
|
Email address subscribed successfully.
A activation email has been sent to you.
Please click the link in that email to activate your subscription.