The Convocation
The Convocation involved some 2,000 students and was very successful.
Definitely the most effective and memorable protest sign from the Convocation this student is angry. Why? What was now considered "Nixon's War" seemed most terrifying to male students who might be drafted and killed in action. Now, with Kent State, the fear was that death could strike them even on campus.
“I think it’s fine to have a town meeting type of thing like this to discuss problems in rational fashion. Anytime students and faculty get together to try and have a rational discussion, I’m in favor of it.”
-Dean of Student Affairs Banks Talley, May 6, 1970
May 6-May 8, 1970
Already set before the Kent State shootings, the Convocation meeting in the brickyard morphed from an anti-war protest to a discussion of the war, the shootings and what the invasion of Cambodia meant for the nation. The same day as the Convocation the Technician announced Cathy Sterling's election victory; Sterling would be instrumental in the creating and forming a Peace Retreat to examine what the war meant for students. The Convocation itself was scheduled to be an event for students to voice their opinions, vent their frustrations and be heard.
The Technician encouraged all students to go to the Convocation and speak. “After the Kent State incident, it would be a shame if large numbers do not turn out,” wrote one editorial, “several ‘right wingers’ have the mistaken idea that they are supposed to stay away…It is all that much more important that they do turn out for the convocation to present their side.” The editorial finished with a plea for everyone to join: “If you care, if your faith in what you believe in, go to the convocation and make yourself heard. If you don’t…” The following article by Craig Wilson bounced off this topic and was entitled, “Kent State Show of Power Can’t Kill the Human Spirit.” By leading in from one to the other the implication was that not coming to the Convocation meant that the government had won. While somewhat shady, this was an effective strategy.
The Convocation itself was a major event. More than two-thousand students attended, making it the largest meeting in NC State’s history. As promised the podium was open to anyone who wished to speak. Unsurprisingly, most of the speakers were anti-war, bemoaning the actions of the National Guard at Kent State or demanding change on campus. One observer reported that the convocation was “probably a greater success than a demonstration on State’s normally conservative campus…It gave both leftists and rightists a chance to speak and also gave the undecided a chance to make up their own mind…They listened to the speakers and were usually orderly, but unpopular speakers were greeted with cries of ‘bullshit.’”
This observer had an excellent point about the power of a discussion compared to an demonstration. An aggressive, angry protest might have made the students appear out of touch or spoiled (though this was less likely after Kent State). More importantly, NC State’s normally quiet campus was alive with energy damning the war and Nixon’s violation of the Constitution to invade Cambodia. Like the peaceful protests of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr., a determined non-violent group demands significantly more attention and accomplishes more than loud, violent actions.
A small group of students did post eviction notices on the ROTC building but, when locked out, did not try and break into the building. This was a significant departure from more liberal universities where students attacked or burned down ROTC barracks. The keynote speakers were Cathy Sterling and Chancellor Caldwell who expressed similar regards over the Kent State shootings and invasion of Cambodia.
One of the issues which angered so many was Nixon’s reaction to the shootings. He did not condemn the actions by the National Guard and gave lip service to the Kent State student’s “right to dissent.” A Technician article stated “the continuation of support for barbaric police action implied by Nixon’s silence will encourage both the prejudicial and libertarian strains in our society and we will have more bloodshed, more dissent and more polarization.”
The juxtaposition of Cambodia with Kent State creates interesting conclusions. The invasion of Cambodia killed more Americans in the three days before the Kent State shootings died on that Ohio campus. Yet the death of four students had significantly greater impact than the 50,000 already dead Americans in Vietnam. Why? As Arthur Miller wrote, “The war finally came home that day in May when American troops killed our children on their school grounds.” The it-could-happen-here mentality convinced thousands of American students that the invasion of Cambodia and war in Vietnam were coming home to roost and that the violence would only increase unless actions were taken now.
At NC State, those feelings and decisions would be translated into political action.
See the word picture for May 6th of the Technician (preparation for the Convocation)
See the word pciture for May 8th of the Technician (after the Convocation)