May 15, 1969: “Bloody Thursday”
Homecoming Day for the National Guard at Berkeley
The nation’s original student battleground, the University of California at Berkeley, once again last week looked more like an occupied city than a seat of learning (above).
The trouble began with students protesting the ousting of about 75 hippies from a “People’s Park” they had created by planting trees and flowers in a vacant lot owned by the university.
It ended with the occupation of the campus by National Guardsmen, police and deputies who had used shotguns and tear gas sprayed from a helicopter. Many students were injured and one man — a bystander — was wounded fatally.
Shown: Sather Gate at UC Berkeley