The 1960s is remembered as an exciting time of rebellion characterized by war, protest, and the acquisition of independence. In the early 1960s, America’s youth began to break free from the traditional gender roles and lifestyles of the previous decade. There was a backlash against authority in several ways. Pop music was infused with political messages about war, rights, and presidential policies. Men let their hair grow long, women broke out dancing to rock music, and drug use became more prevalent. Universities worldwide exemplified political unrest with increased student involvement and activism.
Student involvement is seen through several events that took place at UCLA throughout 1966 and 1967. The introduction of the draft and the development of live footage of the Vietnam War on television had a direct effect on youth and their families. For example, many students were provoked to take an active stance against Vietnam through anti-war protests, teach-ins, and silent Vietnam vigils during these years. Furthermore, as the Vietnam draft Selective Service spoke of potentially raising requirements for war deferments, UCLA men attended meetings regarding ways to avoid the draft and discuss the label “conscientious observer.”
America’s political concern and student desire for more knowledge led to the explosion of speaker popularity on campus. Chancellor Murphy and Art Levine brought political and revolutionary speakers ranging from Floyd McKissick, the leader of CORE, and Mark Lane to Justice Stanley Mosk and future President Gerald Ford. McKissick and Lane in particular would question the establishment, one pushing for Black Power and the other criticizing the Supreme Court. Lane’s testimony was so heated that arguments broke out and lawsuits for slander were filed.
While speakers criticized American society, others worked tirelessly to enhance it. Research was a major aspect of UCLA’s atmosphere in 1966 and 1967. Many professors were in the midst of cutting edge scientific research during this time. UCLA was quickly gaining a reputation as a major research university, the Brain Research Institute was on its way to becoming internationally recognized, and the sheer numbers of articles and papers that professors were publishing were increasing at an alarming rate. Just as the youth culture wanted to revolutionize American society, as did many of the professors at UCLA.
While this research was relatively unknown at the time, UCLA’s athletics provided a more immediate source of comfort. Students were able to forget about the nation’s problems when cheering on their favorite sports teams, and the fact that most of these teams were succeeding only made things better. John Wooden’s basketball team continued its winning trend and showed the world that they refused to let the country’s situation get them down. At the same time, quarterback Gary Beban won UCLA its first Heisman Trophy and the national accolades that accompanied it. Finally UCLA’s students had a source of pride that could distract them from the negativity plaguing the country at the time.
1966 |
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7 February |
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| 1 March Miranda v. Arizona - the court case that established the Miranda Rights or rights to silence of a person held in the custody for but not convicted of a crime. |
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25 March A 12 hour Vietnam teach-in was held by students and faculty members at UCLA who disagreed with the Johnson Administration’s Vietnam policy. In response to the teach-in, Los Angeles Mayor Samuel W. Yorty led a teach-out at UCLA to defend Johnson’s policy to stop communism in Southeast Asia . |
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| 16 May Gerald Ford, the House Minority Leader, speaks in Ackerman Grand Ballroom concerning the role of the minority party and his policies on Medicare and Vietnam. |
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1 June NASA's Surveyor 1 lands on the moon, putting the US one step closer to landing a man on the moon. |
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| 6 June Professor Donald Lindsey of UCLA speaks at the 3rd Symposium concerning his neurophysiological correlates of visual perception in man and monkey |
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| 1 July Medicare introduced in the United States by President Johnson. |
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12 October Floyd B. McKissick, the National Director of CORE, speaks at UCLA about the changing Civil Rights Movement, especially Black Power and its affects on the black community. |
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5 December |
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11 December UCLA quarterback Gary Beban wins UCLA's first Heisman Trophy despite the team failing to qualify for the National Championship Game at the Rose Bowl . |
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1967 |
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| January UCLA Professor Wolf Leslau's Amharic textbook is published by Wiesbaden: O. Harrassowitz |
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26 March |
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| 10 April During the week of April 10 UCLA had a series of anti-war events from speakers to films in order to support the Spring Mobilization to End the War in Vietnam. |
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5 June The Six-Day War between Israel and Jordan, Syria and Egypt takes place, resulting in Israeli occupation of the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, Golan Heights and the Sinai Peninsula. UN delegates and peacekeepers eventually restore order to the region. |
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| 6 July The 25th Amendment, which outlines the succession of power in the Presidential bureacracy, is passed by Congress. |
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2 October Thurgood Marshall is named by President Johnson to the Supreme Court and is the first African-American Justice to serve on the Court. |
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| 7 October Mark Lane speaks at UCLA concerning his dissatisfaction with the Warren Commission Report and its naming Lee Harvey Oswald the only shooter of President Kennedy. |
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9 November John Lennon is featured on the cover of the first publication of Rolling Stone. |
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| Late November A series of riots break out on the Sunset Strip as youths rebel against curfews and other regulations placed upon them by local police. |
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