Letters to the Editor

A Piece of Iconic History

I was not in the photo on the cover [of the Summer 2023 CCT], but this was the most interesting issue you have produced in a while. I was friends with two of those pictured, and I spent much time on the Steps and on the lion perches on either side. In a way, nights there were more interesting. There was a fraternity whose members used to practice their dance moves in front of the Steps, giving all an impromptu free show. And I had many conversations there with people I am still friends with to this day.

I became a political science professor with a specialization in political theory because of the Core Curriculum. Contemporary Civilization in particular influenced my entire life.

It was wonderful to receive such a piece of human interest, nostalgia and iconic history. This was an excellent call, and I thank you for it.

Diana M. Judd ’91
Bayonne, N.J.

A Path to Social Justice

I must admit I am not a consistent reader of CCT, but the cover of the Summer 2023 issue caught my eye. I realize, after reading some back issues, this letter probably would have been a better fit after the May/June 2008 issue. I am just a bit late in my response!

The cover was connected to a New York Times Magazine article, “Columbia Recovered,” which I located in the Times archives. It referenced the reunion of alumni who had been present for the events of April 1968. The author, Morris Dickstein ’61, described how “one of the largest student uprisings in the history of American universities” not only led to protests at other universities but also to the creation of African-American studies, women’s studies and radical history curricula at Columbia College and many of those other universities.

Dickstein interviewed Tom Hurwitz, who commented on how many of those present at the reunion had not been depoliticized and were still involved in socially committed work. He also interviewed alumni and faculty who noted how the occupation of buildings and the police riot (my description, not his) changed the trajectory of their lives. That was true for me. Watching how much the Tactical Patrol Force relished beating students on the South Lawn, many of whom were not part of any protest, shook my view of the world to its core.

I came to Columbia from a conservative family in Denver intending to major in chemical engineering. At the time, I could not understand how occupying buildings, essentially breaking the law, could lead to positive change. I was not a participant in the protests. Fortunately, the intense campus discussions that were stimulated by the protests helped me to understand that laws and institutions can only be changed if they are challenged and called into question, and that there are many ways to do that.

After the events of April 1968, I changed my major to economics, which seemed more socially relevant. Like many of the alumni at the 1988 reunion (which I did not attend), I have dedicated my life to social justice work. I taught university-level economics from a left perspective for 36 years. In retirement, I continue my work with the faculty union.

Like many of the writers in the 2008 issue, I have mixed feelings about my time at Columbia, so I find it a bit difficult to relate to the idyllic cover photo in CCT. But it is true I have my Columbia experience, including that of April 1968, to thank for putting me on the path to a fulfilling and rewarding life working for social justice.

Doug Orr ’71
Berkeley, Calif.

The Lessons of ’68

The New York Times Magazine article “Columbia Recovered,” shown on the Summer 2023 cover of CCT, implied that the “shattering event” of 1968 was not what students needed; Columbia needed a “recovery.” Our actions in April 1968 stopped what many now see as mistakes, or worse: building a “gym crow” gym in Morningside Park with a separate entrance for Harlem residents, and the war in Vietnam and the University’s involvement in it.

On a personal level, being beaten, arrested and jailed by the NYPD at the behest of the University taught me more about “legitimate authority” than all my readings of political theory. Seeing the NYPD walk past me and other white students to beat bloody the few Black kids from Harlem sitting in with us was racism in action. Being in jail for a week, about the only white kid among hundreds of Black and Brown inmates, many of whom were in for “walking while Black,” was a lesson in racism I would not have had without the “shattering event” of 1968.

I and my fellow students liked to hang out in the sun, too. We did plenty of that. We also believed we had an obligation to right some wrongs. So rather than a “recovery,” let us take a deeper look at the lessons of 1968.

Michael Jacoby Brown ’69
Arlington, Mass.

I’m There, Too!

You guys missed me on the cover of The New York Times Magazine [Summer 2023]. I am in a white T-shirt, under the “N” in “New,” sipping a Bartles & Jaymes wine cooler from a paper bag.

My coed fraternity siblings, Martin Prince ’87 and Cheryl Hone ’89, are flanking me, sitting on the steps. Marty is in a white T-shirt and his face is blocked by another person wearing sunglasses and a light blue T-shirt.

Weeks later, we were out downtown late in the evening of May 14 and somebody bought a Times as we boarded the subway at 42nd Street. “Hey, Van! Hey, Cheryl! You guys are on the cover!” our Iota Epsilon Pi brother shouted out.

Oh yes, there I was, caught skipping music class on the first nice day of spring 1988 ....

EveAnna “Van” Manley ’90
Altadena, Calif.

An Inspiring Intellectual

I was impressed by your ability to track down some of the students in The New York Times Magazine cover photo, featured in the Summer 2023 issue.

You noted but said nothing else about the author of the Times article that accompanied that photo. Morris Dickstein ’61, a literary critic and cultural historian, was, according to a Times obituary, “among the last of the first generation of Jewish public intellectuals reared on the Lower East Side.” He passed away two and a half years ago at 81.

On a personal note, he taught my section of Literature Humanities in spring 1967, just months before the 1968 upheaval that led to his Times article 20 years later. His teaching inspired a classroom brimmed with insight and wit.

Ralph Bien ’69
Greenbrae, Calif.

The Attraction of Activism

I enjoyed the article “Blast From the Past” [Summer 2023], featuring The New York Times Magazine’s spring 1988 photo of Columbia students on the Low Steps around Alma Mater. The photo reminded me of the day I visited Columbia in May 1969 to decide whether to accept the College’s offer to attend.

Having grown up in the suburbs, the same vision of students enjoying the city sun told me this was where I had to be. But like Sandy Steinberg Harris BC’90, I was attracted to Columbia because of the activism shown by students the prior year, recounted so well in James Kunin’s The Strawberry Statement. Like Sandy, many of us felt we could challenge those whom we felt were leading our country down the wrong road.

Yes, it is daunting that we are still facing many of those same issues (now compounded by sexual identity politics). Having just celebrated a sobering 50th reunion, though, I remain hopeful.

Marc Gross ’73
New York City

Something Missing

I understand CCT’s enthusiasm for an article about The New York Times Magazine cover depicting happy students in 1988. Something “light” is good in a magazine now and then. And yes, I’m glad Columbia recovered from the 1968 conflict. However, there was not one word about the content of Morris Dickstein ’61’s article in that magazine, and I wonder what he wrote. I knew Morris, and he was a wise man.

Also, your article truly trivialized the 1968 events by not describing them at all. I was one of 800 people arrested. I was among several alumni who had participated in the building occupation, and unlike students, we alumni had to pay a fine for trespassing. Oh well, I accept that. I’m glad I wasn’t another alumnus I know whom was badly beaten by police.

Allen Young ’62, JRN’64
Orange, Mass.

Editor’s note: To read more about the events of 1968, please see CCT’s Spring 2018 issue or May/June 2008 issue. The 1988 New York Times Magazine cover story that accompanied the iconic Steps photo can be found online at bit.ly/47vtpsQ.