Dec. 3, 1964: 58 years ago, Dec 2 1964, after a demo in UC Berkeley's Sproul Plaza at [...]

58 years ago, Dec 2 1964, after a demo in UC Berkeley’s Sproul Plaza at which Mario Savio gave his famous “bodies upon the gears” speech, thousands of students occupied Sproul Hall (which they declared the “Free University of California”) to protest the expulsion of four students

The 4 students facing disciplinary action were being punished for participation in the demonstrations that kicked off the Free Speech Movement in early October. After petitions failed, students decided “to stop the factory from running,” declaring a strike
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At the “Free University of California,” students taught “freedom classes,” held concerts (Joan Baez was there), and screened Charlie Chaplin films (they had hoped to screen Jean Genet’s “Un chant d’amour”). Some grad students recognized the strike, refusing to teach their classes

On Dec 4, the occupation ended when police, called out by Governor Brown, began to arrest student occupiers. After a 13 hour standoff, 801 students were arrested. Crowds massed at Santa Rita Jail to support the arrestees, and bail was quickly raised by sympathetic faculty members

The following day, about 70% of students participated in a student strike, and a number of professors cancelled classes in solidarity. In January, the UC removed its most onerous restrictions on political speech, opening the floodgates of student political activity