International House Berkeley

International House Times 5 We Shall Overcome Mely G. Tan (IH 1964- 65), writes from Jakarta, Indonesia, "For a sociologist in-the-making, to be a participant observer in the 'sit-ins', was exhilarating! I joined the big circle of protesters sitting on the plaza floor in front of Sproul Hall, holding hands and singing 'We shall overcome'. .. Until there was this announcement warning foreign students that if picked up by the campus police they will be deported. What a shock! I just got up and since then watched events from the sidelines!" Mely received a Ph.D. in Sociology in 1968 and ..... she proudly states that she is the same age as I-House: 84! n Lasting effects of the Free Speech Movement e Free Speech Movement served as the impetus for many protests to follow. e success and notoriety of FSM rolled directly into the anti-Vietnam War movement. Alumnus, Graeme Orr (IH 1969-70) recalled, "at a gathering at the Greek eater in 1970, it seemed that everyone kept asking a Vietnamese female student, 'Which side are you on?' and she replied 'On the side of the people caught in the fighting, who are dying every day!'" Graeme returned to I-House in May 2013 from his home in Scotland to present Radical Days: Living at I-House in '69. At left is artwork Graeme presented that was inspired by the ideology originating from the Free Speech Movement. n Mario Savio speaking from the top of a police car. Credit: Steve Marcus, Courtesy of UC Berkeley, The Bancroft Library Letters From...Do you have a unique I-House story or do you know an I-House alum who is doing something notable or amazing? Email Alumni Relations at ihalumni@berkeley.edu. Mely G. Tan standing 2nd from left with fellow members of the Fall 2014 I-House Council Vietnamese student group at the Greek Theatre in 1970, speaking about the war which was still raging Free Speech Movement 50th Anniversary As the campus celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Free Speech Movement this fall, the Office of Public Affairs has created a website at fsm.berkeley.edu that provides a historical timeline, a list of upcoming events and more. It happened 50 years ago, but the Free Speech Movement left a strong legacy at UC Berkeley and in the lives and work of many students, faculty, staff and alumni. Letter From...Alumna Jane Knaus (née Cohen IH 1964-66) I moved to International House in 1965 because I wanted to meet men from different countries...instead, I met a man from Webster Groves, Missouri! Rodger G. Knaus, Jr. (IH 1964-66) and I were married six months after meeting in the Great Hall. Berkeley has always been a touchstone place for me...this is where I got an amazing 'port hole' into a much larger world, where I could hear Joan Baez sing at the Greek eatre for 50 cents; go to a poetry reading by Yevtushenko; meet Edward Teller talk about nuclear fusion...it was mind-expanding beyond my wildest dreams...I was a fine arts major, but got to meet world-famous people from all walks of life who shared their knowledge and insights with students like me...my education was definitely not just in the classroom! I could hear Mario Savio and Jerry Rubin in Sproul Plaza... the bull horns and loudspeakers summoning hundreds and sometimes thousands of people to hear about student grievances...I wasn't one of the students arrested, but I knew some who were; it was frightening to see all the Oakland police enter the campus with full force, and billy clubs, and hear about fellow students who were arrested. ere was a sense that it was the troublesome students—the students who were not doing well academically—who were the ones being arrested. Instead, it was the cream of the crop students—the ones with the highest GPAs who were offering themselves up for the greater cause of Free Speech. Mario Savio ended up on the cover of Time Magazine...it was daunting to see how one man had made such a difference... he was a leader with an incredible and commanding voice, and we were transfixed by his oratory. He died young, but I will not forget how he made us lowly students feel empowered. n

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