SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Tents and signs filled the lawn on the library walk as UC San Diego students showed their solidarity with Gaza on Thursday.
These demonstrations are not too unconventional from years past. Lynda Claassen, UCSD's Director of Special Collections and Archives, said protests are a part of student activism.
The school has had protests ever since it opened in the '60s.
The first-ever demonstration on campus was in 1965, when 25 freshmen protested against US military intervention in the Dominican Republic.
“You can see how people are dressed in suits and ties and this, that's how old this is, right?” Claassen said.
UCSD staff say they've seen their fair share of protests over the years, but the one that happened at the Revelle fountain was one of the most infamous.
“A student, George Winne, immolated himself at the other side of campus near the Revelle fountain,” Claassen said.
A student set himself on fire in Revelle Plaza to protest the Vietnam War; he carried a sign saying, "In the name of God, end the war.”
Now, that quote stays on his campus memorial.
Students have protested Reagan's education cuts in the 80s, Asian hate crimes in the 90s, and the war in Afghanistan in 2001.
And almost two years ago today, students protested the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
Claassen says despite the campus and student body getting bigger, the drive for students to speak their minds stays the same.
“There are always things to protest on campus, or students always find things to protest,” said Claassen.
