1966-1970
In 1966, the United States began to implement draft changes to increase troop turn-out in Vietnam. These draft changes primarily targeted students by opening up the possibility of students in the bottom half of their classes having their deferments revoked. From 1966 onward there existed a number of student protests--many of which were lead by Students for a Democratic Society--across the country. Although the Ursinus community was (and still is) a small crowd, we can observe from a number of primary sources that the size of the Ursinus community did not affect its ability to engage in local and national outreach. Indeed, the Urisnus community not only hosted a number of anti-war speakers but also engaged in national protests.
Such protests became more vocal and more frequent with the failed Tet Offensive, which turned a much larger number of Americans against the war and only fueled student protests around the world. From the Tet Offensive onward, we can observe instances of Ursinus students criticizing the government's propaganda statements regarding the war and criticizing its own administrators for failing to accurately portray the chaotic political climate of the time.
1966
In this source, dated January 17, 1966, Ursinus student Thomas W. Beaver recounted an event at the college when speaker Dr. Davidson, head of the physics department at Haverford College, spoke on why the United States should remove its troops from Vietnam. One major point in Dr. Davidson's speech, as Beaver recounted, was the pressures the war placed on students: "Pressures are upon them [the students] to attain a certain average so the result is that these students try to get into courses which are esay for them to pass." As a result of students taking "easy" courses to avoid the draft, many were graduating with a subpar education.
1967
Dated May 18, 1967, this source contains an article by Byron Jackson on the implications of the Vietnam War for students. Regarding such implications, Jackson stated, "If you abide by the rules of society, you either become a doctor, laywer, or minister, or go to Vietnam and either get killed or catch malaria and dysentery." In other words, students were faced with an ultimatum: join the workforce with a potentially unappealing job or die in Vietnam. According to Jackson, students were finding a way out of this ultimatum: suicide.
This article, through its discussion of the ends to which students were willing to go to avoid Vietnam, shows how truly devastating the war was for the Ursinus community.
1969
In this source, dated May 1, 1969, Tran Van Dinh of the College Press Service described the many propaganda statements the government disseminated regarding the Vietnam war--most importantly, that victory in Vietnam was imminient. The student called many of these statements "put-ons" in an attempt to communicate to students the futile nature of the war in Vietnam.
Listed are important quotes from the article regarding propaganda statements:
1962 (9,000 U.S. troops in Vietnam): "U.S. aid to South Vietnam has reached a peak and will start to level off." The New York Times.
1963 (11,000 U.S. troops in Vietnam): "The South Vietnamese should achieve victory in three years." The New York Times.
1964 (16,000 U.S. troops in Vietnam): "I am hopeful we can bring back additional numbers of men." The New Republic.
1965 (184,000 U.S. troops in Vietnam): President Johnson suggested that the Vietnam Cong were now 'swinging wildly."
1966 (340,000 U.S. troops in Vietnam): "I have no reason to expect any significant increase in the level of the tempo of operations in South Vietnam."
1967 (448,000 U.S. troops in Vietnam): "During the past year tredemous progress has been made."
From these propaganda statements we can better understand the nature of the Ursinus community's protests. Despite continual statements that progress was being made in Vietnam, the U.S. was rapidly increasing troops. Positioned against the backdrop of events such as the failed Tet Offensive, it is clear that progress, in fact, was not being made at the time.
Ibid., Lynn Wollentin discussed an an Ursinus propaganda film, titled Ursinus Today, that ignored much of the havoc surrounding the Ursinus community (as well as the overall American society) through its portrayal of Ursinus as joyful and "untouched and unworried about the new tides of revolution swirling about them." Situated next to an article regarding the Vietnam war, this source communicates the college's efforts to silence much of the chaos occurring on and around the campus during the war.
Conclusion
From 1966-1970, a decrease in confidence regarding America's situation in Vietnam, coupled with draft changes affecting students, spurred a wide range of student protests across the United States. At Ursinus, students hosted anti-Vietnam speakers, engaged in nationwide protests, and criticized many government propaganda statements. From this, we can learn that while Ursinus was indeed a small community, it was an impactful one that made its presence known throughout the country.
Secondary sources
"Two Days in October: Protests and Backlash." PBS, October 6, 2005. https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/two-days-in-october-student-antiwar-protests-and-backlash/
Kindig, Jessie. "Vietnam War." University of Washington, November 1, 2008. https://depts.washington.edu/antiwar/pnwhistory_vietnam.shtml
"Overview of the Vietnam War." Digital History. http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/era.cfm?eraid=18&smtid=1.