A historical survey of the Antioch College Strike of 1973. Written and produced by Kirsten Ervin as her Senior Project in Communications, 1991.
The Spirit of ’73 - Introduction
My impetus for the project: When I was going to Antioch in the early 1990’s, there was a lot of controversy about the College hiring an outside company to manage the physical plant, including the cafeteria and custodial staff. Both staff and students vehemently protested this decision. While legitimate concerns about union busting and external control were voiced, many students began urging protesters to “reclaim the spirit of ‘73”. I had vague notions of what happened during the 1973 student strike, but I had many more questions. Not only did I want to know exactly what happened in 1973, but why. What were both the short and long-term impacts? Furthermore, I wanted my research to encourage critical thinking among protesters in the early ‘90s. Did students know what they were reclaiming? Were the students in ’73 right? Were they wrong? Did the situation in 1973 bear any resemblance to what was happening in the early 1990’s?
So, my senior project was an ambitious one. In the interest of time and lack of resources, I used video only to document the chronology of the events. I chose print interviews with faculty, alumni and administrators to investigate the short and long-term impact of the strike. The fabulous Bob Devine dug up video footage he took of the actual strike. I found the song in the archives of WYSO. Print interviews can be found at:
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