Wells Library looks back at the year 1968

IU’s Herman B Wells Library is celebrating the 40th anniversary of the year 1968. The library put up displays and launched a Web site that shows what happened in that year at IU and around the world.\nEric Bartheld, director of communications for IU Bloomington Libraries, said the posters and the Web site are designed to promote library resources. He said 1968 was chosen because it was “truly just a turning point in United States history.”\n“So many world events had happened in 1968,” said event coordinator Robert Goehlert, librarian of economics, criminal justice and political science.\nGoehlert said the events of 1968 weren’t limited to the United States. He said there were student protests in places such as Paris, Warsaw, New York City and San Francisco. Demonstrations and political events happened all around the world. In 1968, Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated and the war in Vietnam continued. \nPosters and displays for the event are in the lobby of the library and on the ground floor, second floor and fourth through 11th floors of the library’s east tower. The themes of the posters relate to the collections held on each floor. \nFor instance, on the 11th floor, there is a display on drug culture. The fourth floor displays information about IU in 1968. \nThe event also has a Web site. Goehlert said his goal was to make the whole event participatory for students. \nThe site has photos, videos and a quiz about 1968. The site also tells about events in 1968 and points users to more information.\nMany events concerning civil rights, women’s rights, the war in Vietnam and sports happened at IU in 1968. \nBlack students held a sit-in at the Little 500 becuse they accused IU’s fraternities and sororities of racial discrimination, said Philip Bantin, director of University Archives at IU. The students sat in the field of the track and the event was postponed. \n“In part because of the weather, in part because of the sit-in,” Bantin said of the postponement. \nThe sit-in lasted until the student’s demands were met by the greek houses 38 hours later. \nThere were also several small Vietnam demonstrations, Bantin said. He said that one was because Dow Chemical came to campus. The company produced napalm, which was used in Vietnam. \nBantin said students protested the visitation regulations for dorms. Students, especially women, wanted to be able to have male visitors in their rooms more often.\n“That was a source of friction between students and administrators,” Bantin said. \nOn Jan. 1, 1968, IU went to the Rose Bowl and lost to USC. The swim team won the NCAA championship and kept winning until 1973. \n“A lot of students don’t realize how dominant the swim team was during that period,” Bantin said.