Directory

Former photographer for the Charlottesville Daily Progress. Atkins and Jim Carpenter were in the same class at Lane High School in Charlottesville and photographed a few student demonstrations together in 1970. Notably, they photographed the police arrests on the evening of May 8th and President Edgar Shannon’s address on the Lawn on May 10th.  

Professor at UVA Law, 1964-1992. Bergin was a popular professor at UVA Law. Students remember him attending the law school Vigil for Peace. 

Professor at the University of Virginia School of Law, 1969-present. Bonnie was an active member of the Law faculty during May Days and attended the law school Vigil for Peace on the evening of May 5th. He went to the Charlottesville Police Station in the early hours of May 9th to provide legal counsel for those 68 arrested. 

United States Senator from Virginia, 1965-1983. Student leaders from the University of Virginia requested Byrd’s audience on May 11, 1970, to read a letter penned by UVA President Edgar Shannon denouncing the invasion of Cambodia and the executive overreach of the Nixon administration. According to legal marshal Charles Vasaly, who was a member of the delegation that went to Washington DC to read the letter, Byrd did not attend but instead sent a representative. Byrd was angry with UVA student demonstrators, whom he believed represented a minority of Virginia’s political beliefs on the Vietnam War. Vasaly, as a Vietnam War veteran himself, informed Byrd’s attendant that the student strikers were not a minority.  

Dean of Students at the University of Virginia, 1970-1999. Canevari was an active member of the University’s administration and was present during the police arrests on the evening of May 8th.

Former photographer for the Charlottesville Daily Progress. Carpenter was present during the arrests on the night of May 8th and during President Edgar Shannon’s speech on the Lawn on May 10th. His photographs of the two events were featured in multiple newspapers and publications and have since become iconic. Interviewed 05/07/2020.

Finch was an undergraduate at the University of Virginia and built connections with student organizations during that time that later became instrumental during May Days. He served as a legal marshal and as the Law representative for the Student Council. He and McDermott were posted in the Downtowner Motor Inn for most of the May Days events. Interviewed 03/19/2020.

Ghee was an active voice during the student strike in May 1970. He spoke out against the war during the 1pm rally on May 5th.

In 1970, Golden was the president-elect of the law school student body. He formed the Law School Boycott for Peace Committee and published multiple fliers informing the Law community of protest events, including the law school Vigil for Peace on the evening of May 5th. Golden rescinded his support of the strike movement following the speeches of William Kunstler and Jerry Rubin. He believed that the strike was controlled by political extremists and that moderates, like himself, were ignored or belittled.

Hogshire was a legal marshal and the impetus for the May Days Oral History Project. He served as a “dispatcher” during May Days and communicated equally with his fellow marshals and University administration. Interviewed 02/28/2019.

Assistant Dean and professor for the University of Virginia School of Law, 1969-1986. Kneedler provided a unique perspective to May Days, serving as both a young professor, administrator, and recent graduate of UVA Law. He was instrumental in developing the flex exam system as a result of circumstances. During the summer of 1970, Kneedler investigated student leaders and activists from the College and law school on behalf of Dean Monrad Paulsen to determine if any disciplinary action needed to be taken by President Edgar Shannon. When Kneedler completed the investigation, President Shannon deemed it unnecessary to write a report. The “Kneedler Investigation” is available at the Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library at UVA and is a critical resource for the May Days Oral History Project. Interviewed 03/20/2020. 

Active member of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). Civil rights attorney known for defending the “Chicago Seven”: seven individuals, including Jerry Rubin, charged by the federal government for inciting to riot during the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Kunstler was invited in late April 1970 to speak at the University of Virginia by the Virginia Progressive Party and Charlottesville’s chapter of the ACLU. A few days later, Jerry Rubin was invited by the Festival of Life Peace Foundation to speak at UVA on the same day as Kunstler, though not at the same event. After President Nixon advanced the Vietnam War into Cambodia and National Guardsmen killed four students at Kent State University, Kunstler and Rubin combined their two events and held a “Peace Rally” at University Hall on May 6th. Kunstler encouraged the crowd to not only shut down the University, but every institution in the country. Following the event, students charged to Carr’s Hill and the President’s Mansion, and Rubin followed them allegedly encouraging the students to “liberate” the mansion.   

In 1970, Lacouture was a photographer for the Virginia Law Weekly, the Law School student newspaper. Many of Lacouture’s photos are featured in the online exhibit.

Levy was a legal marshal and involved with the Charlottesville/Albemarle Legal Aid Society. During May Days, Levy manned a legal helpline and provided legal counsel, particularly on the night of May 8, 1970. Interviewed 03/04/2020.

Graduate student at the University of Virginia, Class of 1973. Levy was an active voice during May Days. He introduced William Kunstler on the evening of May 6th. 

Lott was heavily involved as a legal marshal and is best remembered for his sense of humor and for relieving tension during the evening “Honk-for-Peace" events. Lott’s “assignment” was to patrol the Grounds on his motorcycle and relay information back to the other legal marshals in Clark Hall.

MacFarlane was a legal marshal and the first to be arrested on the night of May 8, 1970. Interviewed 02/21/2020.

McBride served as a legal marshal in May 1970.

McDermott was a legal marshal and was posted with Finch in the Downtowner Motor Inn for most of the May Days events. Interviewed 03/19/2020.

B.A. from the University of Virginia, 1951. UVA Law, Class of 1957. Legal advisor, University of Virginia, 1968-1972. Lecturer at UVA Law, 1970-1990. Middleditch secured the injunction which ousted protestors from Maury Hall on the evening of May 4th. Through consultations with President Edgar Shannon, the administration determined that an injunction was the best way to prevent violence during the sit-in without involving the city or state police. Middleditch also ensured that the route from Clark Hall to University Hall would become a parade route to deter protestor/police clashes on May 6th.  

President of the United States, 1969-1974. President Nixon expanded the breadth and extended the duration of the Vietnam War by sending U.S. troops into Cambodia. He announced this action on April 30, 1970. Student protests erupted across the country. The University of Virginia was not immune to that unrest. Following the Watergate Scandal in 1972 and the certainty that he would be impeached, Nixon resigned from office on August 9, 1974. 

Student Council President, 1968-1969. College of Arts & Sciences, Class of 1971, PhD. Ogle was an active voice during the student strike of May 1970 and often spoke at rallies, including the rally in front of the Rotunda on May 6th. 

Olson was a legal marshal and wrote for the Virginia Law Review. He was arrested on the night of May 8, 1970. Interviewed 02/05/2020. 

Security agent for the University of Virginia in 1970. Oravec read the injunction to the crowd of protestors in Maury Hall on the evening of May 4th. 

Photojournalist, musician, writer, and filmmaker. Parks wrote the poem “The Dove” which is featured on the “Freedom Day” flier for the events of May 6, 1970, at the University of Virginia.

Dean of UVA Law, 1968-1975. Paulsen was a constant presence during the student strike of May 1970. Students remember him relinquishing his office in the Dean’s Suite in Clark Hall to the legal marshals. When 68 students were arrested on May 9, Paulsen updated the student body the following day during a rally on the Lawn. Speaking through a bullhorn, Paulsen provided resources for legal counsel to the crowd.

Independent Charlottesville photographer for over 50 years. Payne photographed the police presence at the University during the evenings of May 7th and May 8th.

Poole contributed photographs to the book May Days: Crisis in Confrontation. A Pictorial Account of the Student Strike at the University of Virginia, May, 1970, which was a crucial source for the May Days Oral History Project.

Poppiti served as a legal marshal during May Days.

First African American Student Council President, 1969-1970. College of Arts & Sciences, Class of 1977, PhD. Roebuck was a vocal student leader during May Days. He met frequently with President Edgar Shannon and other members of the University administration to promote the Student Council’s nine strike demands. Notably, Roebuck read the demands to President Shannon on the steps of Alderman Library on the evening of May 5th. He ran ahead of the crowd to President Shannon’s home on May 6th to warn him of the crowd’s arrival. He also went to Washington D.C. with his roommate, legal marshal Charles Vasaly, and other student leaders to deliver President Shannon’s letter to Virginia Senators Byrd and Spong on May 11, 1970.  

Activist and founding member of the Youth International Party (YIP, whose members were often referred to as “Yippies”). One of the Chicago Eight (later Chicago Seven). Rubin was charged by the federal government for inciting to riot during the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Rubin was invited by the Festival of Life Peace Foundation in late April 1970, to speak to various small groups of students at the University of Virginia on May 6th. After President Richard Nixon advanced the Vietnam War into Cambodia and National Guardsmen killed four students at Kent State University, Rubin and William Kunstler combined their two events and held a “Peace Rally” at University Hall. Rubin spoke after Kunstler and covered a range of topics—education, the space program, the FBI, and Christianity—in his speech which lasted over an hour. His microphone was allegedly cut off as his speech ended to prevent him from inciting the crowd further. Nonetheless, the crowd marched from University Hall to Carr’s Hill to “liberate” the President’s mansion following Rubin’s speech. 

President of the University of Virginia, 1959-1974. Shannon served as UVA’s President during May Days. Throughout the period of student unrest, he met with student leaders, faculty, administrators, police officers, local and state legal officials to determine how to best serve his numerous constituencies. He was most concerned with ensuring that the University did not close, unlike other universities along the East Coast. Notably, Shannon addressed the University on May 10, 1970, commending the work of the legal marshals and reciting a letter he wrote, addressed to Virginia Senators Byrd and Spong. In this letter, he denounced the recent actions of the Nixon administration and the Vietnam War.

Wife of President Edgar Shannon. Eleanor Shannon stood by President Shannon’s side during many of his public appearances in May 1970. She and Edgar Shannon had five children together. Mrs. Shannon and her five girls were inside their residence at Carr’s Hill during the various attempts to liberate the building, including the evenings of May 4th and 6th.

Photographer for the University of Virginia from the mid-1950s until his retirement 28 years later. Many of Skinner’s photographs are featured in the online exhibit.

Hard rock jam band renamed “Childhood’s End” in late 1970. The Slithy Toves was the first band to perform on the Lawn at the University of Virginia. They performed across Charlottesville, including on May 6th as part of “Freedom Day.” In 1970, the members included: Don Smith (drums), Barry Smith (guitar), Kent Beyer (bass), Lou Cordera (keyboard), and Bruce Brandfon (saxophone). Many of the group members graduated from UVA.

Professor at UVA Law, 1947-1985. Dean of UVA Law, 1976-1980. Spies was a popular professor at UVA Law. Students remember him attending a handful of the strike events in 1970, including the law school Vigil for Peace.

United States Senator from Virginia, 1966-1973. Spong was a member of the Democratic Party. Student leaders from the University of Virginia requested his audience on May 11, 1970, to read a letter penned by UVA President Edgar Shannon denouncing the invasion of Cambodia and the apparent overreach of the Nixon administration. According to legal marshal Charles Vasaly, Spong attended this meeting and listened to the recitation of the letter. When he was failed to be reelected in 1972, Spong returned to his law practice and served as a professor at the College of William and Mary in Virginia.

B.A. from the University of Virginia, 1973. Stickney was a photographer for the Cavalier Daily and contributed to the book May Days: Crisis in Confrontation. A Pictorial Account of the Student Strike at the University of Virginia, May, 1970, which was a crucial source for the May Days Oral History Project.