Decline of Unrest

"I mentioned that you changed us. You demanded a greater role in the university and then proceeded to make your ideas known through committee petitions and letters to the president, and in countless personal exchanges. The result? Instead of being confined to the classroom and the student activities office, the students are now being integrated into all areas of university life." - President Stanley Marshall, commencement address, June 1971.

By the end of 1971 and into the spring 1972, the majority of student unrest had petered out. The radical student organizations that still existed grew quieter and more conservative in their protests, and the BSU accepted gradual approval of some of their demands. Five years after President Champion exercised his authoritarian right to censor a student publication, President Marshall exercised with students in a friendly "Pigs versus Freaks" football game. In the years between, the administration abolished the strict governing rules under in loco parentis and students had more control over their education and personal lives than ever before.

Even so, the anti-war attitude remained as the Vietnam War raged on. Students held numerous candlelight vigils to honor fallen soldiers, but fewer disruptive demonstrations than in previous years. By the end of 1972, after five years of enduring student unrest and controversy, Florida State had become a drastically different university than it was before 1968.

Time of Cooperation: 1972
Decline of Unrest