AFTERMATH cont...
Five Activists Look Back on the Events of
1970
On February 15th, 1988, several Isla Vista activists from the
1970 era gathered to discuss their experiences in the studio of
KCTY, community television in Santa Barbara. Alex Berk produced
a one-hour documentary for television. UCSB Sociology professor
Dick Flacks was the moderator of the panel.
Carmen Lodise made the excerpts that follow.
WHERE WERE YOU WHILE THE BANK OF AMERICA WAS BURNING?
Langfelder: I was out in front with hundreds of other people watching
it. I remember that we got a few beers from the takeout across
the street, which was doing a great business!
Kronman: I was in jail.
Wilson: I was at the offices of the Gaucho, the name of the student
newspaper at the time.
WHY WAS THE BANK BURNED?
Langfelder: The B of A was the most convenient symbol of authority.
Plus, it was a central building in I.V., yet isolated enough from
the rest of town that a fire there wouldn't spread.
de la Rocha: Plus, the Gaucho had been running stories about the
role of the Bank in farming industry in California and the tie
to pesticides which where harmful to farmworkers, plus the Bank's
role in financing the Vietnam War. At the time, A.S. was debating
taking their money out of the Bank, too.
Langfelder: There had been several days of throwing rocks at the
Bank, but there had been no planning of sabotage; the actual burning
of the Bank was a completely spontaneous act. It was after Kunstler's
speech in Harder Stadium that day that the crowd's mood changed
a lot--they were much more willing to take risks in their challenge.
de la Rocha: It's important to understand that only the Bank and
the real estate companies were trashed during that time; the targets
were very selective.
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