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THE MASSIVE demonstrations that gripped the United States 40 years ago helped define that point in American history as one of passionate rebellion against the status quo.

For many, it felt as if the whole world was unraveling: the frustration and fear over the expanding and seemingly unending Vietnam War and the compulsory draft; the heartbreak of the Kennedy and King assassinations; and finally the panic and rage exploding from Kent State University on May 4, 1970, when National Guard troops opened fire on unarmed war protestors, killing four students and wounding nine others. The Kent State massacre made it seem as if the government was willing to shoot its own people rather than tolerate dissent, and the protests that followed closed more than 450 campuses nationwide—including Portland State.

Nothing compares with the number and intensity of student protests from the Vietnam era. But student activism—on different issues and in different ways—is a tradition that lives on today.

Just over the past nine months, students have taken to the streets over a variety of issues:

• On March 20, PSU students organized a march against the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. This anniversary date of the start of the Iraq War has become an annual day of protest.
• In the same month, PSU students protested tuition hikes in a National Day of Action. The rise of tuition and fees has become a national rallying point, even spawning violent protest in California.
• In February, PSU students took part in a march from downtown to the PSU campus calling for justice in the January 29 shooting of Aaron Campbell by the Portland police. Young, angry protesters took to the streets again on March 30 over this shooting and a police-involved shooting of a homeless man a week earlier. This demonstration resulted in property damage and arrests.
• In December and January, students around the state conducted a major voter registration drive and campaign for the passage of Oregon Measures 66 and 67, which sought to raise tax revenue for—among other things—higher education.
• In October, PSU students took part in the International Day of Climate Action rally held in downtown Portland.

This recent student activism shows that there is no single overwhelming rallying point today as there was in 1970. Instead, students are making their voices heard on a broad array of issues—both local and global. Comparing the two eras is difficult. Yes, we have wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, but American casualties are 20 percent of what we experienced in Vietnam, and there is no military draft as there was in 1970.

JOE URIS '67, an adjunct associate professor of sociology at PSU and co-host of a KBOO radio talk show, took part in the May 1970 demonstration at PSU. Uris has a firsthand view of the differences between student activism today and campus unrest of the Vietnam era.

At the time of the 1970 PSU protest, "Young people believed social change was possible through nonviolence, that the U.S. was improvable and could be restored to a just and good nation," Uris says. "Today, I think people are more disillusioned about the possibility of social change—it's harder for students to believe in that now."

But Mary Ray Moller '02, a former PSU student body president, respectfully disagrees with Uris's perspective. "I do think students today look to the passion of the '60s and '70s as something to aspire to, but I don't think that sense of optimism has been lost," says Moller, who is now director of Government Affairs at PSU.

"I do think we're more global in our perspective now—everyone is so much more connected because of technology," Moller continues. "But students still do peaceful protests and demonstrations, and they still volunteer for causes they believe in. I know from my own experience that demonstrations can bring about positive change."

AN OBVIOUS difference between Vietnam-era student activists and their modern counterparts is technology—instant access to an unfiltered flow of information via the Internet and social media. Not only has this broadened the list of issues students are aware of, it also allows a huge diversity of opinions.

"Different events or causes bring out different people," says Ben Cushing, PSU adjunct sociology instructor, "but an underlying disillusionment with many of our core institutions is the common denominator I am seeing."

"On the right, people are increasingly drawn toward the far-right populism of the Tea Party movement and anti-immigrant organizations," says Cushing. "On the left, and this is where I see most student organizing at PSU, people are drawn toward organizations that critique the basic logic of capitalism and the lack of democratic participation in both our government institutions and our economy."

This latter ideology, says Cushing, brings to mind such PSU student groups as Students for Unity, International Socialist Organizations, and Students United for Palestinian Equal Rights.

One thing that both veterans of the protest movement of the '60s and students today can agree on is the fact that thoughtful, well-organized demonstrations haven’t lost the power to persuade. And just like 40 years ago, the phenomenon of war still inspires some of the most thought-provoking protests of all. In March 2008, Moller was walking through the Park Blocks when she suddenly stopped in her tracks.

"Flags representing Iraq War casualties were everywhere," she says. "More than 100,000 small white and red flags carpeted the grass for blocks. It was incredibly moving. It really got people to stop and think. That's what effective protests do—they get people to stop and think."

Jeff Kuechle, a freelance writer, wrote “Maestro of the Stage” in the winter 2010 Portland State Magazine.