The Strawberry Statement (1970)
Director: Stuart Hagmann
Actors: Bruce Davison, Kim Darby, Bud Cort
Runtime: 109 min
Students are rebelling against the war in Vietnam, against co-operation of their university with corporations from the military-industrial complex, but also against the university’s appropriation of a playground in the poor African-American neighbourhood. The protesting students decide to occupy one of the university’s buildings.
These rebellious students are mainly characterized by youthful enthusiasm and shallow analysis packed with common places. They are generally confused, being more liberals than revolutionaries, but even that is dangerous for the system in a situation of widespread social injustice and aggressive war, unfair even by the criteria of a government that started it, when proclaimed liberal values of democracy and freedom are openly diminished, and utter hypocrisy and corruption of the system become widely apparent.
The University authorities decide to call the police and the National Guard to intervene and remove the students from the occupied building, and these decide to engage in non-violent resistance. Based on actual events.
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