Student organization with historical impact at Ohio State and across nation resurfaces on campus more than a half-century after founding

In 1973, members of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) marched on the Oval carrying a “token head” of lettuce, demanding that the University support a then-prominent labor union for farmworkers. Credit: Courtesy of Lantern Archives

In the 1960s, a national organization of leftist student activists called Students for a Democratic Society stood out as advocates who protested socio-political events in American history — both on large scales and on college campuses. 

However, more than 60 years after the founding of SDS in 1959, its name — and the historical significance it carries — has resurfaced on campus. On March 5, New Students for a Democratic Society developed from the historical organization and formed an official chapter at Ohio State, according to a post on the student organization’s Instagram.

The Lantern’s archives document the historic involvement of students in political activism as members of the organization’s original chapter at Ohio State. In November 1965, after the United States entered the Vietnam War, about 25,000 demonstrators from across the U.S. marched on the nation’s capital to protest the decision, The Lantern reported.

Among the activists were Ohio State students, including members of SDS, who packed buses and cars to travel to Washington, D.C., from Columbus at about 10 p.m. the night before the event. According to The Lantern archives, they marched on the White House while carrying signs with “Ohio State, Columbus,” written on the back.

On a smaller scale, The Lantern archives record the organization’s activity on campus, such as a march led by SDS to the Administration Building in May 1973 in protest of the university’s use of lettuce not grown by American Farm Workers — a then-prominent labor union. Students carried a “token head” of lettuce across the Oval, which the administration accepted when it agreed to support the union by purchasing its lettuce. 

After the ’60s, factionalism within the organization and the decline of some of their main causes, such as the Vietnam War, caused the dissolution of SDS by the mid-1970s, according to Britannica.

Regan Nagel, a fourth-year in communications and political science and president of the new group, said the modern-day national organization was founded in response to similar events as the past group.

“New SDS was formed in 2006 in the wake of anti-war demonstrations against the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan,” Nagel said in an email.

However, SDS at Ohio State is not the first instance of progressive student activism on campus in the 21st century. Nagel said many members of SDS volunteered for Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign in 2020 when the group called itself “Students for Bernie.” Until March, the organization referred to itself as Our Revolution at Ohio State.

Although the reestablishment of SDS at Ohio State may not represent the beginning of activity on campus in recent years, Nagel said she believes having the existing group join the national organization of SDS will allow it to be more impactful.

“Many of us felt that change would be more effective if we used SDS principles to work within our community rather than relying only on some far-away political forces to make meaningful change,” Nagel said.

Victoria Zubovich, a fourth-year in public management, leadership and policy and vice president of the group, said the organization moved its focus away from electing candidates that align with their ideologies and toward direct action and fostering tangible change at Ohio State and in Columbus.

Nagel said the main issues SDS at Ohio State stands for today include fighting rising tuition costs, racial discrimination and sexual violence on campus. In Columbus, she cited police brutality against the Black community as one of the city’s greatest injustices.

“While opposition to war and violence is certainly an imperative, I believe that our organization will maximize its potential by working on the ground within our community,” Nagel said.

Nagel said the group plans to implement and support direct action initiatives such as mutual aid, coalition-building and demonstrations to directly address the most important issues facing campus and the surrounding community, such as racial violence, war and the motion for $15 federal minimum wage failing to pass in the Senate this month.

Zubovich said she believes issues involving race, war and labor became worse over the past half-century.

“We are seeing some of the highest reported hate crimes in the United States, mainly against BIPOC and [Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders], in more than a decade,” Zubovich said. “The United States’ endless involvement in the Middle East has resulted in the deaths of thousands of innocents and left entire countries completely desecrated.”

Although Nagel said SDS views the presence of injustice as long-lasting, it also views the continuity as a strength, and even a source of hope.

“In addition to the continuity of these issues is the continuity of activists working to eradicate them,” Nagel said.

More information on SDS at Ohio State can be found on the club’s Instagram @sdsohiostate and Twitter @sdsatosu.