He was one of the greats. Priest, educator, compassionate advocate for civil rights, anti Vietnam War demonstrator -- Ted Hesburgh (Father Ted as he was known to millions) was the perfect model of what a religious man should be, but too rarely is.
As you know I am no longer a Catholic and I in fact hold the church in great disdain, but this man was special. My favorite memory of Father Ted is from the dark, dark days of May 1970. The Ohio National Guard had just murdered four students for protesting the war in Vietnam and the enlargement of that war into Cambodia. Campuses across the country erupted in protest. I clearly remember sitting in the first floor lounge of Flanner Tower while a heated debate raged on just one subject: should we march to the ROTC building and burn it down?
We didn't; we channeled our anger into other forms of protest. Ted Hesburgh had a lot to do with that; this is from Notre Dame's web site:
When Father Hesburgh learned of a plot to burn down the ROTC building, he spoke at a student rally, expressing his support of their opposition to the Vietnam War as well as his support of ROTC on campus because of the need for a well-educated military with a conscience. His speech was well received by students, and a large number of them came to his office for copies of it to have them signed by South Bend residents and mailed to President Richard Nixon. The students collected over 23,000 signed copies, which Father Hesburgh then mailed to the President.
Also from the Irish web site: "He was a charter member of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, created in 1957, and he chaired the commission from 1969 to 1972, when President Richard Nixon replaced him as chairman because of his criticism of the administration’s civil rights record."
Hesburgh had stood up to Nixon over Vietnam so it was no surprise that he did so again over civil rights. That he lost his job for it made us love him -- and hate Nixon -- even more.
For your sake, Father Ted, I hope you're right that there is a heaven, for you will certainly be there already, smoking the best cigars in the universe.
I commented on this yesterday, but it disappeared as soon as I did it. Anyway, I said that I was a mere 14 years old when Kent State happened, but I remember it well. There was rioting at the University. A few years later when I was living in the country, I saw a man wearing a T shirt that said "National Guard 4, Kent State 0" and it upset me mightily.
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