As presidential hopefuls - and their children - appear in Muncie to campaign to be the next face of America, memories linger of another on-campus presidential campaign stop in 1968.
Friday marks the 40-year anniversary of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy's visit to Ball State University.
MEETING AND GREETING
Kennedy arrived on campus about 5:45 p.m. April 4, 1968.
In the April 5, 1968 issue of The Ball State Daily News, student journalists said Kennedy chose to walk through the crowd and shake hands instead of entering the venue through its side entrance.
According to a University Communications news release, more than 12,000 people crammed into what is now Irving Gym to watch the 42-year-old candidate's half-hour speech. Because the gym had 7,000 seats, almost half of the audience was forced to stand, according to the release.
Sue Taylor, who was a Ball State freshman at the time, said the gym was probably packed because of how famous his older brother and former president John F. Kennedy had been.
"The Kennedy name was huge," she said. "I remember, I went more out of curiosity than anything else."
According to the Daily News article, Kennedy answered questions for 20 minutes after his speech before leaving for another campaigning event in Indianapolis.
Three audience members were injured in the crowd's rush to meet the presidential candidate as he departed, including a 4-year-old child, according the article.
A DAY OF SORROW
Less than an hour after Kennedy left campus, Dr. Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in Memphis, Tenn. by James Earl Ray.
According to BBC News' Web site, the news of King's death incited riots in more than 100 cities across the nation. Tennessee Governor Buford Ellington requested the presence of 4,000 National Guard troops in Memphis to prevent additional violence.
In Ray Boomhower's book "Robert F. Kennedy and the 1968 Indiana Primary," Kennedy learned of King's death on his way to Indianapolis.
Boomhower, senior editor of the Indiana Historical Society's journal "Traces of Indiana and Midwestern History," wrote that Kennedy spoke to a largely African-American community in Indianapolis despite police warnings that his safety might be in jeopardy.
According to the press release, Kennedy responded to the tragedy by delivering a somber six-minute speech instead of the one he had prepared.
MEMORIES
Taylor, an Alumni Association staff member, might not remember every detail of Kennedy's speech in Muncie, but she has a keepsake to bring some of the memories from that 1968 evening into focus.
While cleaning her house, Taylor found the picture Kennedy autographed for her 40 years ago, she said.
Two months after Kennedy's April visit, the presidential candidate Taylor had seen in person was assassinated. The moment she learned of Kennedy's death overshadowed her impressions of his on-campus presence, she said in a news release.
"A more intense memory, though, is the shock and sorrow I felt when he was killed a couple months later," she said in the release.
TO REMEMBER
University Communications Director Kevin Burke said the university recognized the four-decade anniversary with a news release on Ball State's homepage. The page includes stories from retired journalism professors and former students who were present for Kennedy's visit, he said. The news release will remain on the Web site's homepage for a couple of days, he said.
Burke said he was unaware of any formal commemorative ceremonies.
"We were hoping that with Barack Obama's appearance on campus [Friday], he would perhaps take advantage of the historical event and tie it into his campaign," Burke said.
When Obama's campaign office announced Wednesday the postponement of Obama's visit to Muncie for another week, the opportunity to celebrate the anniversary fell through, he said.
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