1,000 Attend Memorial for Mario Savio at UC Berkeley
More than a thousand people gathered at the UC Berkeley campus Sunday to remember the late activist Mario Savio, leader of the campus’ 1960s Free Speech Movement.
Savio, who would have turned 54 on Sunday, died in a Sebastopol hospital Nov. 6 after suffering heart failure.
In an emotional memorial highlighted by moments of humor, friends and family remembered a man who boldly climbed atop a police car in 1964 to blast a university policy banning political activity on campus.
“There’s a new voice in heaven and his name is Mario Savio,” said Percy Jones, a friend of Savio’s, after the memorial. “And if they don’t give him free speech, he’s going to raise a lot of hell.”
Savio, angered by the arrest of a student for political activity, urged fellow Berkeley students to fight for free speech rights. He and 800 others were arrested after a sit-in.
Known as a brilliant orator and well-informed activist, Savio led the Free Speech Movement for several years before dropping out of the limelight during the Vietnam War. In recent years, he taught math, logic and philosophy to remedial students at Cal State Sonoma.
At the memorial, mention of Sproul Plaza--site of Savio’s famed 1964 speech--prompted one mourner to call out “Savio Plaza!” Some showed their support for Savio by demonstrating in the nude.
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