Award: Grand Gold

Institution: University of Wisconsin Madison

Title of Entry: The Blast That Changed Everything

About this Entry: August 24, 2020, was the 50th anniversary of the bombing of UW–Madison’s Sterling Hall in a Vietnam War-era protest. The event was significant not only to the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the local community, but to an entire nation grappling with war and resistance. In wreaking destruction and killing a researcher, the blast had a chilling effect on the antiwar movement and changed the lives of many people on the UW–Madison campus. To mark the anniversary, On Wisconsin magazine reached out to the alumni community and received more than 300 heartfelt responses from eyewitnesses, describing the chaos of the moment and reflecting on the aftershocks. “The Blast That Changed Everything” presents an edited selection, organized in seven sections that mirror the alumni’s experience of the tragedy. The article progresses from descriptions of the bombing; to dread about the consequences; to the disorientation of returning to campus; to the displacement of classes and research; to the transformation of the antiwar movement; to the soul-searching among protesters; and finally to the long-lasting reverberations of the event for the alumni who lived through it. To provide context for these reminiscences, the article includes thoroughly researched introductions for the main story and its sections, as well as sidebars on the tragic death and the university’s resolution to rebuild.