the burning of the isla vista bank america (1970)

[smokey1970vietnam]

I remember very well. The GOON squad from L.A. put me in the brand new S.B. County Jail that night. Thank you sheriff Honey. It was for a good cause.

[patfromlogan]

According to Cril Payne, author of Deep Cover, a history of his career in the FBI, the charge of "students" that resulted in the burning of the Bank of America was a Cointelpro FBI operation.

[FuckYouLetMeLogIn]

Time to do it again. Only with EVERY big bank in the world. The era of the banks exploiting the 99% needs to end.

[BristolPalinsBabyDad]

Time to bring back this kind of spirit.

[WinnemuccaFlash]

narrated by Steve Sellman. An interesting note about Steve is that he was not allergic to tear gas. He was the only person who could report live from a cloud of tear gas in the streets of Isla Vista.

[hkins]

I came to UCSB the quarter after the Bank burned. The people I knew thought the B of A was targeted primarily because it was one of the major banks shoring up the Vietnam War--a large branch was in Saigon. It was part of the corporate war structure which also included Dow Chemical Co., the sole producer of napalm and Agent Orange.

Mis-characterizing the antiwar demonstrators as know-nothing party-goers or a small minority of the campus is re-writing history. I was there; I know.

[penfifteen666]

I saw many a good concert in that building: Fugazi, Social Distortion, Babes in Toyland, Ween, Tool, Faith No More, Alice in Chains.

[viking6834]

I was a student at UCSB at the time. I would guess maybe 10-20 students were involved in the burning, with others assisting. No, I wasn't there but saw it burn from a few blocks away. It was chosen, apparently, because it was the biggest symbol of capitalism in the small community, not for anything wrong the bank did. It was all a propaganda exercise by a small group of individuals who did not represent either the university or the student community.

[kellyrishor]

@viking6834 I also lived there then and remember this riot well, even though I was only 11 years old. 

[wendyinsantabarbara]

Yip it was exciting! I was a teen but I hung out in IV a lot. that was a "power to the people" night. I have never ever done any business with BOA. They were considered the "establishment" at that time.

[loonh2o]

...it became a nightclub and then a brewery ...and then a uc building...iv seems to be losing it's soul, however...

[PlaySA]

pff IV hasn't lost any of its soul friend you just happen to have a nice pair of rose-tinted glasses

what a bunch of stupid generalizations

[abrandjr]

Sorry, i cant feel sad about this. American people are getting tired of the crap that is happening. Sorry, i cant feel bad about the bank burning. Sorry.

[punkrockdrummer]

you dont have to be sorry for the truth, f*ck the government.

[nitegrl33]

This burning didn't have anything to do with people simply being unhappy with the bank's policies or accounts. This was done by rioter students who were very unhappy about being drafted to war, and decided to go burn stuff around campus...the bank was just right across.

[JennieHowell]

If I see someone lighting any Bank of America on fire now days, I will definitely look the other way and require people to give me their fingerprints before getting information.

[lburrola]

Bank of America never came back, they only put up ATM machines.

[Rane909]

no shit - AMEN

[PoiZinConTrol]

Awe did the liddle, widdle bank burn down?

Don't worry, I'm sure they're using your money to build a bigger one right around the corner.