The LeClair Affair: The Reaction

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There were some who supported LeClair.

As LeClair awaited trial, a debate raged over the housing rules, students’ relationship with the college, and changing parietal rules.

The incident garnered national news coverage: serious, sensational, angry, and mocking.

Ordinary people as well as national newspapers weighed in, mostly negatively, on LeClair’s behavior, exposing the widening gap between generations.

On campus, the unofficial “Ad Hoc Committee for a Fair Housing Policy” surveyed the student body about the housing and parietal rules. 73% of those surveyed admitted breaking at least one housing rule. The majority of respondents felt the rules were unfair.

Students urged the administration to re-evaluate these seemingly antiquated rules that did not correspond to actual behavior of young people of the late 1960s. Official committees formed to do just that. 

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Scathing letters came to Martha Peterson, denouncing LeClair, the college, and student behavior. 
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A syndicated cartoon and the infamous "Alley Cat" letter. A syndicated cartoon pokes fun at the seemingly inconsequential punishment meted out to LeClair. Most outsiders saw the Judicial Council’s decision as a farce. This particular clipping was altered by an one angry letter writer, soaked in cat urine, and sent to Pres. Peterson in protest.
The LeClair Affair
The LeClair Affair: The Reaction