The Port Huron Statement

The Port Huron Statement was a manifesto written by the Students for a Democratic

Society, also known as SDS, back in 1962. The statement critiqued the United States and several

of its values and morals. The students overall were looking to create a better America and a

better future. The students spoke about contradictory values the states claimed to have, in the

sentence, “The declaration “all men are created equal…” rang hollow before the facts of Negro

life in the South and the big cities of the North.” This sentence spoke of the racism, segregation,

and inequality in the United States, though they claimed everyone was equal. The students

wanted readers to know that even if their ideas and statements seemed far out, they were only

hoping for the best for the United States. This was stated in the last sentence of the Port Huron

statement. They spoke about how people might have chosen to ignore most problems in the

world, but the two most relevant problems, human degradation and the cold war, were

typically the topics that got attention, seemingly to dire and important to be ignored. They

claimed that these two problems were “too immediate and crushing in their impact.” The

students noted that they wanted to replace power rooted in negative things or even just

circumstance by power rooted in more positive values and beliefs such as love and creativity.

They wanted to encourage independence as well, saying, “As a social system we seek the

establishment of a democracy of individual participation, governed by two central aims: that

the individual share in those social decisions determining the quality and direction of his life;

that society be organized to encourage independence in men and provide the media for their
common participation.” The students seemed to have a clear idea of what kind of future would

be ideal, and wanted everyone to help work towards that future.