willekge Review of West Point

West Point (1956–1957)

The flush in program was a model for similar events at college campuses, including Miami University.

[26 January 2006]

In the West Point series,one program dealt with a "flush in", in which the cadets coordinated an activity that had everyone flush simultaneously, creating a major hydraulic problem in the water system at the academy. In the campus demonstrations on the Vietnam War a decade later, at least one school, Miami University, in Oxford, Ohio, replicated this as a symbol of protest. At a specified time, students all over campus flushed toilets and opened faucets, precipitating a major decline in water pressure. If there had been a fire in town, there would have been a real crisis, as there wasn't enough water to fight a fire. This incident was a factor in closing the university for a time, although it reopened before the end of the term, allowing for graduation, and a confused class situation. Some students suffered sanctions for this and other actions deemed detrimental to the university.