In this photo a protestor speaks from atop a parked car near the university, having been removed by campus police to a street outside of the university grounds. Protesters from other colleges came to St. John's Queens’s campus in support of dissident students and teachers. December 7, 1965

In the days following the announcement, the campus became increasingly dotted with groups of protestors and hand-made picket signs. The issue gained the attention of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) and the United Federation of College Teachers (UFCT), which helped to publicize the actions taken by St. John’s. Many teachers began to see eye-to-eye on the need to assemble efforts that could reverse the administration decision and/or prevent the same scenario from happening again. Here, Frank McVeigh, one of the faculty members dismissed, walks a picket line with his daughter Linda roughly two weeks after the faculty dismissal. December 19, 1965

The strike gained support from much of the wider Queens community, as seen in this photo, which shows picketers from Local Union 3 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers based in Flushing. Several of the affected faculty were members of the AAUP and UFCT. The AAUP wanted to settle the dispute peacefully, but the UFCT were calling for a more action-oriented approach - an organized strike against the school. Both groups agreed that St. John’s refusal to give fired faculty a hearing had entailed a complete disregard for academic freedom. Most teachers supported the UFCT action plan, which amounted to an official strike held on January 4, 1966.

By the end of the week, over 180 faculty and staff were refusing to return to their duties in protest of the decision. Among the fired faculty were campus clergymen who taught various courses in philosophy, theology, and other subjects. Some of the campus clergymen, such as Father O’Reilly, argued that the strike was not so much a religious concern as it was an issue of academic freedom. His argument was shared among many protestors who believed that the decision was more of an attack on free thought than the protection of Catholic doctrine and morality. Here, Kathleen Leavey marches on a picket line outside the St. John's University campus, as faculty members went on strike to protest the university's firing of teachers. On the second day of the strike, over 40 faculty members were confirmed to have been absent from their offices and classrooms. January 5, 1966

Fired faculty from both the St. John’s Brooklyn & Jamaica campuses demonstrated, but students and local supporters also joined their efforts to fight. Students from fourteen different universities picketed near the Jamaica campus demanding that Father Cahill reform the school’s policies. While fired faculty could strike without fear of consequence, faculty still employed by the university risked termination if they joined the efforts. Similarly, students enrolled at St. John’s feared they would be suspended or even expelled if they joined the strike; however, people who participated were committed to supporting the faculty who were fired. In this photo, Wilfred Quinn of Bethpage pickets outside the St. John's University campus, as university teachers went on strike in support of colleagues dismissed by the university administration. January 7, 1966

Students gather in solidarity on the campus of St. John's University as a strike by university teachers entered its fifth day. Father Peter O’Reilly implored all students to respect striking St. John’s students’ picket lines, but many students continued attending classes in fear of being reprimanded by the university administration; still, many students on both campuses, rallied with their instructors and other supporters to protest. Student Council leaders claimed that students felt “short-changed” after “unqualified” substitutes were brought in to replace terminated faculty just two weeks before final examinations. Council members also participated in campus boycotts by carrying a coffin through crowds of protestors, suggesting that failure to meet a settlement would ensure the death of the university. January 8, 1966

The protest continued through January and by February more than 100 St. John’s faculty members joined the picket lines; they began challenging the institution's accreditation with the Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools. According to Dr. Israel Kugler, 225 of the 379 sections in the College of Liberal Arts were closed as a result of teachers joining the protests. Demonstrations and rallies were not confined to the St. John’s campuses, events were also held around the New York metropolitan area including Hunter College. In this photo, Alumni and faculty members march in protest outside the St. John's University ball at the New York Hilton Hotel. February 12, 1966

Despite the efforts and support of reputable academics like Father Peter O’Reilly and Dr. Israel Kugler, both pictured above, the faculty who lost their jobs were never reinstated. By the spring of 1967, the strike gained enough momentum that Catholic universities throughout the United States threatened to join their cause. New York state legislators finally decided to hold hearings to address the labor dispute and as a result St. John’s University agreed to arbitration. The protests lasted over a year but ended in June of 1967. The union was never recognized by St. John’s University and in 1970 arbitrators determined that the university was not responsible for any wrongdoing. However, a result of the strike was that college faculty across New York City started unionizing.