Tom Hayden, famed 1960s activist and politician, dies

Tom Hayden, famed 1960s radical and Civil Rights activist, has died in Santa Monica after battling a long illness, the Los Angeles Times reports. He was 76.

Hayden was a founder of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), one of a collection of activist groups that were a cornerstone of the Civil Rights and anti-war protests of the 1960s and 1970s.

He was also largely responsible for the Port Huron Statement, the political manifesto upon which the SDS based its direction, which he began writing while jailed in the South for his participation in Civil Rights demonstrations, including joining the Freedom Riders.

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Hayden remained an enduring voice against war and spent his later years as a prolific writer and lecturer advocating for reform of America's political institutions.

In 1968, he helped organize anti-war demonstrations during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago that turned violent and resulted in the notorious Chicago 7 trial. It began as the Chicago 8 trial, but one defendant, Bobby Seale, was denied the lawyer of his choice, was bound and gagged by the judge and ultimately received a separate trial.

After a circus-like trial, Hayden and three others were convicted of crossing state lines to incite riot. The convictions were later overturned, and an official report deemed the violence "a police riot."

A strident anti-war protester during the Vietnam War, Hayden met actress Jane Fonda in 1971 and the two would later marry and continue their anti-war activism together. The two were married for 17 years and have a son together.

After years of activism, though, Hayden would later embrace a political career, channeling his activism into local efforts. Though he would eventually lose bids for bigger seats like mayor of Los Angeles, U.S. Senate, and even governor of California, Hayden would serve 18 years in California's legislature.

During that time, Hayden continued to push forward on issues like solar power and rent control, and was responsible for the Hayden Act, which protects shelter animals from premature euthanasia.

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Hayden remained politically active, originally backing Bernie Sanders in the 2016 presidential campaign but came to support Hillary Clinton in a call for unification in the Democratic Party.

Additional reporting by the Associated Press