One of several guards who spoke at the rally was Danny J. Meagher a museum guard who said he had worked at Harvard for two years.

Meagher said he felt the University is betraying its humanitarian ideals and those of some its graduates, citing Naked Lunch author William S. Burroughs '36 and John F. Kennedy '40.

"We need to deal with the economy of truth, the economy of justice, not the economy of the dollar," he said. "They've turned [University ideals] into a base and hypocritical lie."

Meagher ended with a rousing call, "Let us go forward as an united front to victory!"

The next guard to speak was more emotionally subdued.

Jim C. Sullivan, who said he has served the University for 10 years as a guard, took several moments to compose himself before he thanked the students for their efforts.

"I'm grateful for the ideals you have shown today. I want you to remember this day when you come back for your fifth or tenth or twenty-fifth reunion and remember not to give them [Harvard] money," he said.

Bob Travis, who said he has worked for the University for 36 years--since the presidency of Nathan M Pusey '28--was more blunt in his criticism.

"[President Neil L. Rudenstine] is the worst president I've worked for," he said.

Steve G. McCombe, union president, gave an update of negotiations between the union and the University.

Kaarina I. Hollo '83, a Celtic Department lecturer, addressed the crowd on the broader concerns of losing human contact through sub-contracting University labor.

"We all interact with our fellow human beings. I want to know the people who clean my office," she said.

Although Hollo was the only Faculty member at the rally, she says she feels the Faculty is sympathetic to the cause.

"I think that the Faculty has a vast reservoir of latent sympathy which could be tapped," she said.

Hollo recounted how she was able to get to know the people who cleaned her office, even buying Christmas gifts for some.

Yet, over the last two years, as sub-contracted janitorial workers have revolved in and out, she says it is harder to get to know them.

"You're going to stop making the effort to try to get to know them," she said. "It's not nice have people working around you who you don't know their name."

Guard Peter Flynn, who spoke about the dangers of bringing in unqualified subcontracted security guards during the rally, said before the rally that he was befuddled by the University's actions.

"I can't understand what Harvard is doing. Nobody wants to be responsible and nobody is responsible," he said.

"Up until recently Harvard has been very responsive. They haven't bargained at all. They're hoping we'll just go away. They're hoping we'll just die," he said.