"They’re worse than Brown Shirts and the Communist element, and also the nightriders and the vigilantes. They’re the worst type of people we have in America ... we will use whatever force necessary to drive them out of Kent!"
- Gov. James Rhodes, May 3, 1970
"...it's very hard to ignore that Kent State thing.
They were down there, man, ready to do it.
You can see them, they're all kneeling there,
they're all in the kneeling position
and they got their slings tight
and they're ready to shoot.
And there's this kid, this long-haired kid
standin' there with a flag wavin' it...
I mean, I cannot be a man,
and be a human, and ignore that."
- David Crosby, July, 1970
Rolling Stone interview
"It was like -- oh my God, I can't believe it. So everybody came out and there were kids lying on the ground, running all over the place,...There isn't a day in my life that goes by that I don't wake up without some conscious thought of this. I was in Vietnam twice before. I didn't have the fear that I had on this campus -- helicopters swooping down, tear gas, bullets. It was a scary thing. I get goosebumps talking about it right at this moment,"
- Kent State Student, Bob Carpenter
"When I saw the students in their pools of blood, I said this is it, it's got to stop -- the protests, the war. It's gone too far,"
- Kent State Student, Paul Tople
"I like to call it murder. I see no justification and no justice,"
- Kent State Student, John Darnell
"I don't care if you've never listened to anybody before in your life. I am begging you right now, if you don't disperse right now, they're going to move in. It will only be a slaughter. Please, listen to me. Jesus Christ, I don't want to be part of this. Listen to me,"
- Kent State Professor Glenn Frank
By noon May 4, two thousand people had gathered in the vicinity of the commons. Many knew that the rally had been banned. Others, especially commuters, did not know of this prohibition. Chants, curses and rocks answered an order to disperse. Shortly after noon, tear gas canisters were fired...The guard moved forward with fixed bayonets, forcing demonstrators to retreat...The guardsmen then retraced their line of march. Some demonstrators followed as close as 20 yards, but most were between 60 and 75 yards behind the guard. Near the crest of Blanket Hill, the guard turned and 28 guardsmen fired between 61 and 67 shots in 13 seconds toward the parking lot. Four persons lay dying and nine wounded. The closest casualty was 20 yards and the farthest was almost 250 yards away. All 13 were students at Kent State University.
The four students who were killed were Jeffrey Miller, Allison Krause, William Schroeder and Sandra Scheuer. The nine wounded students were Joseph Lewis, John Cleary, Thomas Grace, Alan Canfora, Dean Kahler, Douglas Wrentmore, James Russell, Robert Stamps, and Donald MacKenzie. Dean Kahler was permanently paralyzed from his injury.
Kent State Vice President Ronald Roskens, right, as he appeared in a 1970 Daily Kent Stater poster. He later was fired as chancellor of the University of Nebraska under secretive circumstances only to be hired by the White House as director of Agency for International Development. Allegations were made that he used his agency access for personal financial gain.
"You know, you see these bums, you know, blowin' up the campuses. Listen, the boys that are on the college campuses today are the luckiest people in the world, going to the greatest universities, and here they are, burnin' up the books, I mean, stormin' around about this issue, I mean, you name it —- get rid of the war, there'll be another one."
- Richard Nixon, May 2, 1970
New York Times
Vigil Held In Honor Of KSU May 4 Shootings
A silent 12-hour candlelight vigil to remember the Kent State tragedy is being held this morning, NewsChannel5 reported.
Thirty-four years ago, four students were shot and killed by the National Guard at the KSU campus. They were protesting the Vietnam war.
The memorial started Monday night to honor the four students killed and nine others injured May 4, 1970.
The May 4th Task Force, students who are putting the memorial together, said this year's theme is the Patriot Act.
The kick off to this year's remembrance began last night. At 11 p.m., students marched with candles to the site where the students were shot.
At noon, students will detail what led up to the shooting along with ringing the victory bell at 12:24 p.m. 15 times in honor of those who lost their lives in Kent State and Jackson State that year.
WEWS reported many students believe this year's memorial is extra special because of the war on terror and the loss of troops in Iraq. - newsnet5.com
Tin soldiers and Nixon coming,
We're finally on our own.
This summer I hear the drumming,
Four dead in Ohio.
Gotta get down to it
Soldiers are gunning us down
Should have been done long ago.
What if you knew her
And found her dead on the ground
How can you run when you know?
Gotta get down to it
Soldiers are gunning us down
Should have been done long ago.
What if you knew her
And found her dead on the ground
How can you run when you know?
Tin soldiers and Nixon coming,
We're finally on our own.
This summer I hear the drumming,
Four dead in Ohio.
- Neil Young
Buffalo Springfield
Editor's note: There is credible evidence that there was a pre-existing government plan for the National Guard to open fire on the students as a desperate step to put an end to the student movement against the war in Viet Nam. But many believe the public hearings held, were a whitewash and coverup. No person was ever convicted of committing these state-executions at Kent State on May 4, 1970. The U.S. government may be gearing up to reinstate the draft again due to its pending defeat in Iraq and its failure to recruit sufficient numbers of young people into its "volunteer army". Will we see repeats of the Kent State killings by the government as the "war on terrorism" mirrors the war in Viet Nam? We are already seeing them in the "volunteer army", aren't we? There is one lesson we can learn from the Kent State killings and every war the U.S. government has conducted: Noone should have any lingering question about what the U.S. government is capable of doing to its own people. - Les Blough, Editor
© Copyright 2005 by AxisofLogic.com
References
Kent State Tripod
http://alancanfora.com
Thrasher's Wheat
Neoengel.com
Patriot Action
