Background
As president Nixon was elected, it seemed like he pushed away his promises of the involvement in war when the United State was fighting at Vietnam from preventing the spread of communism. Once Nixon announced his Cambodian Campaign that consisted to send troops or military operations to eastern Cambodia in Vietnam to fight the Viet Cong army. As this announcement kept passing on through media systems it led to numerous waves of protests that were against it, especially students who were obligated to go after graduation.
Kent State University (Ohio). May 4th, 1970. The event that triggered nationwide where estimated about 3000 college students protesters were not just hippies, drug addicts, or promoters of free love. They also included middle and upper-class people, as well as educated people. gather together in the colleges campus to form a protest that consisted to strike against Nixon's planning on war. Although other protesting from rioters have taken action already in May 1st-3rd, they've been stopped by guards near them. Eventually in may 4th around these 3000 students scheduled to held their strike at noon where students marched around the college chanting, singing, dancing, etc. As Ohio's Army National Guard tried to disperse the protest but since the students refused to leave, the National Guard attempted to use tear gas on the crowd. Students began to fight back throwing rocks and yelled slogans such as "Pigs off campus". The more dilemma got bigger the more the place began to get heated up which then became crowded and the colleges commons began to fill up with tear gas from the guards.
Yet the guards faced trouble and danger but without any order to attack stronger where it cannot be justified but about 28 guards fire 61 shots. As a matter of fact this killed four students were killed: Jeffrey Miller, who was shot in the mouth while standing in an access road leading into the Prentice Hall parking lot, a distance of approximately 270 feet from the Guard. Allison Krause was in the Prentice Hall parking lot; she was 330 feet from the Guardsmen and was shot in the left side of her body. William Schroeder was 390 feet from the Guard in the Prentice Hall parking lot when he was shot in the left side of his back. Sandra Scheuer was also about 390 feet from the Guard in the Prentice Hall parking lot when a bullet pierced the left front side of her neck though Sandra and William were not actually participating in the protest. Also nine fatal injures from: Joseph Lewis was the student closest to the Guard at a distance of about sixty feet; he was standing still with his middle finger extended when bullets struck him in the right abdomen and left lower leg. Thomas Grace was also approximately 60 feet from the Guardsmen and was wounded in the left ankle. John Cleary was over 100 feet from the Guardsmen when he was hit in the upper left chest. Alan Canfora was 225 feet from the Guard and was struck in the right wrist. Douglas Wrentmore was wounded in the right knee from a distance of 330 feet. James Russell was struck in the right thigh and right forehead at a distance of 375 feet. Robert Stamps was almost 500 feet from the line of fire when he was wounded in the right buttock. Donald Mackenzie was the student the farthest from the Guardsmen at a distance of almost 750 feet when he was hit in the neck. Dean Kahler was the most seriously wounded of the nine students. He was struck in the small of his back from approximately 300 feet and was permanently paralyzed from the waist down.
Ambulances arrived and emergency medical attention had been given to the students who had immediately been victims of the attack. The
ambulances formed a screaming procession as they rushed with the victims to the local hospital and after twenty minutes or so, plenty of emotional pleading from people in the area marshals convinced the students to leave the commons as well the guards back to their stations.
ambulances formed a screaming procession as they rushed with the victims to the local hospital and after twenty minutes or so, plenty of emotional pleading from people in the area marshals convinced the students to leave the commons as well the guards back to their stations.
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Small clip of actual footage about Kent State protest. (With a background info of a computer) |