May 4, 1970

[FtWorthCat]

I was 5 at the time, so I didn't really understand it, which is why I've always found it fascinating to look back at. The protesters had clearly gotten out of hand as far as destruction the night before. But on this day, of the 13 shot (4 died), the closest was about 75 feet from the National Guardsmen, and the furthest was 600 feet away. I hope we don't end up with a repeat of this event, ever. Really seemed like it might happen during the BLM protests.

Ohio Guard shootings at Kent State 55 years ago fueled protests at Ohio State, across U.S.

On May 4,1970, the Ohio National Guard killed 4 students and wounded 9 at Kent State. The deaths fueled anti-war protests at Ohio State and elsewhere.

www.dispatch.com

 

[HymanKaplan]

The crowd didn't get unruly until the Mayor closed all the bars/mandatory.

 

[JIMFKFT]

Terrible, avoidable tragedy. The Guardsmen were poorly trained for the mission and placed into a highly charged atmosphere. If they were under fire by someone as was later stated, their response was completely unjustified. No soldier is trained to simply spray bullets into a crowd as a response to an individualized threat.

 

[FtWorthCat]

There was an actual hero that day, Professor Glenn Frank. Some of the footage I've seen of him pleading with the students to sit down and disperse is amazing. Matthew 5:9

 

[Catfan in Tn.]

 

[Glenn's take]

It's really just a matter of time. Protestors have become too emboldened with their protests so now you have people standing in the middle of the street saying you can't pass because I said so. There's going to be a massacre at one of those and it's just a matter of when.

 

[Tskware]

I wish I could remember the name of the book I read about the Kent State shootings, was an in depth study of the events leading up to the shooting and the aftermath, was well worth reading.

Edit: Just looked at the public library catalog and I think it was Kent State; An American Tragedy by Brian VanDeMark

 

[WildcatFan1982]

Nick Naylor: After watching the footage of the Kent State shootings, Bobby Jay, then seventeen, signed up for the National Guard so that he, too, could shoot college students.

 

[bbnkat02]

The fact that no one was held accountable in any of this was insanity.

There's NEVER been a true independent investigation of the incident and basically the US has said, "Nah, man. We had nothing to do with that."

Basically four unarmed people died for exercising their 1st Amendment rights and everyone washes their hands about it.

 

[berniecarbo]

The fact that no one was held accountable in any of this was insanity.

There's NEVER been a true independent investigation of the incident and basically the US has said, "Nah, man. We had nothing to do with that."

Basically four unarmed people died for exercising their 1st Amendment rights and everyone washes their hands about it.

Not long after Kent State, there was fear of protests near my base. They gathered maybe 50 or so of us mp's in a waiting area. We were on standby in case needed. We were issued M-16's, but told there would be NO ammo issued. Turns out we were not deployed, but if we had been and any protesters had weapons, we would have been sitting ducks. Maybe nothing was done about Kent State, but it certainly got some people thinking.

 

[bbnkat02]

Not long after Kent State, there was fear of protests near my base. They gathered maybe 50 or so of us mp's in a waiting area. We were on standby in case needed. We were issued M-16's, but told there would be NO ammo issued. Turns out we were not deployed, but if we had been and any protesters had weapons, we would have been sitting ducks. Maybe nothing was done about Kent State, but it certainly got some people thinking.

I don't like the idea of no ammo being issued, but rather increasing training in fire discipline. This includes keeping safeties on until the weapon is drawn or readied.

But yes, in an era where government distrust was at a fever pitch this did nothing to act as a salve.

 

[FtWorthCat]

Not long after Kent State, there was fear of protests near my base. They gathered maybe 50 or so of us mp's in a waiting area. We were on standby in case needed. We were issued M-16's, but told there would be NO ammo issued. Turns out we were not deployed, but if we had been and any protesters had weapons, we would have been sitting ducks. Maybe nothing was done about Kent State, but it certainly got some people thinking.

Obviously youth was a very big part of it. The soliders in Viet Nam/Cambodia were young, the college kids were young, and the guardsmen were young. I would like to think that I would not have fired like that if I were a guardsman, just because of being around guns myself growing up. But you can't say how you will react in a situation like that where you are part of a larger group. There were 67 shots fired, and only 13 people hit. So that tells you they just freaked out because they themselves were rightfully afraid and fired into the crowd.