Kent State

The Massacre of Kent State left the United States shocked and upset. It was a terrible way to start off the 1970's decade but unfortunately it was an event that was all too similar to other events in the 1970's. The whole conflict began when President Nixon ordered U.S. troops into Cambodia.
On the Friday evening of May 1, 1970, after Nixon's pledge, Kent State students took to the town and rioted all night. The next morning the Mayor called for the National Guard and they would arrive there that evening, but until then the mayor put a curfew on the town. On that Saturday night students gathered in the commons area and went to burn down the campus ROTC office. Firemen were quick to give up because the constant slitting of the hoses by students. After National Guard action students were forced into dormitories.
Sunday was relatively quiet until nightfall when students attempted to escape the dormitories and were either bayoneted or clubbed by the guardsmen. On the next day at lunch, a planned demonstration started to form. Guardsmen thought that martial law was still in action so they attempted to disperse the crowd but hit heavy resistance. Their next move was to push the crowd out of the commons area and onto a practice field, when they realized they were fencing themselves in they moved back up the hill. 28 guardsmen turned and fired 61 bullets into the crowd with their M-1 rifles. It left four students dead, and nine wounded, including one permanently paralyzed. Kent State was shut down for the rest of the year and the administration was to blame, not the guardsmen.