Kent State Shooting In The Vietnam War

College students were aware that over 38,000 American troops had been killed in Vietnam and if something wasn’t done on the streets of America, many more would die. With tensions running high all over America’s college campues, the unrest of the anti-war movent was just about to get worse. Nixon’s decision to engage more troops into a sensless War, sparked a new wave of protests that errupted into many violent standoffs. Unknown to the country, this unrest would take a fatal and trajic turn.

Sitting through an hour-long lecture or waiting in line to speak with financial aid are some examples of an average day on campus. It is during these times when students are least expecting tragedy to strike. A student may hear a loud noise and think nothing of it until they realize that noise was the sound of a shooting rampage that has reached their area and by that time it’s usually too late. Campus safety is everyone’s responsibility and remaining on alert is the only way to ensure less people are victimized. One of the first, and most memorable, attacks happened on August 1, 1966. Charles Whitman, a former marine, took rifles and other weapons to the observation deck atop the Main Building tower at The University of Texas- Austin, then randomly opened fire on the surrounding campus and streets. Over the next 96 minutes, far longer than the average active shooter attack, he shot and killed fifteen people. Included in the death toll was one unborn child, and injured thirty-one others. The incident ended when police reached Whitman and shot him dead. During this event, civilians played a vital role in assisting first responders in the take down of Whitman and Allen Crum, a 40-year-old bookstore manager and retired Air Force tail gunner, accompanied police up the tower in pursuit of Whitman. While Crum was armed, it solely because officers handed him a firearm to assist in Whitman’s take down.

During the time the United States was in a war, the American public was sharply divided creating another war among its people. The war had transformed America to a different place with its defeat. It had far-reaching consequences and impact on most aspects of American life from the economy, culture to domestic politics and foreign policy. The Vietnam war created a time of uncertainty because so many had lost their trust in the government. With the end of the Vietnam war, the United States left with a humiliating defeat and shockingly high casualties.

Each time police and firemen got control of the situation, the building was set on fire again. The National Guard eventually pushed the marchers back with tear gas and bayonets as the marchers threw stones; many arrests were again made on this day. (8) On May 3rd, the Kent State campus was filled with Ohio National Guardsmen. James Rhodes, the Ohio governor arrived in Kent and called the protestors, "the worst type of people we harbor in America," and stating that every force of law would be used to deal with them. (9) Rhodes also indicated that he would seek a court order declaring a state of emergency. A crowd gathered later that night and the Ohio Riot Act was read to them. The students were protesting the Guardsmen being on campus by blocking the streets. When they were promised that they would be able to talk to Major Satrom and Kent State president Robert White about this situation the students moved off the streets. Once they moved, the Guardsmen immediately began use tear gas to break up the crowd, breaking the promise. (10)

On May 4, 1970 at approximately 12:24 PM members of the Ohio National Guard shot at and killed several unarmed Kent State University students. These students were protesting President Nixon’s decision to invade Cambodia. While some of the students who were shot at were actively protesting at the time of the shooting, others were simply walking by or casually observing the protest from a distance. How could an appalling incident like this occur? What possessed the members of the Ohio National Guard to shoot at unarmed students?

In response to the tragedy and the Cambodia invasion, mass rallies were held in almost every major city in that month. The elite demographic, which includes doctors, lawyers and other professionals also flooded into Washington to display their opposition not only to the war but the increasing domestic violence. The incident dramatically affected Americans and it was further indicated through public opinion polls, which pointed blame towards the National Guard. To many Americans, the domestic upheaval following Cambodia and Kent State suggested that the country was becoming unhinged according to Melvin Small. Newspapers such as the New York Times suggested that the United States was as divided as it had been since the Civil War. Individuals that would identify themselves as pro-war now felt that the war’s cost in terms of domestic consequence outweighed the benefits of continuing the war. The White House was now in full damage control following the Kent State shootings. Public opinion polls showed a 31 percent approval for the war following the Kent State massacre. In response, White House officials anxiously discussed how to contain the uproar. According to David Anderson and John Ernst in their book titled, “The War That Never Ends: Student Opposition to the Vietnam War,” White House officials agreed that it was important to avoid steps that would further

The day of the Columbine Massacre is a day that will forever burn a hole in America’s heart. The nation was shocked at the news that on April 20, 1999, high school seniors Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris went on a precisely planned shooting rampage at their school, Columbine High School. This event killed a total of thirteen individuals, including twelve students and one highly heroic teacher, and wounded many. The reportedly troubled boys had often accused others of having bullied them, which raised the question of how apparent the warning signs were of their rampage. Because this incident was one of the first known school shootings throughout the nation, many of its specific details were taken into account to help protect schools all

The student body at Kent State numbered about 20,000 and had been considered conservative, but not overly political. In fact they were thought of as rather passive politically. The shootings were a culmination of four days of demonstrations by members of the student body. The students were protesting the invasion of Cambodia by American forces.

The Vietnam War was not only a war abroad but also a war at home since many people within the United States believed that we should not be evolved in this war, especially since it was a civil war in Vietnam. One of the main reasons for the unrest at home was due to the draft of young men who did not want to fight for a war that they did not believe in. Many young men age 18 and over were drafted but some of the young men who could afford a higher education were able to go to college and avoid the draft but once they graduated they would be in danger of being drafted so many of the college students were protesting to end the war that they did not believe in or want to go and fight in. (The Sixties, n.d.) As the war crept along the college students protested more and even burnt their draft cards to show their disapproval of the war. The war at home took a bad turn on May 4, 1970 when a group of college students at Kent State started protesting. The governor ordered 750 members of the National Guard to stop the demonstrators. The National Guard troops ordered the protestors to break up and when some of the protestors refused and started throwing rocks the troops fired into the crowed killing four students and injuring nine other students. (Davidson et al., 2005) According to Wells, (1999), “The

Life was never the same on the campus of Kent State University after May 4,1970, when riots and protests led to shootings by guardsmen, which killed four unarmed college students and wounded nine others. How could this be justified while Guardsmen carrying rifles go up against protesters. I have always believed that the fight is not equal if both sides do not have weapons. As a result the Guardsmen were not justified in firing in self-defense. Things start days before by student political groups and quickly escaladed as upset students wanted their opinions heard by administrators, but were denied a meeting. Therefore, violent confrontation between armed National Guard and a mob of students occurred.

Twenty-six year old, Chris Harper Mercer was the cause of the Umpqua community college shooting. Nine victims were killed and the gunman was the tenth one who died. Those who died were the age range of 18-67. There were students who ended up being injured during the scene. “A motive for the shooting remained unclear” (Barajas, 2015, para.6). Assumptions have been made about how and why the shooting occurred, but we still do not know the real reason behind all of this. Questions will never be solved, but “according to several witness accounts, the shooting took place in Classroom 15 in Snyder Hall” (Barajas, 2015, para.15). Mercer was armed with three pistols and a rifle. This event was planned out. The question is, why do school shootings

7. It is reported that there was an impromptu meeting to determine the cause of the shooting. During this time, at least the place should have been secured so students weren’t in harm's way. At least TV screens on the hall way and around campus should have alerted the students of a gunman on the loose around the campus. Students were kept in the dark allowing the gunman to carry out his target unhindered.

An unfortunate event arose that ended a total of fifteen lives on top of wounding more than 20 bodies. The Columbine shooting that occurred in 1999 was the result of an 18 and a 19-year-old who intended on putting off a bomb but instead shot many students and specifically targeted athletes, minorities, and Christians as their victims (history.com). This was the deadliest shooting at the time it occurred and brought a major shock to the population of the United States. Though this was a tragic event that affected so many people, the shooting brought up many conversations about school safety and something much larger, the second amendment of the US constitution. “The year 1992 marked the beginning of the genocide in Bosnia and devastating riots in Los Angeles after the verdict in the Rodney King trial, in which three Los Angeles police officers were acquitted in the beating of King” (Rosenberg).

On Wednesday, March 14, 2018 I chose to participate in a school activity. The activity I chose to participate in was about the Douglas shooting. Seventeen Lives were lost on February 14,2018. So I did a walkout March 14, 2018 to demonstrate that I am standing with Douglas high school. The walkout was not a protest, but it was a demonstration. Everyone who decided to walkout, and I demonstrated that we are stronger as a whole. We must stay united for the Seventeen innocent lives that were lost. We also all demonstrated that we want a safe school without gun violence or any violence. This is why most people participated in this walkout. One thing that is really important that I have heard before is, “ Guns don't kill people, because people kill

The tragic events at Virginia Tech in April of 2007 and Northern Illinois University in February of 2008 have policymakers, campus officials and citizens looking for solutions to prevent future attacks (Dickerson). Violent shootings that have occurred on a few college campuses in recent years have provoked a debate over