Kent State

4 Pages 917 Words

After a long period of fighting a defensive war in Vietnam, on April 29, 1970, President Richard Nixon launched a full scale attack in Cambodia, which greatly accelerated America's involvement in this conflict. The reaction from the American college student population was one that led into great controversy and heated debates. "Nixon said, ‘not for the purpose of expanding the war into Cambodia, but for ending the war in Vietnam, and winning the just peace we all desire" (May 4, 2).When Nixon announced his decision on the following day, many people were upset, and thousands of people protested. The end result of one particular protest was bloody, and a perfect example of what terrible shape our country was in during that period of time. Thoughtless mistakes such as the ones made on that day would have a snowball affect that lead into problems for all persons involved.
On May 3, 1970, students of Kent State University rallied to protest Nixon's announcement. There was violent protesting all through the night. Windows were busted, cars were destroyed, and the ROTC building was burned to the ground(The Ethical Spectacle 1). When the firemen arrived, their hoses were taken by students and used against them. At that point, Governor James Rhodes called for the National Guard to come in and protect the campus( 1). "Rhodes, running on a ‘law and order' platform, attempted to use this opportunity to garner votes in the primary election, which was only two days away"(May 4, 7). The following day Kent State University was under the protection of the Ohio National Guard. Around noon on that day, students formed in protest. They were told to disperse, but refused. The first action of the National Guard was to release tear-gas grenades upon the masses of students. These grenades were marginally successful, and only caused a temporary retreat. The students then responded by throwing concrete rocks( Spectacle 1 ).
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