Americans’ pride themselves in the constitutional guarantee of peaceful protest. But when either side in a standoff pulls the trigger, turning a demonstration violent, a voice is lost. A larger message is sent. Disagreement, civil disobedience, can be deadly. Such… Read More ›
I became a journalist in April 1970 at my hometown paper. I had little understanding of the profession. On May 4, government fired on its own citizens, killing four and wounding nine. Repeat: A government fired at its own citizens… Read More ›
The Kent State protesters demanded government accountability; the government responded not with answers but with violence. The student shootings at Kent State in 1970 signified the moment when the Vietnam War came to U.S. soil. Viewers of network newscasts had… Read More ›
I remember thinking when I heard the news of Kent State, “So now they are going to start killing us.” Because in that era, there was a “they” and there was an “us.” In that time in our country’s history,… Read More ›
Perhaps at no better time in recent history does the Ken State shootings teach us a lesson. When some think the division in our country has opened a chasm too deep to heal, it’s worth remembering what happened when such… Read More ›
The killings at Kent State reflected the usual lack of leadership by politicians. The country was already heavy breathing about the Vietnam War and needed cooler heads, not the ones running the state of Ohio at the time. Instead the… Read More ›
The killing of four unarmed students at Kent State on May 4, 1970 is not the only time our government has fired upon unarmed civilians. It happened 11 days later, again, at Jackson State, when police opened fire on unarmed… Read More ›
Reflections from activists, academics and others on the Kent State shootings
By Pauline W. Hoffmann These last several weeks have put a burden on many sectors of society from hourly workers who will struggle to provide for families to health care workers who battle on the front lines of the pandemic…. Read More ›
By Richard Lee If I had to find one thing in common about the musical body of work John Prine gave us, it would be the way each one of his songs evoked an emotion. He made us laugh; he… Read More ›
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