Savanna Hoffman
On May 4, 1970, four Kent State University students were killed and nine were wounded by the Ohio National Guard during a rally opposing the expanding involvement of the Vietnam War into Cambodia. The Kent State shootings, also known as the Kent State massacre, triggered a nationwide student strike that forced hundreds of colleges and universities to close. The event also prompted a wave of protests on college campuses across the United States, with students expressing anger and calling for an end to the war. The killings shocked the nation and highlighted the deep political and social divisions that sharply divided the country during the Vietnam War era.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date | May 4, 1970 |
| Location | Kent State University, Kent, Ohio |
| Victims | Allison Krause, Jeffrey Miller, Sandra Lee Scheuer, William Schroeder |
| Number of deaths | 4 |
| Number of wounded | 9 |
| Perpetrator | Ohio National Guard |
| Number of shots fired | 67 |
| Time taken to fire shots | 13 seconds |
| Protest type | Anti-Vietnam War, against US military involvement in Cambodia |
| Student organizations involved | Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), Black United Students (BUS) |
| Impact | Nationwide student strike, closure of colleges and universities, protests on campuses, Hard Hat riot |
| Notable mentions | Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph by John Filo, Songs written about the event |
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What You'll Learn
The Kent State Massacre
On May 4, 1970, members of the Ohio National Guard opened fire on a crowd of Kent State University demonstrators, killing four and injuring nine. This incident, now known as the Kent State Massacre, or the May 4 Massacre, dramatically changed the nation. It sparked the first nationwide student strike in US history, with over 4 million students protesting, and hundreds of colleges and universities forced to close.
The events of that day had been building for some time. In the fall of 1968, the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and Black United Students staged a sit-in to protest against police recruiters on campus. In April 1969, SDS members clashed with police while attempting to enter the administration building with a list of demands. The university revoked the Kent State SDS chapter charter. On April 10, 1970, Jerry Rubin, a leader of the Youth International Party, spoke on campus, saying: "The first part of the Yippie program is to kill your parents."
On May 1, 1970, two rallies were held at Kent State, protesting the expansion of the Vietnam War into Cambodia. Around 500 students gathered at the Commons, a grassy area in the centre of campus, and symbolically buried a copy of the US Constitution, saying it had been murdered by Nixon. A sign was put on a tree asking: "Why is the ROTP building still standing?" A further protest organised by the Black United Students attracted around 400 students and ended peacefully.
However, that evening, a peaceful protest in downtown Kent turned violent, with revellers overturning a garbage can, setting fire to its contents, and attacking police. The police responded with force, and the crowd began breaking store windows. The Kent Mayor, Leroy Satrom, declared a civil emergency and requested assistance from the state governor. The next day, May 4, the National Guard was called in to disperse a rally scheduled for noon. Shortly after the protest began, guardsmen fired tear gas at the students and followed them as they ran away. After several standoffs, the troops headed to the top of a steep hill, where they turned and fired into the crowd for 13 seconds, killing four students: Allison Krause, Jeffrey Miller, Sandra Scheuer, and William Knox Schroeder; and wounding nine others. One photograph, capturing 14-year-old Mary Ann Vecchio screaming over the body of Jeffrey Miller, became a defining image of the anti-Vietnam War movement.
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Student protests at the time
Student protests at Kent State University in 1970 were part of a wider wave of demonstrations across the United States against the Vietnam War and the draft. The protests at Kent State, which had a history of activism, were sparked by President Nixon's expansion of the war into Cambodia.
On May 1, 1970, around 500 students gathered at the Commons, a grassy area in the centre of the campus, to protest Nixon's announcement. A group of graduate history students symbolically buried a copy of the US Constitution, saying Nixon had "murdered" it. A sign was also put on a tree, asking: "Why is the ROTC building still standing?". Another protest, organised by the Black United Students (BUS), attracted around 400 students and ended peacefully.
The next day, violence broke out in downtown Kent. Students and others gathered at bars and, fuelled by alcohol and anger at the invasion of Cambodia, overturned a garbage can, set fire to its contents, and clashed with police. The city's mayor then asked Ohio's governor to send in the National Guard. On May 3, around 1,000 National Guardsmen occupied the campus, and the governor issued a provocative statement calling the protestors "the worst type of people in America". Demonstrations had been banned, but students continued to gather, and on May 4, around 3,000 people assembled in the centre of the campus. The guardsmen ordered the protesters to disperse, and after a series of standoffs, troops fired live rounds into the crowd, killing four students and wounding nine.
The Kent State shootings triggered a nationwide student strike, with more than 450 campuses across the country closing amid demonstrations. The events also highlighted the deep political and cultural divisions in the United States during the Vietnam War era.
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The victims and their legacy
The Kent State shootings, also known as the Kent State massacre or the May 4 massacre, resulted in the deaths of four students and injuries to nine others. The four students killed were Allison Krause, Jeffrey Miller, Sandra Lee Scheuer, and William Schroeder. Krause, Miller, and Scheuer died on the scene, while Schroeder was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital shortly afterward. The shootings also left one student permanently paralysed.
The victims of the Kent State shootings have been remembered in various ways. Krause's father, for example, pointed to the fact that President Nixon had referred to student protesters as "bums", crying out, "My daughter was not a bum!". Krause's memory has also been honoured by her sister, Laurie Krause, who co-founded the Kent State Truth Tribunal.
Miller's death was captured in a Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph by Kent State photojournalism student John Filo. The photograph depicted a 14-year-old runaway, Mary Ann Vecchio, screaming over Miller's body, and it became a symbol of the anti-Vietnam War movement.
The shootings triggered a nationwide student strike, forcing colleges and universities to close across the country. The event also prompted protests on college campuses throughout the United States, with students expressing sentiments such as, "They Can't Kill Us All." The Kent State campus remained closed for six weeks following the tragedy.
The legal aftermath of the shootings concluded in January 1979 with an out-of-court settlement, including a monetary payment of $675,000 to the wounded students and the families of those killed. While the statement signed by the Ohio National Guard was viewed as a declaration of regret, it was not seen as an apology or admission of wrongdoing.
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The impact on the nation
The Kent State shootings, also known as the Kent State massacre or the May 4 massacre, had a profound impact on the nation. The killings triggered a nationwide student strike, with protests and demonstrations on college campuses across the United States. More than 4 million students took part in the strike, and hundreds of colleges and universities were forced to close, including Kent State, which remained closed for six weeks.
The shootings also highlighted and exacerbated the deep political and social divisions within the country during the Vietnam War era. They brought to the fore questions about the constitutionality of banning protests and the decisions to use lethal force against American citizens. The events at Kent State became a symbol of these divisions and galvanised the anti-war movement, with photographs of the massacre becoming enduring images of the movement.
The impact of the shootings extended beyond the immediate aftermath, with some arguing that they played a role in the slide into Watergate and the eventual downfall of the Nixon administration. H. R. Haldeman, a top aide to President Nixon, suggested that the shootings had a direct impact on national politics. In his book "The Ends of Power" (1978), Haldeman states that the events at Kent State "began the slide into Watergate, eventually destroying the Nixon administration."
The Kent State shootings also had a lasting impact on the university itself and the local community. The campus was closed for six weeks following the shootings, and the legal aftermath of the incident continued for several years, with an out-of-court settlement finally reached in January 1979. The tragedy brought attention to the activist presence at Kent State, challenging the characterisation of the university as an "unlikely site for student radicalism."
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The legal aftermath
On May 4, 1970, members of the Ohio National Guard opened fire on a crowd of Kent State University demonstrators, killing four and wounding nine unarmed students. The event triggered a nationwide student strike, forcing hundreds of colleges and universities to close.
> "In retrospect, the tragedy of May 4, 1970, should not have occurred. The students may have believed that they were right in continuing their mass protest in response to the Cambodian invasion, even though this protest followed the posting and reading by the university of several notices prohibiting mass gatherings on campus and warning that the continued violation of these notices would be met with disciplinary action."
The settlement also included a financial component of $675,000, paid by the State of Ohio to the wounded students and the parents of the students who had been killed. This amount was estimated by the State to equal the cost of going to trial.
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Frequently asked questions
On May 4, 1970, members of the Ohio National Guard opened fire on Kent State University students, killing four and wounding nine. The students were protesting against the Vietnam War and the expansion of the war into Cambodia.
No, the students were unarmed.
The Kent State University shooting triggered a nationwide student strike that forced hundreds of colleges and universities to close. It also led to protests on college campuses across the United States, with violent and non-violent demonstrations taking place.
The four students who were killed were Allison Krause, Jeffrey Miller, Sandra Scheuer, and William Knox Schroeder.
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