Kent State Shootings
1970s
I woke up that day, with a weird feeling that something wasn't right. My name is Simon Hall and I was a 22 year old college student, with only a bike and an apartment to my name. I worked nights at a fast food restaurant, and went to class in the morning at Kent State University. I remember how everyone was talking about the cool new movie AristoCats that was supposed to be in theaters soon. Most of the time I wore either a tie dye shirt and bell-bottoms, or a three piece suit, and always had my aviators.
It was May 4th, 1970, and I was riding my bike to class that morning. On my way there as I was listening to ABC by The Jackson 5, I was thinking about the announcement that President Nixon had just given a few days before, about the Cambodian Campaign, and how I thought it wasn't a good idea because people were already upset that we were in Vietnam in the first place. I remembered that a protest had been planned by other students, and I had received a paper that the University officials had handed out, trying to cancel the event. I went into class not thinking anything of it. I came out of class at about noon, to find a protest going on and saw that the National Guard had arrived. Not long after the guards began shooting tear gas into the crowd of about 2000 people. It didn't do much to the crowd and they continued to protest. Just then the guards advanced towards the students with their bayonets on their rifles, and the students retreated to the parking lot. I watched as the guards knelt down and aimed, but did not shoot. After a short time, most of the students had left, but the few that were still there were very angry with the guards. The guards then went back to the front of the campus and the protesters follow. Just then I heard gunshots and ducked to the ground. I looked over the hill again and saw about half of the guards shooting and 13 people laying on the ground all across the parking lot and front of the campus. After that, I got up, ran to my bike, and went home. And that is my eye witness account of the shootings that happened on May 4, 1970, at Kent State University.
The Jackson 5 - ABC