What really happened at Kent State?
What really happened at Kent State? The 1960s and ’70s were tumultuous times in the United States. The country was fighting an unpopular war in Vietnam that was instigating a wave of protests. In 1970, tensions came to a fever pitch when tragedy struck on one college campus. On May 4, members of the Ohio National Guard shot into a crowd of antiwar protestors at Kent State University, killing four students and wounding nine. To understand the context of the tension, let’s sum up the background on the war. Vietnam, which had recently fought for its independence from France in the 1940s and ’50s, had split into the Communist North (Viet Cong) and non-Communist South, which sought a more democratic government. The United States had gradually increased its support for South Vietnam in order to prevent C
