Kent State Shooting Essay

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Recommended: Anti-war movements during the Vietnam War

The Kent state incident

What began as a simple anti-war demonstration, out of the hundreds that took place during the Vietnam war period, the Kent State incident transformed into a major turning point in American history that re-defined the course of America’s involvement in the Vietnam war. On May 4 of 1970 the national guard opened fire on students protesting against the invasion of Cambodia that president Nixon had announced 5 days before. The announcement enraged hundreds of students from Kent State who participated in several protests the days prior the shooting, some of which turned into violent incidents. This single event at Kent State university triggered a national strike that forced politicians to withdraw thousands of troops from …show more content…

Ten days later, another campus shooting occurred at Jackson State University in Mississippi when police and state patrolmen fired into a dormitory at the all-black school, killing two students and wounding at least nine others. The relative lack of attention given to the massacre at Jackson State embittered many African Americans.
No criminal charges were filed against the guardsmen who shot the students. to increase instability in the nation, rumors that president nixon try to cover up the incident spread “substantial evidence indicates that the Nixon administration attempted to obstruct the investigation of the case and prosecution of the guardsmen” (Kent State Shooting). After several weeks of intense protests, the nation’s economy went on a downfall and President Nixon immediately withdrew thousands of troop from vietnam.
There are many mysteries surrounding the kent state incident. to mention a few, nobody really knows why did the national guard opened fire against the students at kent state, or why did Governor Rhodes ordered the national guard to get involved so early. One thing is certain though, the Kent state incident was one of the major reasons for the withdrawal of troops from vietnam. For some, the incident will always be remembered as a symbol of the vietnam war

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