“The Day the 60’s Died” on Kent state shooting
Last year marked the fiftieth anniversary of two events, one at Kent State University in Ohio and the other at Jackson State University in Mississippi, during the Vietnam War. Clashes between university students, the National Guard, city and state police, made national headlines and shocked the sensibilities of most Americans across the political and social divide. Remembering that this is 1970, not 2020, I want you to watch this hour-long documentary and imagine what you would have done had you been a student at Kent State or Jackson State that spring semester of 1970. Then, just like you did in your first homework assignment, I would like you to write a reaction paper of at least 500 words (double-spaced, MS-Word–no PDFs) addressing the following questions:
Based on the arguments that you heard in the film (not what you can deduce from Google or Wikipedia), what specifically was the cause of student unrest? What would you have done on May 3rd and 4th if you were a student at Kent State? Why? Can you relate to Gerald Casale’s emotions as he witnessed what was happening on May 4th? What did he do? Remember that these students are YOUR age. What would you have done if you were a member of the National Guard deployed at Kent State? Why? What did Laura Davis’s father say about what happened? Why do you think he (and others who shared his perspective) reacted the way he did? How can you explain the events that transpired at Jackson State?
