July 25, 2021

#18: What happened at Kent State in 1970 is truly heartbreaking.

At some point in your high school education, a Social Studies teacher most likely breezed past the Kent State shootings. This probably came up during a 1945-Present elective, and while I’m generalizing here, this is what’s usually covered: four students died at Kent State University after the National Guard opened fire. While this is true, there’s so much more to the story.

Yesterday morning, I breezed through the final pages of Derf Backderf’s 2020 graphic novel Kent State: Four Dead in Ohio. The novel paints a picture of the days leading up to the now famous event, telling the story through the eyes of its inevitable victims. After spending four years researching historical archives and talking with family members and survivors, Mr. Backderf takes us back in time to May of 1970. Here, he not only sets the stage for the massacre, Backderf humanizes the event for us.

The protests and riots happening during this time in Ohio were prompted by President Nixon’s nationwide speech of a Cambodian invasion. After reneging on his promise to deescalate the Vietnam War, the President’s speech sparked the students of Kent State to riot down Water Street, a main street in Kent State’s local town. Windows were broken and trash was left as student frustrations reached a new zenith. School-aged adults faced the possibility of being drafted to, what now seemed like, a never-ending war. Kent State was not the first Ohio university to experience an uprising, and after a mishandling of previous riots by Ohio’s Governor Jim Rhodes, the national guard was called in to ensure that any protesting was squandered. Over the next few days, escalating conflicts between the guards and protestors lead to what inevitably happened.

There’s so much more to the story, and I whole-heartly recommend reading Backderf’s book to find out for yourself (especially if graphic novels are not your usual “go-to”). What happened at Kent State is truly heartbreaking. Four students were killed, and there’s never been any real resolution for this tragedy. After spending nearly 250 pages with these kids, you really do get a sense of who they are, and who they are really isn’t that much different than me, or you, or any other 19–20-year-old. Jeffery Miller was just 20 years old at the time of his death and described as a “dreamer, drummer, and easy-going friend to everyone he met.” Allison Krause was only 19 years old and “passionate, smart, and committed. She wanted to “save the world from itself.” Sandra Scheuer was 20 years old, and “was caring and extroverted, devoted daughter and the best friend you could ever have.” Sandy wasn’t even protesting the day of the shootings. She was caught in the crossfire simply walking to class. Finally, Bill Schroeder was an ROTC cadet at just 19 years of age. He had the “mind of a scientist and the heart of a philosopher.” He, like Sandy, wasn’t even apart of the protesting.

Jeff, Allison, Sandra, and Bill’s deaths would go on to spark national protests across the country, and the Vietnam War would eventually end five years later in 1975. However, present in Backderf’s well-researched story is a plethora of mis and disinformation, denigration of the students, lies, government meddling, and power-hungry people in charge. If you ask me, it’s these factors that amped up people’s actions and facilitated the tragic events.

While reading, I drew so many connections to what’s happening in our world today. These factors still play a role in today’s tragic events. I often tend to think that social media, algorithms, big tech, and greed are at the center of today’s problems, and while they most certainly accelerate it, the massacre at Kent State is proof that these problems predate our current technology, and it’s something we really need to grapple and deal with.

Thanks for reading.