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Remembering The Kent State Four
2 years ago
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On May 4, 1970, members of the Ohio National Guard fired into a crowd of Kent State University demonstrators, killing four and wounding nine Kent State students.
The impact of the shootings was dramatic. The event triggered a nationwide student strike that forced hundreds of colleges and universities to close.
H. R. Haldeman, a top aide to President Richard Nixon, suggests the shootings had a direct impact on national politics. In "The Ends of Power" (1978), Haldeman states that the shootings at Kent State began the slide into Watergate, eventually destroying the Nixon administration.
Beyond the direct effects of the May 4th, the shootings have certainly come to symbolize the deep political and social divisions that so sharply divided the country during the Vietnam War era. -Taken from "The May 4 Shootings At Kent State University: The Search For Historical Accuracy" - By Jerry M. Lewis and Thomas R. Hensley
I remember hearing the news of the Kent State killings at my own school campus that Monday May 4, 1970. The deaths of Allison Krause, Jeffrey Glen Miller, Sandra Lee Scheuer, and William Knox Schroeder left a life long impression upon me. Their senseless killings were what launched my heart into activism and eventually led me into writing as a means to address injustice and social ills.
Each year on May 4th I set aside time to remember the Kent State shootings and to meditate upon a National tragedy that should have never taken place.
No one has ever been found guilty for the killing of these four students. And even though previously archived evidence was released as recently as today - it is doubtful that anyone will ever be held responsible for the deaths of these four young souls.
Kent State is a warning to us in our day. Some of our leaders seek an unprecedented wielding of power and control - even to the extent of setting aside the governing document of the Constitution as the final authority for our nation. Once again a war, and the threat of war, is the justification - only this time it is for the usurping of constitutional rights. We must remember that the quest for absolute power is never satisfied. We should seek to do all we can do - peacefully and non violently - to elect officials, support legislation, and influence politicians to effect righteous and democratic change in our land. Memorializing events such as Kent State can and should cause us to work for peace and a nation where the disregard of life is no longer tolerated.
We must also let these violent deaths remind us of the countless Native Americans and African Americans who have suffered these evils and worse for almost 200 years in the U.S. as the victims of injustice.
This thread is dedicated to Allison Krause, Jeffrey Glen Miller, Sandra Lee Scheuer, and William Knox Schroeder - four dead in Ohio.
Allison, Bill, Jeffrey, and Sandra as kids.
2 years ago
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Neil Young - "Ohio" - Solo Acoustic
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A fairly balanced report of the events at Kent State, May 1st-4th 1970 - even though the essay leaves off at the findings of the official "inquiries."
-Click Here-
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A fairly balanced report of the events at Kent State, May 1st-4th 1970 - even though the essay leaves off at the findings of the official "inquiries."
-Click Here-
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2 years ago
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2 years ago
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One of the best online sites for a brief link summary of the Kent State killings.
-Click Here-
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Color video footage of May 4, 1970 - part of a German documentary "4 Tote In Ohio." Sorry - no video embedding was allowed so this link takes you directly to YouTube.
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A really well done first hand account with video and still photographs in Quicktime format. Terrible sound but worth watching.
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-Click Here-
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Color video footage of May 4, 1970 - part of a German documentary "4 Tote In Ohio." Sorry - no video embedding was allowed so this link takes you directly to YouTube.
___________________________________________________________
A really well done first hand account with video and still photographs in Quicktime format. Terrible sound but worth watching.
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2 years ago
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Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young
Ohio - Live - Electric - 36 years later.
2 years ago
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The Dead
Allison Krause
Age: 19
Date of Birth: April 23, 1951
Pittsburgh, PA
Freshman, Honors College
Chest wound - Allison Krause dies from a shot penetrating the left side of her body.
William Knox Schroeder
Age: 19
Date of Birth: July 20, 1950
Lorain, OH
Sophomore, Psychology
Chest wound - William Schroeder is shot in the back and dies.
Jeffrey Glen Miller
Age: 20
Date of Birth: March 28, 1950
Plainview, Long Island (NY)
Sophomore, Psychology
Head wound - Jeffrey Miller is shot in the mouth and dies.
Sandra Lee Scheuer
Age: 20
Date of Birth: August 11, 1949
Youngstown, OH
Junior, Speech & Hearing Therapy
Neck wound - Sandra Scheuer dies from a shot in the neck.
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"Find the cost of freedom
Buried in the ground.
Mother Earth will swallow you
Lay you body down."
Allison Krause
Age: 19
Date of Birth: April 23, 1951
Pittsburgh, PA
Freshman, Honors College
Chest wound - Allison Krause dies from a shot penetrating the left side of her body.
William Knox Schroeder
Age: 19
Date of Birth: July 20, 1950
Lorain, OH
Sophomore, Psychology
Chest wound - William Schroeder is shot in the back and dies.
Jeffrey Glen Miller
Age: 20
Date of Birth: March 28, 1950
Plainview, Long Island (NY)
Sophomore, Psychology
Head wound - Jeffrey Miller is shot in the mouth and dies.
Sandra Lee Scheuer
Age: 20
Date of Birth: August 11, 1949
Youngstown, OH
Junior, Speech & Hearing Therapy
Neck wound - Sandra Scheuer dies from a shot in the neck.
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"Find the cost of freedom
Buried in the ground.
Mother Earth will swallow you
Lay you body down."
2 years ago
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The Wounded
Alan Canfora
Age: 21
Barberton, OH
John Cleary
Age: 19
Scotia, NY
Thomas Mark Grace
Age: 20
Syracuse, NY
Dean Kahler
Age: 20
Canton, OH
Joseph Lewis
Massillon, OH
Donald MacKenzie
Summit Station, PA
James Dennis Russell
Teaneck, NY
Robert Stamps
Age: 19
South Euclid, OH
Douglas Wrentmore
Age: 20
Northfield, OH
Alan Canfora
Age: 21
Barberton, OH
John Cleary
Age: 19
Scotia, NY
Thomas Mark Grace
Age: 20
Syracuse, NY
Dean Kahler
Age: 20
Canton, OH
Joseph Lewis
Massillon, OH
Donald MacKenzie
Summit Station, PA
James Dennis Russell
Teaneck, NY
Robert Stamps
Age: 19
South Euclid, OH
Douglas Wrentmore
Age: 20
Northfield, OH
2 years ago
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On May 4, please keep the families and friends of the Kent State Four in your thoughts and prayers. My hope is that this reminder will motivate us to work even harder - and non violently - for peace, love, and tolerance in our nation and in our world.
2 years ago
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I am tottally ashamed to say I have never heard of this, granted I was 4 yrs old but you would think they would have told us that in school or at least college. and I grew up in philly, neighbors to ohio. this is very sad, my thoughts and prayers are with these people and the families, thank you for sharing this.
2 years ago
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I was 10 - old enough to know of it but not old enough to have really appriciated the gravity of this at the time or even to have it engraved in my memory the way that it should have been. Thanks for this touching reminder, Dennis.
Kent State
2 years ago
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Today I go to work with tears in my eyes and weeping stopped up inside my throat. Thank you for this unbearably poignant rememberance. Thank you for the time you took to honor these dear lives...the dead and the yet living. Thank you for doing this for them and for us. My heart is and will be with the families, and all those that were there and still remember the horror that came upon them in the United States of America. Who remember that someone decided these young innocent people should die violent deaths because they dared to disagree and had the courage to voice it out loud. Because they earnestly desired to save others lives. My prayer for them and their families is that they did not die in vain, and that their rememberance and the darkness of that day will, please, save others from the same fate, now, in the USA. To be honest, I don't think I could ever come up with words that could do justice to this or to these people. Thank you for eloquently giving of your time, your heart, and your talent for this cause. Love, sincerely, and always to all - A. Taliz
2 years ago
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Debbie, Amordad, and Ann
Thanks for your kind and very thoughtful posts. Being able to study events like Kent State while in school can only help us become better people. It's time to put an end the terrible proverb that the only thing we learn from history is that we learn nothing from history. Blessings to you.
Thanks for your kind and very thoughtful posts. Being able to study events like Kent State while in school can only help us become better people. It's time to put an end the terrible proverb that the only thing we learn from history is that we learn nothing from history. Blessings to you.
2 years ago
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Thank you, Dennis!
2 years ago
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a not-so-pleasant walk down Memory Lane...
our prayers & love to all.
Namaste
our prayers & love to all.
Namaste
2 years ago
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I'm also sorry to say I don't remember this when it happened as I was only 4 years old. However, I have heard about this senseless tragedy. Though the years have gone by, the memory should never fade of those who lost their lives. This is a lovely tribute to the memory of those who were lost.
2 years ago
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In my prayers...
Again
2 years ago
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So when I returned home I revisited your post on the Kent State murders. I couldn't think about it all day much, because it made me start to cry. And I read the statistics about those killed and wounded. Sandra Lee Scheuer was 20 when I was 20. She was my age. She was going to be a speech and hearing therapist. She was going to help people. She got shot in the neck and probably bled to death...in the United States of America. She didn't believe our President at the time was right about the war. Apparently she was right, after all. But someone thought she was somewone who needed killing. I could have been her. I remember being 20...when she was 20. In a billion years I would never have dreamed that soldiers would have killed me for protesting anything in the United States. But after she died, we all knew that was a lie. Innocence was over. Reality was horrific. Our hearts were broken. And, after that, nothing was...nothing will...ever be the same. I don't know but I seem to remember some kids...some other, younger kids...marching with a peaceful man for human rights...getting hosed with a fire hose, kicked and beaten and terrified. Here in the United States of America.
Some things are almost unbearable to think about. Thanks for having the courage and the honest and earnest desire to make us think about them. I'd rather mourn over the truth than be giddy, self righteous and stupid over a lie. Thanks. Really. A. Taliz
Some things are almost unbearable to think about. Thanks for having the courage and the honest and earnest desire to make us think about them. I'd rather mourn over the truth than be giddy, self righteous and stupid over a lie. Thanks. Really. A. Taliz
2 years ago
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Claire, Willow, Marina, and Ann,
Thank you for your posts and for the loving care you expressed.
Each May 4th I think of what it must be like to be a parent of one of these four fallen kids. Combined with the deep grief of never seeing their children grow up to find their dreams the parents have never been given any sense of closure as to who was responsible for their deaths. That must be a sadness that tears at their hearts every year.
Your thoughts and prayers are truly appreciated. Thank you.
Thank you for your posts and for the loving care you expressed.
Each May 4th I think of what it must be like to be a parent of one of these four fallen kids. Combined with the deep grief of never seeing their children grow up to find their dreams the parents have never been given any sense of closure as to who was responsible for their deaths. That must be a sadness that tears at their hearts every year.
Your thoughts and prayers are truly appreciated. Thank you.
2 years ago
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twenty-eight and four
you haven't slept for thirty years
your heart and soul won't let you
the tragedy of long ago
still wets your eyes with tears
you know you turned on Blanket Hill
you know you fired rounds
you know just where you aimed your gun
and where those fell you killed
thirty seven years have passed
please go - retrace your steps
stand where you stood, aim where you aimed
and put this deed to rest
the blood of four young souls cries out
gunned down by twenty-eight
each one can reenact the day
and silence guilt and doubt
when once you stand where once you stood
and look to where you shot
jeff and alli, sandy, bill
would whisper if they could
they long for you to rest from shame
to put a seal on this
come forward now and share the truth
and rid your conscience pain
you can do this - you can tell
the nightmare needs to end
go to the scene relive the day
and kneel where those kids fell
From there see where you made your stand
and own the shot was yours
the horror of over thirty years
can end - dear god it can
you can bring this to the light
at last admit your crime
before you close your eyes on earth
please finally do what's right
for allison, jeffrey, sandra and william
may 4th, 1970
you haven't slept for thirty years
your heart and soul won't let you
the tragedy of long ago
still wets your eyes with tears
you know you turned on Blanket Hill
you know you fired rounds
you know just where you aimed your gun
and where those fell you killed
thirty seven years have passed
please go - retrace your steps
stand where you stood, aim where you aimed
and put this deed to rest
the blood of four young souls cries out
gunned down by twenty-eight
each one can reenact the day
and silence guilt and doubt
when once you stand where once you stood
and look to where you shot
jeff and alli, sandy, bill
would whisper if they could
they long for you to rest from shame
to put a seal on this
come forward now and share the truth
and rid your conscience pain
you can do this - you can tell
the nightmare needs to end
go to the scene relive the day
and kneel where those kids fell
From there see where you made your stand
and own the shot was yours
the horror of over thirty years
can end - dear god it can
you can bring this to the light
at last admit your crime
before you close your eyes on earth
please finally do what's right
for allison, jeffrey, sandra and william
may 4th, 1970
2 years ago
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Thank you dearest Dennis for this deeply moving poem.
To address the one who killed The Kent State Four in such a heartfelt way, teaches such an important lesson: that only love and compassion can initiate the process of healing, for all involved.
I feel that Allison, Jeffrey, Sandra and William would deeply approve of and be grateful for what you express here.
My thoughts too are with all the ones who suffer from this terrible event and countless others.
Thank you again for remembering them in such a beautiful, loving and respectful way, and for showing us that though pain seems bottomless, there is always love available to heal, and that we can use our love to make right what is wrong.
To address the one who killed The Kent State Four in such a heartfelt way, teaches such an important lesson: that only love and compassion can initiate the process of healing, for all involved.
I feel that Allison, Jeffrey, Sandra and William would deeply approve of and be grateful for what you express here.
My thoughts too are with all the ones who suffer from this terrible event and countless others.
Thank you again for remembering them in such a beautiful, loving and respectful way, and for showing us that though pain seems bottomless, there is always love available to heal, and that we can use our love to make right what is wrong.
2 years ago
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Dear Mayke,
Thank you for your very kind words and for the encouragement of your thoughts. The poem was incredibly hard to post - even though the words flowed swiftly at the time it was written.
You are so right - the healing and the love available to restore us almost shouts with such sincere desire to touch our lives. Thank you for the reminder of this precious truth.
Thank you for your very kind words and for the encouragement of your thoughts. The poem was incredibly hard to post - even though the words flowed swiftly at the time it was written.
You are so right - the healing and the love available to restore us almost shouts with such sincere desire to touch our lives. Thank you for the reminder of this precious truth.
2 years ago
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Dear Dennis,
This is a beautiful, heartfelt poem. I cannot even imagine the pain of those loved ones who were left behind. Time may ease the pain a small bit of the loss of these people, but it will never erase it. I can only imagine that the pain is made even worse by the lack of closure they have experienced for all these years. The thought breaks my heart.
Blessings,
Willow
2 years ago
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Dear Willow,
Thank you for the kind thoughts and feelings you expressed. Some things leave an impression and cannot - nor should they - be forgotten.
Neil Young's lyrics echo hauntingly, "What if you knew her and found her dead on the ground? How can you run when you know?" Thank you for your words.
Thank you for the kind thoughts and feelings you expressed. Some things leave an impression and cannot - nor should they - be forgotten.
Neil Young's lyrics echo hauntingly, "What if you knew her and found her dead on the ground? How can you run when you know?" Thank you for your words.
2 years ago
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2 years ago
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I really hope that american people look back and remember, that
the fight is never over.
the fight is never over.
2 years ago
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Foxy,
I didn't see your thoughtful post until now. My heart echoes the feelings you expressed. Thank you.
I didn't see your thoughtful post until now. My heart echoes the feelings you expressed. Thank you.
