The presidential election of 1968 was one of the closest in history with Richard Nixon defeating Hubert Humphrey by just 500,000 votes.  In fact, because of the candidacy of independent George Wallace, 9,000,000 more people voted against Richard Nixon than voted for him.  The nation was divided and 1968 was one of the most turbulent years in the history of the country.  Both Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King., Jr. had been assassinated, there were riots in the streets and on college campuses, racial tension was growing, the Tet offensive in Vietnam turned American public opinion even further against the war, and over 17,000 young Americans were sent home from Vietnam in body bags.

President Nixon had a “plan” to end the war and bring “peace with honor.”  Nixon decided to withdraw American troops from Vietnam in a gradual manner, while turning over the conduct of the war to the South Vietnamese army.  He also tried to change the role of American troops by putting them in less dangerous situations in an effort to reduce casualties.  This strategy was called “Vietnamization.”   As the enclosed chart shows, Nixon’s approach appeared to be working because as the number of American troops in Vietnam decreased, so too did the casualties.  Peace negotiations in Paris dragged on as new  National Security Advisor, Henry Kissinger, worked frustratingly slowly with his adversary, Le Duc Tho.  As the two countries negotiated over at times minor issues, there was an unexpected development in the attitude of the American troops.

Once the gradual pullout began, American troops developed an attitude of simply trying to survive and come home.  While a sense of survival was always obvious, the troops increasingly balked at orders and there was a general decrease in discipline.  The number of incidents of  “fragging” increased.  (Fragging is a term used to describe the use of fragmentation grenades for killing unpopular officers and other men.  Some reports indicate more than 1,000 fragging attempts were made over the course of the war, with an unknown number being successful.  Morale among the troops decreased as they were very aware of the antiwar sentiment in the United States.  Unfortunately, racial tension and drug use also increased, as did the number of cases of men going AWOL (Absent Without Leave.)  Discipline declined and the complete pullout couldn’t come fast enough for the troops in Vietnam, nor for the public and politicians at home.

Politicians seized on the antiwar sentiment and criticized the pace of the pullout of American troops.  Many wanted an accelerated specific schedule of troops being pulled out of Vietnam, but the approach of President Nixon, Henry Kissinger, and the military was to remove a certain number and see how the South Vietnamese could handle the new reduction in U.S. forces.  The United States continued to supply air support and advice, but increasingly reduced their role.
By 1970, the North Vietnamese army recognized what was happening and took advantage of it by avoiding combat and conserving their military strength.  They knew that once the Americans pulled out, their road to victory would be relatively easy.  Most Viet Cong and North Vietnamese units decided to wait and hide until the United States pulled out.  They amassed large caches of weapons and firepower, as well as thousands of soldiers in secret hiding places.  But where on earth could they hide so many men and so much firepower?     --------------- Cambodia.

Prince Norodom Sihanouk, the leader of Cambodia, had long fought to keep Cambodia independent and neutral.  It became increasingly obvious that the North Vietnamese had sanctuaries and troops along the eastern border of Cambodia, and although he didn’t like it, Sihanouk knew there wasn’t much he could do to stop them.  However, in 1967 Sihanouk said that if American troops needed to cross the border to pursue the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese, he would not object as long as no Cambodian civilians were injured or killed.  At the time, Lyndon Johnson feared widening the war, so incursions into Cambodia were minor.  After Richard Nixon became President, the tacit approval of Prince Sihanouk was reconsidered by the military and the President.  After much debate, the U.S. secretly bombed military targets along the Cambodian border more than 3,000 times prior to March of 1970.  Not only did the bombing remain a secret from Congress and the American people, it likely killed innocent Cambodian civilians.  In 1970, as Viet Cong and North Vietnamese forces continued to mount in Cambodia, Prince Sihanouk went to the Soviet Union to seek help because he wanted to keep Cambodia out of the war.  While he was gone, Lon Nol, a general in the Cambodian army, led an overthrow of the government.  Lon Nol immediately stated his clear support for the United States and South Vietnam, which opened the door to a once neutral country.

Reconnaissance missions clearly identified locations in Cambodia where the North Vietnamese and the Viet Cong were hiding major supplies of weapons and materiel, as well as up to 40,000 troops.  President Nixon now had a very difficult decision to make.  If he sent troops into Cambodia he could possibly save the lives of American and South Vietnamese forces, and he could at least delay the communists operations.  Additionally, a successful attack against North Vietnamese and Viet Cong strongholds might strengthen the U.S. position in the peace talks.   On the other hand, although we had secretly bombed strategic military targets, we were not at war, either officially or unofficially, with Cambodia.  The legality of sending troops into Cambodia without the approval of Congress was dubious at best, irrespective of the Tonkin Gulf Resolution.  Sending troops into an apparently neutral country could widen the war just when it appeared we were winding down in Vietnam. Despite the comments of the new Cambodian leader,Lon Nol, the President had to worry about the reaction of the Cambodian people, neighboring Laos, China, the Soviet Union, and the American public.

What to do?  President Nixon decided to go for broke.  On April 30, 1970 twenty thousand troops entered Cambodia to search and destroy enemy bases.  The effort was hoped to be relatively brief and effective.  Results actually were mixed.  In some cases, the enemy had anticipated the raids and had abandoned their positions.  However, other raids were very successful.  In one raid, U.S. and ARVN forces captured an amazing two million rounds of small arms ammunition, 58,000 pounds of plastic explosives, 22 cases of mines, 2,000 grenades and many other supplies and materiel.   American military commanders estimated that about half of the hidden supply bases remained uncovered and it would have taken several months at best to find and destroy them all.  President Nixon had planned to get in and out of Cambodia in 30 days, and true to his word the American forces pulled out.   Despite the significant amounts of arms and materiel found by the U.S. troops, the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces along the Ho Chi Minh trail were so efficient that they were able to replace the supplies relatively quickly.  Unfortunately, the raids into Cambodia only delayed the efforts of the communists.

The biggest loss was at home.  Although some people, including my brother who was in Vietnam at the time, supported the move, many across the nation were infuriated.  Riots on college campuses erupted and the National Guard had to be called out.  At Kent State, student and other protestors set fire to the campus ROTC building.
Governor Rhodes called out the National Guard and four students ended up being killed while nine others were wounded.

On May 4, 1970 four college students were shot and killed on the campus of Kent State University by the Ohio National Guard.  Nine other students were wounded.  How in the world could such a tragedy happen on a college campus in the United States?  Why would the Ohio National Guard shoot live ammunition at a group of students, some innocent passersby?

Although this unit is focusing solely on the Vietnam War, it must be remembered that the other major event happening in the 1960’s was the civil rights revolution.  Public demonstrations, sit-ins, boycotts, and marches were common activities in the 1960’s.  Most were peaceful, others turned violent.  The assassinations of Medgar Evers, President Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Robert Kennedy all happened in the turbulence of the 1960’s.  Riots in major cities were fought more often than public officials could handle.  As the number of draftees and deaths in Vietnam increased, so too did protests about the war in Vietnam, especially on college campuses.  In this particular instance, the protests centered on college campuses because the students knew that once their college deferments were over, they would likely have to serve in the military.  The thought of going to Vietnam naturally frightened many students and they began to question what was happening in Vietnam and why we were there to begin with.  However, it wasn’t fear alone that drove the hearts of the students.  Healthy idealism and a desire to stop the killing in Vietnam and seek peace was the centerpiece of the student movement.

What was happening in May of 1970 on the campus of Kent State was not unusual.  It was unusual, however, for such a small campus in the heartland to be so politically active and apparently radical. In 1970 President Nixon’s plan to Vietnamize the war seemed to be working as U.S. troop levels in Vietnam were the lowest they had been since 1965, deaths of American soldiers were dramatically reduced, peace talks were taking place in Paris, the draft had been changed to a more fair lottery system and the number of men called to serve was reduced.  The end of the nation’s nightmare in Vietnam seemed to be nearing. Because of the draft lottery system, college students knew whether or not they would be drafted when they got out of college and they could focus their lives on their futures.  As a result of the changes made by President Nixon, there were fewer protests on the campuses.  But the war was not over and the protest movement was still steaming, waiting to explode.

On April 30, 1970, President Nixon announced he was sending troops into Cambodia to attack sanctuaries of enemy weapons and soldiers.  His goal was to save American lives, help the innocent people of South Vietnam, and regenerate the stalled Paris peace talks.  His decision was a difficult one and he labored over it, but he listened to his military advisors and decided the time was right.  President Nixon knew his decision was controversial and could cost him politically as he ended his speech by saying, “I would rather be a one-term President and do what I believe is right than to be a two-term President at the cost of seeing America become a second-rate power and to see this nation accept the first defeat in its proud 190-year history.”

The boiling protest movement exploded after President Nixon’s announcement and poured out over college campuses across the nation.  Students and others were infuriated!  They saw this move as a widening of the war and an invasion of a neutral country, right at the time when it seemed we were getting out of Vietnam.  Politicians on Capitol Hill reacted with fury, challenging President Nixon’s authority, and a few of Henry Kissinger’s aides resigned in protest.

The next day, on Friday, May 1, a group of about 500 students gathered on the campus of Kent State and buried a copy of the Constitution, a symbolic gesture representing its death because they believed President Nixon usurped the war powers of  Congress.  Three hours later, a previously scheduled rally on the Kent State campus entitled “Black United Students” was led by students from Ohio State University and  attended by about 400 students.  Student leaders spread the word that yet another rally to protest the Cambodia decision was planned for Monday, May 4 at noon.

It just so happened that this was a Friday evening on a college campus in the spring.  Several hundred students gathered in several bars in the area and a spontaneous anti-war rally began in the streets of downtown Kent, Ohio.  As police cruisers passed by to check on the rally, they were twice hit with beer bottles.  Not wanting to incite the crowd, police decided to stay away from the area.  But as the evening wore on and alcohol flowed, more students left the bars and joined the rally chanting anti-war slogans and they started a bonfire in the street.  The crowd was rowdy and blocked traffic for over an hour before moving toward the center of town.  Some students and/or other members of the crowd attacked businesses by breaking windows of banks and utility companies, targets they referred to as “political.”

Mayor Satrom was upset by the events and declared a state of emergency and ordered all of the bars to close.  Police read the “riot-act” and proceeded to clear the area, but in closing the bars they actually unwittingly forced more people onto the streets.  Police used tear gas and night sticks to disperse the crowd.  Fourteen persons were arrested, 43 windows broken, and about $5,000.00 damage was done.
Governor Rhodes was called for help and he prepared the Ohio National Guard.
 
On Saturday, May 2, some students from Kent State went downtown and helped with the cleanup effort.  The mayor imposed a curfew and students were restricted to campus.  Rumors of another major rally circled through the campus and town.  These rumors included a possible attempt to burn down the ROTC building, a popular target of student protesters around the country.  Without informing Kent State officials, Mayor Satrom alerted the Ohio National Guard at 5:00 p.m..
At about 8:00 p.m. a small rally was held on campus, after which more and more students joined in until their numbers swelled to approximately 2,000.  They marched to the ROTC building and proceded to break windows and set the building on fire.
Firemen arrived but could not douse the fire because someone had cut their hoses with a knife.  The fire died out, but was soon restarted and the firefighters arrived again, but this time with police protection.  The police dispersed the crowd with tear gas and the fire was under control.  However, when the students got to their Commons area, they were surprised to see both the Ohio National Guard arriving and to see that the ROTC building was on fire again.  The students reassembled, anti-war slogans were shouted, stones were thrown, and then the students were chased by the National Guard back into their dorms, with one student being stabbed with a Guard bayonet.

Tuesday, May 5 was a critical date in what happened at Kent State because that was the day of the Ohio Primary.  Ohio Governor James Rhodes was running for the U.S. Senate, so he went to Kent on Sunday, May 3 and gave an inflammatory speech about law and order. In his speech, Rhodes made an unfortunate comment that only made the situation worse.  Referring to people he believed to be organized revolutionaries, Rhodes said, “These protesters are the worst type of people we harbor in America, worse than the brown shirts and the communist element...we will use whatever force necessary to drive them out of Kent!"

On Sunday evening a crowd of students gathered again but were advised by the Guard that a new curfew was in place and they had to disperse.  The students wanted to talk with the mayor and the president of Kent State about why the Ohio National Guard had been called, so they marched peacefully to town but were stopped and then staged a quiet sit-in.  The Guard assured them they would be able to have their meeting, so the students moved to a grassy area where they were soon dispersed with tear gas from helicopters flying above.  The students ran for their dorms, some were bayoneted, and others were beaten with clubs.  Helicopters with search lights flew around the campus all night.

Monday, May 4 was one of the saddest days in American history.  About 1,500 students gathered on the Commons, some listening to speeches, others just milling around.  The focus of the rally was to protest the Cambodia decision and the presence of the Ohio National Guard on campus.  An army jeep approached the students, and yelling through a bullhorn a Guardsman ordered the students to disperse.  The students refused.  The Ohio National Guard was then ordered to disperse the students.  Over 100 Guardsmen with loaded rifles and tear gas approached the students, firing tear gas.  Frightened, the students ran away from the tear gas, although some students stopped to throw the canisters back at the Guardsmen.  The Guardsmen fired more tear gas to separate the crowd and then the Guardsmen went to a nearby practice football field for about ten minutes.  Tear gas canisters and stones were thrown back and forth between students and Guardsmen from about a 100 yard distance.  Believing the crowd had been dispersed, the Guard was ordered to march back up to the Commons area.  Most of the students thought the event was over and some headed to classes.  A vocal group of students remained in place and continued to shout at the Guardsmen.  About a dozen of the Guardsmen then looked back and huddled briefly.  Shortly thereafter, the dozen Guardsmen turned, aimed, and fired 67 shots in 13 seconds, killing four students and wounding nine others, one of whom is permanently paralyzed.

Guardsmen claimed the students were a threat.  A threat?  Of the four students who died, Jeffrey Miller, Allison Krause, William Schroeder, and Sandra Scheuer, not one was closer to the Guard than 265 feet, not one was armed.  Miller, who was the closest at 265 feet, wasn’t even involved in the rally.  The closest wounded student was 71 feet away, and Alan Canfora, who was waving a flag, apparently threatened the armed Guardsmen so much from 225 feet away that they shot him in the wrist then fired at him several more times as he hid behind a tree.

The Guardsmen simply had no justification for using lethal weapons in this situation.  Families of the killed and injured sued but lost the initial case.  On appeal, a settlement was reached out of court.  Families of the four killed students each received $15,000.00, while others were paid based on the severity of their injuries.  Dean Kahler, who was 300 feet away from the Guardsmen at the time of the shooting, was paralyzed for life and received $350,000.00.  The remaining victims split less than $300,000.00.

Eight Guardsmen admitted shooting into the crowd of unarmed students and were charged with violating the civil rights of the students they shot, a minor offense.  The charges were dismissed.

Governor Rhodes lost the Primary election on Tuesday, May 5 to Robert Taft, who went on to become senator in November, defeating Howard Metzenbaum.
 

Discuss:  Have there been other times when the government violated the civil rights of its citizens in such a cruel manner?
Ruby Ridge?    Waco?    Richard Jewel?