One time I visited Kent State University, and one of the plaques there talked about how, after the massacre, a group of students were planning to reassemble to mourn the victims and continue the protest. One of the professors shouted something along the lines of, “They’re just gonna kill you all!” and desperately begged and pleaded for them to disperse, not because he disagreed with their cause, but because he understood that they would be throwing their lives away.
The students were convinced. When the first gunshots had rung out, most of them thought they were firing blanks to intimidate them. They couldn’t imagine that the guards would simply open fire with live rounds on a crowd of unarmed students. But afterwards, it was obvious that they would have no restraint, no matter how peacefully they mourned.
One time I visited Kent State University, and one of the plaques there talked about how, after the massacre, a group of students were planning to reassemble to mourn the victims and continue the protest. One of the professors shouted something along the lines of, “They’re just gonna kill you all!” and desperately begged and pleaded for them to disperse, not because he disagreed with their cause, but because he understood that they would be throwing their lives away.
The students were convinced. When the first gunshots had rung out, most of them thought they were firing blanks to intimidate them. They couldn’t imagine that the guards would simply open fire with live rounds on a crowd of unarmed students. But afterwards, it was obvious that they would have no restraint, no matter how peacefully they mourned.