ONLINE HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT
Due Friday, April 2, 2010
@ 12:00 Midnight EDT
Read the intro, watch the video, watch the video of Neil Young singing "Ohio" and read the lyrics, and post your response. Responses should be between 150-200 words. This activity is worth 25 “extra credit” points.
Here are your prompts:
ª How do you feel/what do you think about what happened at Kent State on May 4, 1970?
ª Why do you think college students today are not protesting the War in Iraq and the War in Afghanistan?
Get a Sense of the Times: College Students Protest the War in Vietnam:
On May 4, 1970, a student demonstration at Kent State, Ohio left four students dead, one paralyzed, and eight others wounded. This demonstration, meant to be one of many peaceful demonstrations against the war, was ended abruptly and violently when the National Guard fired into the crowd for 13 seconds. The brief shootings ended the lives of students Jeffrey Miller, Allison Krause, William Schroeder, and Sandra Scheuer. The distances ranged from 270 feet to 390 feet. Some of these students were not even directly involved. Justified or not by self-defense, the "massacre" sparked a nationwide student strike that closed many colleges and universities.
Neil Young singing "Ohio" live (YouTube has blocked all the album versions):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bv6kwG4BhC8&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bv6kwG4BhC8&feature=related
Be sure to put your first name and the initial of your last name on the post, or it will be rejected and we won't be able to enjoy your comment!
I was shocked of what had happened in Ken State on May 4, 1970. I was mad at the president because of him four students were dead. I really hoped in that moment that the president would have trouble sleeping and think about how some mother, father, sister, brother, cousin, aunt, uncle and friends were suffering for the loss of one of the four students shot at that march. The soldiers also were to blame because how can they shoot students unarmed? I would have never shot any students even if the president himself was yelling at me to do it. I would have dropped the gun maybe punch the president and join the student at their protest. I have a lot of respect for all those students that stud up for what they believed in and most of all that everyone was united. It’s hard to see now people united. Today student don’t even really care about the war because nobody is dragging them to war, back in the days like in 1970 students were drafted to war. Today some students even laugh at hearing war because they don’t know how hard it is to be in a war. They only talk of joining the war in order to shoot their enemies and be heroes like it was a game. In a war of course you have to kill your enemy but its always wrong killing other human beings and even worst if you really want to do it from the heart. Today I don’t see students protesting the war in Iraq because they don’t see their peers, brothers, or friends being drafted to war. Therefore, it does not affect their lives. I hope that the war stops and I believe it will because the president said he would bring the troops back home.
ReplyDeleteLENIN BARRIAGA
Watching the video,listening to the song, and reading the words left different imprints in my mind. When i think of the 70's i think of the era of peace and love. People wanting to end war. other than pure shock i felt anger. I couldn't believe that president Nixon could order such a brutal attack on college students. The pressure of the water must have been so painful. For him to use the words "use any force possible" is unbelievable. I tried to imagine what was going on in the students mind hearing the gun shot for 13 seconds. How those must have been the longest 13 seconds of there life. For those left standing over the four dead bodies and many injured to see the National Guard just walk a away is in humane. After learning about what such force was used on these students i can see why students today are not protesting. Especially for any students that know about this day. The war today is different then it was back then. In the sense that as time goes on the wars get more and more brutal. Who is to say what the students could endure now at this time. For the students of today history shouldn't repeat itself. But with that being said i believe that the students of today may come up with more productive way of rallying together that wouldn't lead to violence or the unfortunate killings of any students.
ReplyDeleteI feel an overwhelming sadness when I look at the faces of the four young victims who died in the Kent State massacre on a sunny, Monday morning, May 4th 1970. I think of the lives they lost and the lives they’ll never experience. I cannot imagine the grief their parents felt when they received the horrible news. To me, it’s so sad that the victim’s never had a chance to say goodbye. Struck down in sudden terror, their heads must have been filled with fresh memories of the weekend and thoughts of the week to come.
ReplyDeleteSixty-seven shots were fired for 13 seconds into the crowd; it was horrible, yet not surprising. Terrible thing happen sometimes when things get out of control between two opposing groups.
After looking at a picture of Jeffrey Miller, lying dead on the ground, and listening to the Neil Young song “Ohio,” I can sympathize with the young people who were fed up with a senseless war and wanted it to end. The students protested because they were drafted and sent to Vietnam. Today there is no need for young students to protest the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan because there is no draft.
It is horrible what happened at Kent State. Four innocent students were shot by National Guard. National Guard should provide protection and help for people and not shoot on them. I understand that the crowd was probably very hard to cool down, but shooting in such a situation was wide of the mark. There are many other ways to ease the protestations. For example, they could use water cannons, or at least shoot in the air as a warning, or anything else. The main person responsible was definitely President Nixon. He wasn’t good president at all. There wasn’t a thing he could be proud of during his presidency. Today students are not protesting against the war, because they are not caring as much as they were back in those days. There is no draft and many people join the army voluntarily. On the other hand, there were numerous protestations against the war in Iraq and Afghanistan all over the world, but as we can see the situation is not getting better. Sometimes it feels like the government don’t give a damn what people think. Hopefully things will get better with a new presidential cabinet.
ReplyDeleteJan Brajer
After watching the video of the Kent State Massacre I have a different view of the National Guard. I always believed that soldiers were considered to be heroes that risk their lives for their country. Contrary to my beliefs, the events that took place at Kent State show a complete different depiction of the National Guard. From this video they can be perceived as cruel and animalistic while dealing with civilians. Americans were given the right by the first amendment to freely speak, assemble, and petition against issues that they oppose. However, the National Guard took forceful actions when students at Kent State were protesting against the war which violated their rights as American citizens.
ReplyDeleteI feel that many students are not protesting the war in Iraq or the war in Afghanistan because a lot of them truly don’t understand what is going on. They believe that soldiers are there to protect the United States from terrorists or to help rebuild the government in these countries. Many students would not oppose a war when they are under the impression that their country’s ultimate goal is helping the other nation to develop and grow.
I agree with peaceful protests because they are an opportunity for people to express themselves against something that they do not agree with. The violent ending of the peaceful demonstration at Kent State Ohio, it is a proof of the United State’s social situation at that moment. I believe the National Guard fired into the crowd because they were government’s employees, for that reason, their job was defending the government’s position about why the U.S.A. was in Vietnam’s war. I believe there is not a justification for the acts that the National Guard committed that day against innocent people who were not in favor of Vietnam War. I believe today college students do not protest against the war in Iraq or Afghanistan because unfortunately, we have been losing little by little the values such as respect, and love for others that college students had in the 60’s and 70’s that encouraged them to raise their voices and say we do not agree with this.
ReplyDelete