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". . . but what about the National Guard?" |
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While some anger, fear, loathing, and perhaps hatred are only naturally to be felt against the National Guardsmen that were on Blanket Hill on May 4th, 1970, it's important that we understand exactly what was going on. These Guardsmen were generally the same age as the students, and younger than a large percentage of the protestors. They had been physically exhausted and scared by a recent riot in Akron, and they were kept in the dark and in fear by their superiors. In short, they were scared kids. |
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These kids were never told what dangers, if any, they faced. They didn't understand their situation or their "enemy." They were doing their jobs, and were often led to believe that these protestors were the most vile creatures on the face of the planet. When the orders were relayed to shoot, defying those orders would mean imprisonment or death. In fact, most of the Guardsmen did not fire. Certainly those that did only did so in response to the initial mysterious gunshot from a source still unidentified. |
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While it's easy for us to condemn these poor young men, we should instead feel sorry for them and for the unfortunate situation in which they were placed. The blame for this incident cannot and should not be labelled at one group alone. The University president, state Governor, leaders of the student protestors, National Guard officers, and many others along the way handled the situation poorly, and lack of communication ultimately resulted in the shootings of 13 citizens and the slaying of 4. |
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