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Weapons inspector, veteran to speak May 4 38th commemoration of 1970 shootings will take the theme 'Where Does It End?'

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David O'Brien
April 18, 2008

By Dave O'Brien

Record-Courier staff writer

"Where Does It End?" is the theme of the 38th annual commemoration of the May 4, 1970 shootings at Kent State University, planned for the weekend of May 3-4 at KSU.

Events, which are free and open to the public, kick off at 7 p.m. May 3 with Vietnam War veteran and peace activist Ron Kovic introducing a screening of his autobiographical Academy Award-winning film "Born on the Fourth of July." Kovic, shot and paralyzed in 1968 during combat with the U.S. Marine Corps in Vietnam, will answer questions following the screening. A brief poetry reading precedes the session.

Kovic was a featured speaker at the 1977 commemoration.

From 11 p.m. to midnight May 3, the annual candlelight march for peace and remembrance will cross the KSU campus to the Prentice Hall parking lot, where the four students were killed. An all-night vigil will then take place until noon on May 4. Vigil reservations may be made by contacting the May 4 Task Force at dept.kent.edu/may4.

Music on May 4 will be provided from 11 a.m. to noon by the Tropidelic Band. The annual commemoration event, with speakers, will take place from noon to 2 p.m. on the Commons in front of Taylor Hall.

This year's speakers include Scott Ritter, a former United Nations weapons inspector and expert on the Iraq/Iran crisis; the family of William Kunstler, attorney for the families of the May 4 victims; wounded May 4 students Dean Kahler and Joe Lewis; and Kovic. Lewis will speak about his friend and fellow wounded student Jim Russell, who died June 23, 2007.

The annual march to protest the Iraq War will step off from campus through downtown Kent following the commemoration activities, and will be joined by a memorial march in honor of longtime Kent City Councilman Bill Schultz, who died Jan. 3. Live music will continue throughout the evening at May 4 with live bands at The Kent Stage, 175 E. Main St. and throughout downtown Kent.

Eyes Wide Open Ohio, a display of pairs of empty combat boots, one for each Ohio soldier killed during the War on Terror and the Iraq War, will be on display from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. courtesy of the American Friends Service Committee.

According to the May 4 Task Force, a student group that commemorates the deaths of four KSU students and the wounding of nine others, this year's theme comes from the title of a poem written in 1966 by May 4 shooting victim Jeff Miller.

Miller is the slain student in the Pulitzer Prize-winning photo by photographer John Filo. This year's logo was designed by Ralph Solonitz, KSU class of 1970, and is viewable -- along with more information about the weekend's events -- at dept.kent.edu/may4.




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 2 Total Comments
2.
    Posted by DoWhatsRight April 18, 2008
I wonder what make their rights any greater than mine? What right do they have to deny me the use of the streets they wish to protest on? I insist that I be able to drive down the road without being held up by them. If they move in an orderly and peaceful manner along one side and do not impede traffic, OK let them make asses of themselves. However, if the stop or hold me up then they are infringing upon my rights. As the old saying goes your freedom ends where my nose begins.

I think that it is idiotic for them to protest against the very thing that allows them to assemble without the fear of a suicide bomber blowing them to bits. Would they be satisfied if we here in America had the problem of suicide bombers like Israel and Spain, and dozens of other countries. Most of which are not in Iraq and have no troops there. Kind of shoots down their theory doesn't it. Oh well the young's ability to think clearly is offset by an excess of energy. That is why many cultures have their governing body ran by the elders.

I join 44412 and the vast majority of the citizens and say let's end this May 4th crap. The school is a state funded school and we are tired of paying for this crap.

1.
    Posted by Dan Leonard April 18, 2008
"Where Does it End?"

How about right here in Kent? It will only end when we stop sensationalizing and "commemorating" the events from almost 40 years ago. Events, by the way, that were set in motion by professional protestors that slinked away after they accomplished their goal of getting everyone whipped into a frenzy, burning buildings.

I'm tired of hearing about it. How do you say, "Move On?" Sure, a 20 minute ceremony is fine, but two days of marches and protests accomplishes nothing.

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