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Fri 5 Sep, 2003 05:34 am
OK, I'm gonna be going over to Kent State on the 13th to watch my
Alma Mater play Kent.
What I need to know is
1. Is there a memorial on campus to those who were killed by the Nat. Guard.
2. Where is it.
I do not know if there is a memorial to the victims of that event. But I do know that the landscape has been altered by construction, so that it is no longer possible to walk over and view the ground on which the shooting took place. In effect a historical document, the lay of the land, has been destroyed.
A link for anyone not familiar with or old enough to have experienced what happened at Kent State and why the interest in a memorial.
Kent State Remembered
Here's another story that describes the memorial in great detail.
Quote:Resting on a 2 1/2-acre wooded site overlooking Kent State University's commons, the May 4 Memorial commemorates the events of May 4, 1970, when four students were killed and nine were wounded during an anti-war protest on the Kent Campus.
The memorial provides visitors a retreat for interpretation and reflection. Its environmental design by Chicago architect Bruno Ast was developed from a concept submitted by Mr. Ast to the University's National Design Competition in 1986.
Constructed of carnelian granite, a stone associated with strength and time, the memorial is surrounded by 58,175 daffodils, the number of the country's losses in Vietnam.
A plaza measuring 70 feet wide is bound by a granite walkway that merges with the sidewalk winding from residence halls to the heart of the academic campus.
The plaza extends onto the hillside some 22 feet, ending in a jagged, abstract border symbolic of disruptions and the conflict of ideas. Its fractured edge suggests the tearing of the fabric of society.
A granite wall built along the entry defines the plaza as a significant gathering area. The wall is representative of both shelter and conflict.
Engraved in the plaza's stone threshold are the words "Inquire, Learn, Reflect." The inscription, agreed upon by the designer and Kent State University, affirms the intent that the memorial site provide visitors an opportunity to inquire into the many reasons and purposes of the events, to encourage a learning process, and to reflect on how differences may be resolved peacefully.
A progression of four polished black granite disks embedded in the earth lead from the plaza to four free-standing pylons aligned on the hill. The disks reflect our own image as we stand on them; the pylons stand as mute sentinels to the force of violence and the memory of the four students killed.
A fifth disk placed to the south acknowledges the many victims of the event. It implies a much wider impact, one that stretched far beyond the Kent Campus.
A 48-foot bench along the granite walkway provides visitors a place to rest and to view the memorial
Kent State: The US's second civil war
In my opinion, the Kent State massacre was the United State's second civil war.
I was on the Board of Directors of the Berkeley Co-op at that time. That night during a board meeting, I was quite testy with my co-board members and the management. Someone noticed my unusual agitated behavior asked if I was OK. I burst into tears and sobbed that I was so angry at what had happened at Kent State that I had to yell at someone.
The board meeting was recessed for over an hour so that all of our pent up rage could be vented.
---BumbleBeeBoogie
Butry:
But how do I GET there!
The only thing at Kent I can get to is the STADIUM!
And I wonder if I need to take on passengers if they'll be willing to join me on this little "pilgrimage"
Kent State University Campus Map
Here's a map of the campus. That's the best I can do for you. I don't know where the memorial is specifically located.
What you might do is find your way to the Student Center and ask someone there where it is located. Or, call the Student Center if there are phone numbers provided on that website and ask for directions.
Cool!
Now all I need to do is see if I can either
1. Park @ the stadium and take a shuttle to the student center and back.
2. Park near the center and take a shuttle to the stadium and back
OR.
If the game's at 1:30 I may just drive over there AFTER the game.
GUESS WHAT!
When I was home for Easter over the weekend I visited the memorial.
Acquink is right, there is a marker on the actual spot where the four fell, but the site is a parking lot, dorms and a rec center.
The memorial is nice, and I have a lot of pics I need to edit, I may try and make them into a collage for a "Peace and Justice" arts exhibit.
Also, if any of you care. My alma mater ended up loosing the game, IMHO with some help from the refs:(
I am officially going to make a collage, and submit it.
Here's more info on the group putting this exhibit on.