I’m posting this little piece from Ken Bielen, who doesn’t have a site of his own. Thanks for remembering.
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The news spread word-of-mouth. Four were dead in Ohio. Spring was showing itself. Dreaming of summer, and shots like a knife. Jeffrey, Allison, Bill and Sandy. And more injured.

The next day there was an evening rally in front of Old Queens, the original Rutgers campus building. A Kent State student told the story of what happened miles away in Ohio.

Emotions ran high. There was an open meeting of the University Board of Governors at the College Avenue Gym. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss how the University should respond to the shootings. Pandemonium reigned. Students kept shouting for a strike. Because of the atmosphere, the Board decided the meeting would be held the next day in executive session closed to the students. Overnight, on the newly-constructed tall beige smokestack at the power plant, someone painted “STRIKE” in bright red letters.

The Governors unfolded a policy. Students could leave before the semester ended, and take a Pass, or take their current grade, or hang on and finish. The campus became eerily quiet. It was warm and balmy, but few were about. Many who had pleaded for a strike did not stay to get involved in a positive counter activity to the war. There was no organized protest once the students were free from university obligations. Rather, they left to get a jump on a summer jobs. The smokestack proclaimed “STRIKE” alone and in silence.

Four years later on a warm August night I found myself in Roosevelt Stadium in Jersey City. The atmosphere was euphoric. Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young (C,S,N and Y) were in town as part of their summer stadium tour. C,S,N and Y were not the only reason for the celebratory air. President Richard Nixon was to make an announcement, and everyone was anticipating his resignation. About nine o’clock Stephen Stills stepped up to the microphone, and began to formally announce that “President Richard M. Nixon…” but before he could finish, an exuberant Crosby and Nash interrupted with their shout, “Nixon resigned!” The joy was thick. C,S,N and Y broke into Neil’s “Ohio.” It was an assent to the anti-war movement, to those who marched, that our convictions were right. The band was happy. Neil Young kept patting bassist Tim Drummond on the back.

But the concert was not all joy. When the band tried to turn down the energy level for the acoustic set, the people in front kept the volume of their chatting and shouting up high.

Crosby and Nash complained. They could not hear. They told the audience, “You want to party? Fine.” They followed with a couple of up tempo numbers and said their goodbyes. All the slow signature songs with the lilting harmonies were dropped from the set. But the crowd in the front kept raving it up. To them Nixon’s resignation meant nothing more than a reason to let out a yelp, and pop another pill.