Comparative Analysis of The Boston Massacre and The Kent State Shooting

There are many differences and similarities between the Boston Massacre and the Kent State shooting. One similarity between the two is that both the students and the colonist were throwing rocks and calling the soldiers impolite names. Both the Ohio National Guard and the British Soldiers fired at the students and colonist. Also both the National Guard and the British soldiers carried bayonets. Both protests were strong enough that proper authorities had to come in and help maintain the crowd who were protesting. The protesters both went to a bar before they started to protest. Now I’m going to start talking about some differences.

There are many similarities, however, there are also many differences. To start, the Boston Massacre started because the colonist didn’t want to pay taxes (Townshend Act) unless they had representatives in parliament. The colonist were having to pay for land that they were not allowed to use, they also had to pay taxes for the British soldiers to come to the colonies. It only made the colonist more mad when they had to pay for the British soldiers to come to the colonies. The Kent state shooting happened because there were people who didn't like President Nixon’s decision to send more troops to Cambodia. He made this decision without notifying his secretary, Melvin Laird. This made people even more mad which caused them to protest even more, and the protesters even broke store windows which led to stealing. The protesting started on May 1, 1970, the day after the troops were sent.

A reason why the Boston Massacre and Kent state shooting are different is because who it was fought with. The Boston Massacre was fought between the colonist and the British soldiers. There are many different stories of whose fault it was, but those stories didn't matter in the end. Most stories told that it was all the British’s fault, but at the same time you have to think about the colonist who threw ice balls with rocks in them, and taunted the soldiers by calling them red coats or lobsters. In the end only eight soldiers, one officer, and four civilians were arrested and charged with murder. Defended by lawyer and future American president John Adams, six of the soldiers were acquitted, while the other two were convicted of manslaughter and given reduced sentences. The Kent state shooting was fought between the students/teachers of Kent state and the Ohio National Guard. Most people think that this big shooting was the guards fault because they used tear gas and shot at the students/teachers, but the students had a big part in this shooting. Students were using harsh language and throwing rocks at the soldiers, as they tried to break up the crowds.

The Boston Massacre all happened in one day while the Kent state shooting led up to many days. Starting on May 1,1970, students began protesting. They painted antiwar logos on buildings which is illegal. They also went to a bar in downtown Kent. After the protesting got really tense the bars were shut down which made the people really angry. On May 2,1970, there were rumors that radicals were making threats against the town of Kent and the University. The students set an American Flag and a building on fire. There were 900 National Guards trying to disperse the students. As soon as the soldiers tried to separate them the students started to throw rocks which caused the soldiers to use their tear gas. On May 3, 1970, Students were still protesting. They started to shout taunts which caused the soldiers to chase them back to their dorms. May 4, 1970, was a very harsh day. At noon, 2000 students gathered in the comans to protest. The National Guard again ordered the students to break up, but they still disobeyed. Once the students wouldn’t obey the orders, the guards began to form a straight line, and they walk towards the students, trying to push them away from the comotion. Students began to cuss at the soldiers. Twenty-eight guards fired, many of that twenty-eight fired into the air as a warning shot, while others fired into the crowd. The soldiers weren’t arrested right away; however, the British soldiers were.

During these horrible events, four died during the Kent State shooting, and nine were injured. Jeffrey Glenn Miller was 20 years young, he was shot through the mouth and died instantly. Allison B. Krause was 19 years young, she had a fatal left chest wound, and she died later that day. William Knox Schroeder was 19 years young with a fatal chest wound, and died 1 hour later during surgery. Sandra Lee Scheuer was 20 years young with a fatal neck wound, and she died a few minutes after being shot. All these students were killed at such young ages. There are also people who were injured as well. Joseph Lewis, Jr. was hit twice in the right abdomen and left lower leg. John R. Cleary had an upper left chest wound. Thomas Mark Grace was struck in left ankle. Alan Michael Canfora was hit in his right wrist. Dean R. Kahler had a back wound fracturing the vertebrae causing him to be permanently paralyzed from the chest down. Douglas Alan Wrentmore was hit in his right knee. James Dennis Russell was hit in his right thigh from a bullet and in the right forehead by birdshot, both wounds minor. Robert Follis Stamps was hit in his right buttock. Donald Scott MacKenzie had neck wound. Those were all of the students who were injured and what there injuries were. There were 5 people who died during the Boston Massacre. The 5 people who died were Samuel Gray, Samuel Maverick, James Caldwell, Crispus Attucks, and Patrick Carr.

There are many different stories who started both the fights, but in the end it was up to the jury to find out who were guilty and who were not.