May 15, 1970~ Tragedy at Jackson State

The shootings at Mississippi’s Jackson State University still linger in the shadow of Kent State. Less than two weeks after Kent, two black students were killed and 12 others wounded by state troopers on May 15, 1970.

The incident started after student demonstrators, protesting the Vietnam War and seeking more rights at the historically black college, responded to an order to disperse by throwing stones and bottles. It ended as police opened fire outside a women’s dormitory.

Phillip Gibbs, 21, a junior preparing for law school, who had a child and a pregnant wife, and James Earl Green, 17, a high school track star on his way home from his job at a grocery store, were killed.

A presidential commission later found the shootings at Jackson and Kent “completely unjustified.” No one was indicted.
FROM May 15th, 1970: 2 Black Students Killed & 12 Wounded by Police During Vietnam Antiwar Protest~ http://may1970project.org/?p=18

Remembering What Happened At Jackson State College In 1970~
http://wyso.org/post/remembering-what-happened-jackson-state-college-1970
Gibbs-Green shooting: May 15, 1970~
http://www.jsums.edu/universitycommunications/gibbs-green-shooting-may-15-1970/

sju

2 thoughts on “May 15, 1970~ Tragedy at Jackson State

  1. Pingback: May 15, 1953~ Unveiling of Rotterdam sculpture “The Destroyed City” | The Misty Miss Christy

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