An exhibition from the archive
On 4 May 1970, Ohio National Guardsmen opened fire on students at Kent State University, protesting the invasion of Cambodia announced by President Nixon four days earlier. Four students were killed and nine wounded. Eleven days later, police shot dead two students at Jackson State College in Mississippi.
Within weeks, musicians were answering. Garage bands, folk singers, soul labels, poets and comedians rushed records out, from Florida and Arizona to Birmingham and East Berlin. These are some of them.
Beyond the gallery
The archive holds well over a hundred songs and spoken-word recordings about Kent and Jackson State, from 1970 rush releases to punk, hip-hop and metal decades later.
Explore the full collection →