The Girl in the Kent State Photo
This weekend's cover of the Washington Post Magazine, carried the iconic photo at Kent State, Ohio on May 4, 1970.
“That picture hijacked my life.
And 50 years later, I still haven’t really moved on.”
Mary Ann Vecchio - Today
The article by Patricia McCormick explores what happened to the 14-year-old Mary Ann Vecchio kneeling next to the dead body of Jeffrey Miller. How Mary Ann Vecchio has carried the burden of being a national symbol.
The photo taken by student photographer John Filo, captured the moment and was published across the country and around the world the following day and still continues to resonate.
Immediately after the Kent State shooting (sometimes referred to as the "Kent State Massacre") on May 4, 1970, Neil Young composed the song "Ohio" after looking at photos appearing in Life magazine and then taking a walk in the woods. Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young went to the studio and recorded the song which was released to radio stations shortly after the killings. Soon, the lyrics "Four dead in Ohio" became an anthem to a generation. In some parts of the country, the song was banned from playlists because of it's "anti-war" and "anti-Nixon" sentiments.
"It's still hard to believe I had to write this
song. It's ironic that I capitalized on the death of these American
students. Probably the most important lesson ever learned at an American
place of learning.
David Crosby cried after this take."
from liner notes of the Neil Young's Decade album
"Ohio" 45 Atlantic Records Single (w/ "Find The Cost of Freedom")
by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - May 1970
Last year, we posted our annual remembrance on 50 Years Later: "Ohio", Kent State & Tin Soldiers Still Marching .
The 4th of May in our country,the Netherlands,it's a tradition to honour the soldiers and citizens that died in Worldwar 2.At eight o'clock sharp in the evening,there's a silence of two minutes in the whole country.Then we think of them,who didn't survive the war.It's a shame the killing all over the world still continues.Violence never solved problems and it's so wrong.I was 18 at the time of Ohio,a song still relevant to us all,now 51 years later.RIP.Cees Mostert,the Netherlands-Europe.
ReplyDelete..... no one wins, its a war of man....
ReplyDeletePeace 🙏
Dulce et Decorum est Pro Patria Mori......
ReplyDeleteWait. She was 14? I assumed she was a college student. So girls have looked older for a lot longer than just since the 80s huh?
ReplyDelete