Kent State Shootings: Oral Histories

Dennis G. Durand Oral History

Kent State Shootings: Oral Histories

Dennis G. Durand Oral History

Transcription Show Transcript
Narrator Durand, Dennis G.
Narrator's Role Student at Kent State University in 1970
Vietnam veteran in 1970
Date of Interview 2020-04-30
Description Dennis G. Durand was a Marine Corps veteran and an undergraduate student at Kent State University in 1970. He was also president of the veteran's club on campus, which had a membership of 1,500 at the time. In this oral history, he describes what he saw during the unrest in downtown Kent on Friday evening, May 1, and also the protest that took place near the front campus on Sunday evening, May 3. He relates his detailed eyewitness account of the shootings from his vantage point on Blanket Hill; he was located about ten feet away from the Guardsmen who opened fire. He and several other military veterans were asked to join the Kent State Campus Police force following the shootings. They called themselves "The Mod Squad" and he discusses that experience along with being screened for possible appearance before the Scranton Commission.
Length of Interview 1:04:42 hours
Places Discussed Kent (Ohio)
Time Period discussed 1970
Subject(s) Ambulances
College students--Ohio--Kent--Interviews
Crowds--Ohio--Kent
Del Corso, Sylvester T.
Eyewitness accounts
Firearms
Garand rifle
Kent State Shootings, Kent, Ohio, 1970
Kent State University. Blanket Hill
Kent State University. Commission to Implement a Commitment to Non-Violence
Kent State University. Police Dept.
Kent State University. ROTC Building--Fires
Kent State University. Veteran's Association
Kent State University. Victory Bell
Polarization (Social sciences)
Students--Ohio--Kent--Interviews
Tear gas munitions
United States. President's Commission on Campus Unrest
Vandalism--Ohio--Kent
Veterans--Interviews
Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Veterans
Repository Special Collections and Archives
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Institution Kent State University
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Format of Original audio digital file
Disclaimer The content of oral history interviews, written narratives and commentaries is personal and interpretive in nature, relying on memories, experiences, perceptions, and opinions of individuals. They do not represent the policy, views or official history of Kent State University and the University makes no assertions about the veracity of statements made by individuals participating in the project. Users are urged to independently corroborate and further research the factual elements of these narratives especially in works of scholarship and journalism based in whole or in part upon the narratives shared in the May 4 Collection and the Kent State Shootings Oral History Project.
Provenance/Collection May 4 Collection