On May 4, 1970, U.S. National Guardsmen shot and killed four people protesting the Vietnam War.  The massacre, known as the Kent State shootings, topped a tumultuous decade that spurred a lot of violence against those making then-controversial claims to civil rights.  In the aftermath of the shooting, many Americans blamed the protesting students and cited violations of law allegedly committed by the protestors.  What was not in dispute was that four young people lost their lives that day at the hand of troops acting under the flag of the United States.