"One of [the few films powerful enough to bring me to tears] is the film Fire in the Heartland: The Kent State Story.It is an absolutely stunning work and an essential story of the story of the student Civil Rights and the Anti-War protests in America and the May 4, 1970 shootings of students at Kent State University."
— Mitchell Block, Endowed Professor in Documentary Cinema, University of Oregon / Academy-Award winning Director
May 4, 1970 was a defining moment for a generation, when the optimism of the 60s was effectively ended as the National Guard opened fire on a group of student protestors, killing four. Fire in the Heartland explores and contextualizes this dark moment in U.S. history by giving voice to the students who were there.
What emerges is a story of deep convictions built over years of mass struggle, led by a multi-racial coalition who couldn't help but make the connection between US violence abroad in Vietnam and the police violence routinely experienced by Black Americans. At a time when campus protests are back in the center of American discourse in a way they haven't been in over 50 years,Fire in the Heartlandoffers the opportunity to provide historical context to pressing current events.
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