The shootings led to protests on college campuses throughout the United States , and a student strike , causing more than 450 campuses across the country to close with both violent and non-violent demonstrations . A common sentiment was expressed by students at New York University with a banner hung out of a window that read , " They Ca n't Kill Us All . " On May 8 , 11 people were bayonetted at the University of New Mexico by the New Mexico National Guard in a confrontation with student protesters . Also on May 8 , an antiwar protest at New York 's Federal Hall National Memorial held at least partly in reaction to the Kent State killings was met with a counter-rally of pro-Nixon construction workers ( organized by Peter J. Brennan , later appointed U.S. Labor Secretary by President Nixon ) , resulting in the Hard Hat Riot . Shortly after the shootings took place , the Urban Institute conducted a national study that concluded the Kent State shooting was the first nationwide student strike in U.S. history ; over 4 million students protested and hundreds of American colleges and universities closed during the student strikes . The Kent State campus remained closed for six weeks
Hard Hat Riot
Hard Hat Riot
Kent State shootings