The campus fire was dealt with quickly, and then the police forced demonstrating students into the centre of the campus.

The stones the students threw would be no match for the police arsenal

Calming

When cops cornered the rebellion most students sat down, and the situation appeared to be calming.

At that moment the police opened fire and eleven students were shot in 28 seconds.

James Earl Green, a high school student who lived nearby, lay dead on the ground, not far from Jackson State College student Phillip Gibbs.

But the fact that Jackson was seen as a “black college” meant that the police felt they could act with impunity.