At this time in history, the nation was experiencing great turmoil within its boundaries due to the prolonged Vietnam War and the government's cover-up of vital information about the true progress of the war. Construction for the New South began in 1968, the year when public opinion of the war took a big turn for the worse. Just a few months before the gala open house for the new building the Kent State shootings occurred – four students were killed by National Guardsmen during a protest of the war and of government policy, sparking a new round of student protest across the nation.