Orangeburg Massacre survivor dies at 72

ORANGEBURG, S.C. (WCSC) - South Carolina State University is mourning the loss of one of its alumni who was a survivor of the Orangeburg Massacre.

Bobby Eaddy died Saturday at the age of 72, the college says.

Eaddy was a 17-year-old Freshman at South Carolina State when he was shot by state troopers at a 1968 Civil Rights protest. He and 27 others were wounded by gunfire at the protest, and three students were killed in what would become known as the Orangeburg Massacre.

The protest was over a segregated bowling alley in Orangeburg.

Through the rest of his life, Eaddy carried in his chest the bullet that stopped an inch from his heart.

Eaddy was an award-winning public speaker who gave lectures and national media interviews about the demonstration, a news release stated. He addressed the campus community during the commemoration of the 47th anniversary of the Orangeburg Massacre in 2015.

“Bobby Eaddy experienced a trauma that few people could understand, yet he turned that experience into a force for enlightenment,” South Carolina State President Alexander Conyers said. “We at SC State are forever in his debt for the courage and resolve he offered to generations, as well as for his dedication to his alma mater. He will be tremendously missed.”

Eaddy is survived by his wife Patsy Gilbert Eaddy, as well as sons Andre’ and Derran and daughter Latisha.

Back in February, the college dedicated a monument to the three students killed in the Orangeburg Massacre.