United States History

Chapter 33:

War in Vietnam

Brief Vietnamese History Vietnam had been a hot commodity for thousands

of years China controlled it as early as 200 BC Gained independence in the 1400s Overtaken by the French in the late 1800s, forming

French Indochina with Laos and Cambodia Controlled by the Japanese during WWII

Ho Chi Minh, committed to independence, organized the League for the Independence for Vietnam Better known as the Vietminh Declared independence on September 2, 1945 Hoped to bring the US in to support the nation However, France and Vietnam quickly began fighting

again

Brief Vietnamese History The United States hoped to contain communism in Asia

after WWII Supported France because of Ho Chi Minh’s Communist

ties President Eisenhower issued a warning that became

known as the domino theory If Vietnam fell to communism, the rest of SE Asia would fall

The French slowly began losing ground throughout Vietnam

The French finally fell in 1954 to the Vietminh Decimated by Vietminh guerilla warfare Greatly outnumbered and surrounded at Dien Bien Phu The Geneva Conference, after French surrender, split the

nation at the 17th parallel Communist North Vietnam Nationalist (free) South Vietnam

Brief Vietnamese History Anticommunist Ngo Dinh Diem became dictator of South

Vietnam Catholic leader, much of the nation was Buddist Favored wealthy land owners, alienating the peasants Tortured and imprisoned political opponents

Many wanted to ovethrow Diem’s government Vietminh whom had stayed in the South formed the

National Liberation Front (NLF) Better known as the Vietcong (Vietnamese Communists) Not all NLF were Communist, however

Gained a strong following, especially from peasants The US secretly began to support a coup attempt, but

Diem was assassinated in Nov. 1963

JFK continued the domino theory policies of Eisenhower Increased US troops to 16,000 during his presidency

Brief Vietnamese History

American Escalation Gulf of Tonkin Incident

August 2, 1964: American ships were allegedly attacked by N. Vietnamese boats

August 4, 1964: President Johnson authorized use of force in retaliation for attacks

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution: passed by Congress, gave Johnson power to take “all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against forces of the United States”

Johnson could now escalate American involvement in Vietnam Men were drafted for service Drafted men were overwhelming black or Hispanic, poor

and undereducated Many draftees were exempted for health reasons or given

deferments because of college enrollments Many women served in non-combat roles, mostly as nurses

The Early War Operation Rolling Thunder

March 1965-1968 Intense bombing campaign against the North, designed to

weaken their will to fight Keyed on the Ho Chi Minh Trail, a network that brought

supplies from the North to the Vietcong in the South Snaked into Cambodia and Laos Quickly repaired and did not disrupt supply routes

Used massive bombs and defoliants Agent Orange and napalm

Ground troops were sent in when the air campaign failed Almost 500,000 troops by 1967 Used search and destroy missions to root out the VC

Seldom drove VC from villages More and more South Vietnamese joined the VC

Progress was shown in enemy dead

The War at Home Vietnam became a “living room war”

Images of the dead and destruction were shown on the nightly news

Images were contrary to gov’t reports of the war going well News of horrific events, like the My Lai Massacre, horrified people

People and gov’t officials split into two camps Hawks: those for the war, criticizing how it was fought Doves: those against the war, for a multitude of reasons

Very strong antiwar movement born out of Vietnam Very strong on college campuses through the Students for a

Democratic Society chapters (SDS) Formed in 1962 Issued the Port Huron Statement outlining the group’s objectives

Other citizens also joined the movement Although a very small percentage of the population, these people

organized several protests to the war, the draft, etc. Many people were anti antiwar protesters, claiming them to be “un-

American”

1968 1968 was a huge turning point in Vietnam for several reasons

Tet Offensive: intense fighting around Tet, the Vietnamese New Year Vietcong attacked US and S. Vietnamese forces throughout

Vietnam Declared a victory because of the over 40K dead VC However, proved that no place in Vietnam was secure and

intensified the antiwar movement

Election of 1968 LBJ declined to run for reelection Opened the door for VP Hubert Humphrey, Eugene McCarthy

and Robert Kennedy to run as Democrats RFK seemed destined to win the nomination However, struck down by Sirhan Sirhan in June, shocking the

nation Richard Nixon ran as a Republican

1968 Democratic Convention, August 1968

Held in Chicago Hubert Humphrey received the nomination Antiwar protests were held in the city during the convention Mayor Richard Daley ordered the police to clear the protests Police used batons and tear gas to clear the crowds,

arresting and injuring hundreds

George Wallace Ran as a member of the new American Independent Party Won support from white southerners

Richard Nixon Won a close election Promised to end Vietnam and crack down on the protesters

Richard M. Nixon 1969-1974

Nixon and Vietnam Nixon made foreign policy and Vietnam his biggest

priority Worked closely with his National Security advisor Henry

Kissinger Had advised Eisenhower, JFK, and LBJ Won Nobel Peace Prize in 1973 for his work in ending Vietnam

Also worked to improve relations with China and USSR

Devised a plan to end the war called Vietnamization Turn bulk of the fight over to South Vietnam Withdraw troops from Vietnam Hoped to stabilize Vietnam at least long enough to bring

“peace with honor”

Troop withdrawals began in August 1969 540,000 troops when Nixon took over Still 24,000 in Dec. 1972

Henry Kissinger

Nixon and Vietnam Nixon felt that success in the war meant disruption of

the Ho Chi Minh Trail Because the trail went through neighboring Laos and

Cambodia, Nixon ordered bombing of Cambodia in 1969 Bombed Cambodia in secret Feared international uproar if he made the bombing

public Came public about the bombing when Cambodia

installed a pro-American ruler in 1970 Justified sending in ground troops and bombings to “help

an American ally” Much of Cambodia destroyed when NVA troops moved

inland further to escape the invading Americans

Anti War protesting in the United States increased after the bombings of Cambodia were made public

The War Continues… Kent State University and Jackson State College

Antiwar protests increased 4 students dead, 9 wounded in Ohio when the National Guard fired

on a crowd of students on May 4, 1970 Retaliation for the ROTC building burning days early

2 killed, 9 wounded in MS after police fired on protesters on May 14, 1970

Congress repealed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution in Dec. 1970 Began to cut off funding for the war as troops were withdrawn

Pentagon Papers, 1971 Secret documents that proved government deception of the war to

the American public Leaked by a former Dept of Defense worker named Daniel Ellsberg Published in the New York Times Nixon tried to suppress them for national security concerns, but to

no avail

The War Continues… After the invasion of Cambodia, Nixon also

reinstated bombing of North Vietnam Retaliation for a NVA invasion of the South in March

1972 Hoped to wear down the North, without success

Election of 1972 Vietnam most pressing issue of the election Democrats nominated George McGovern Republicans nominated Nixon again; won in a

landslide

Twenty-Sixth Amendment Passed in 1971 Voting age 18

Those drafted to fight in Vietnam could now vote

Cease Fire Kissinger and North Vietnam’s Le Duc Tho met secretly in

Paris starting in 1969

For three years, the two sides worked on a peace agreement All troops withdrawn from Vietnam End of military aid to Vietnam New South Vietnamese gov’t, to which S. Vietnam rejected, and

in turn, the US rejected

Nixon ordered nonstop bombing of Hanoi and Haiphong in December 1972 when a deal couldn’t be reached Known as the Christmas bombing Stopped bombing only on Christmas Day

Finally, on January 23, 1973, a cease-fire deal was reached All troops would be pulled Prisoners would be exchanged US pledged (secretly) to support S. Vietnam if the fighting

started again

End of the War Two years after the cease-fire, the South Vietnamese

government collapsed North Vietnam invaded the South in January 1975 By April, Saigon was surrounded and people were trying to

leave Thousands of Americans and Vietnamese were airlifted from

Saigon, many from the roof of the US Embassy On April 30, 1975, South Vietnam surrendered

unconditionally

The dead were numerous for all sides 58,000 American 185,000 South Vietnamese military dead 500,000 South Vietnamese civilian dead Estimate 1 million NVA and Vietcong dead Thousands disabled from battle or Agent Orange

Millions fled the nation, many settling in the United States

Aftermath Soldiers returning were not welcomed home like they had

been in wars past Many were disabled Thousands suffered from mental illness Numerous became homeless

War Powers Act of 1974 Passed to curb presidential war powers President has 60 days to act; afterward, must get

Congressional approval or a war declaration

Future wars are shaped because of the negative legacy of Vietnam

In 1982, a memorial was opened in Washington, DC Created by Maya Ying Lin Black granite with the name of each person that died in

Vietnam carved in chronologically