Warm up #713.25.2014

1. Who should be exempt from the draft?

2. Should people who believe the war is wrong be forced to fight?

3. Should people with special skills be exempt?

4. How can a draft be made fair?

The Vietnam War

1959 – 1975

History of Vietnam

Indochina – controlled by French since the mid 19th century

Sought independence during early 1900s

History (cont)

Ho Chi Minh led nationalist movement in Vietnam

Formed the Indochinese Communist Party in 1930– Tried to overthrow the French– Was exiled to the Soviet

Union & China

History (cont)

Japan controlled Vietnam when Ho Chi Minh returned in 1941– Organized Vietminh to force the

Japanese out

History (cont)

After WWII, Ho Chi Minh declared independence

France tried to regain control– Asked for U.S. help

U.S. agreed because it did not want another communist nation

Roots of the Conflict

Domino Theory – if Vietnam fell to communism, other nations in Southeast Asia would do the same

Roots (cont)

Vietminh used guerrilla tactics, irregular troops who blend with civilians against French– Difficult to find/fight– Use hit-and-run & ambush

tactics

Roots (cont)

North Vietnam – controlled by Ho Chi Minh (communist)

South Vietnam – pro-Western (democratic)

Roots (cont)

Ngo Dinh Diem, leader of the South– Pro-Westerner and anti-

Communist– Corrupt Government– Did not want elections

Roots (cont)

Ho Chi Minh forms the Vietcong – new guerrilla army with the goal of unifying Vietnam– Vietcong grew in power

Roots (cont)

Diem assassinated in CIA supported coup d’état – violent overthrow by a small group– 10 different leaders over next 20 months

Roots (cont)

August 2, 1964, Johnson announced N. Vietnamese torpedo boats fired on two American destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin– Similar event occurred 2 days later

Congress passed Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which authorized LBJ to use any force necessary

Full-Scale War (cont)

To burn away the jungle and expose the Vietcong, Americans dropped napalm and Agent Orange – a chemical that strips away leaves and shrubs

Agent Orange

http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/cu-chi-tunnels

Full-Scale War (cont)

Fearing China would get involved, LBJ refused to order full-scale invasion of N. Vietnam

Also refused to attack the Vietcong supply line, known as the Ho Chi Minh Trail– Traveled through Laos &

Cambodia

Full-Scale War (cont)

At first, many Americans supported the Vietnam War

As the war dragged on, support decreased– Difficult to believe what LBJ

admin said about the war– Credibility gap

Full-Scale War (cont)

January 1968, during the Vietnamese New Year, the Vietcong launched a surprise attack known as the Tet offensive– Military disaster for the Communists, but a

political victory– LBJ’s approval ratings plummeted

Opposition to the War College students began to

protest the war Many believed the draft

system was unfair & biased against poor & minorities

Hawks & Doves

Opposition (cont)

1968 - LBJ announced he would not run for reelection– Robert Kennedy entered the

race as a “dove” candidate– That year both Kennedy and

MLK are assassinated– Violence erupts at the

Democratic National Convention

Opposition (cont)

Republican Richard Nixon promised to regain order and end the war in Vietnam

Election of 1968

The End of the War

Henry Kissinger was Nixon’s National Security Advisory– His job was to find a way to

end the war with Vietnam– Linkage – Kissinger’s policy to

improve relations with China & the Soviet Union

End of War (cont)

Nixon began Vietnamization – gradual withdrawal of American troops, allowing S. Vietnam to assume more of the fighting– Peace negotiations were

started– Nixon continued air strikes

on N. Vietnam

End of War (cont)

1969 – Americans learned of the My Lai massacre, 200 Vietnamese women and children were killed by an American platoon

End of War (cont)

May 1970 – 4 Kent State students killed by National Guard while protesting the invasion of Cambodia

End of War (cont)

Pentagon Papers were leaked by a former Defense Department worker– Govt officials privately questioned the war– The public had been deceived about Vietnam

End of War (cont)

Nixon wins re-election with news of a peace treaty– Peace talks end– Operation Rolling Thunder – new bombing campaign

1973 – both sides agree to end the war and restore peace

End of War (cont)

March 1975, N. Vietnamese launched invasion of the South– Congress refused to send

aid to S. Vietnam April 30, Saigon is captured

and renamed Ho Chi Minh City

The Legacy of Vietnam War cost over $170 billion 58,000 deaths Many returning soldiers faced psychological problems POWs and MIAs 26th Amendment – Lowered voting age to 18

The War Powers Act