Essential Question:
- How did the anti-war protests impact policies and war efforts of the United States
Operation Rolling Thunder - February 1965
- Following the Vietcong attack that killed 8 Americans, President Johnson ordered the first sustained bombing of North Vietnam using powers given to him through the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution.
- By June 1965 more than 50,000 US Soldiers had entered into South Vietnam lead by General William Westmoreland
An Elusive Enemy - Fighting in the Jungle
- The Vietcong utilized gureilla warfare against the US military in their dense jungles
- Laced the jungle with tunnel and traps for sneak attacks
- Vitecong also did not have a distinct uniform making them difficult to identify in more crowded towns and cities
- US Strategy - destroy the enemy’s morale through a war of attrition
- US would use consistent bombings and harassment to defeat the Vietcong
- Vietcong viewed the war as a battle for their very existence, and they were ready to pay any price for victory
The Battle for “Hearts and Minds”
- Another key part of the American strategy was to keep the Vietcong from winnning the support of South Vietnam’s rural population
- US needed to win over the “Hearts and Minds of these people”
- Harder then expected due to US Search and Destroy Missions which used napalm and agent orange to destroy the vast jungles of Vietnam
- As war continues, US Morale drops steadily with soldiers turned to alcohol, marijuana, and other drugs.
The Living Room War
- Through the media, specifically television, Vietnam became America’s first “Living room war”
- In Vietnam, reporters and television crews often accompanied soldiers on patrol.
- US Generals and War Leaders report that a Vietnam surrender is imminent, while evenin television reports of Americans in body bags show a different story
- Creates a Credibility Gap - a public distrust of statements made by the government.
The “Working Class War”
- Most soldiers who fought in Vietnam were called into combat under the coutry’s Selective Service System
- All men 18 and older have to register for the draft
- As Americans’ doubts about the war grew, thousands of men attempted to find ways around the draft.
- Medical exemption, joined National Guard or Coast Guard, College Deferment.
- Women were not allowed to join the army, but many served as nurses or through the American Red Cross, or United Service Organization
African Americans in Vietnam
- Prior to Vietnam, African Amreicans made up the highest percentage of enlistees into the US military
- For this reason, a high percentage of soldiers in combat positions were African American during the war’s early years, when the fighting was done by volunteers.
- During the first several years of the war, blacks accounted for more than 20 percent of American combat deahts despite representing only 10 percent of the US population.
- Some civil rights activists, including Martin Luther King Jr. lashed out against the “cruel irony” of American blacks dying for a country that still treated them as second-class citizens.
Roots of Opposition - The New Left
- The New Left - a youth-dominated political movement of the 1960s, embodied in such organizations as Students for a Democratic Society and the Free Speech Movement.
- Advocated for “participatory democracy” and greater individual freedom
- Lead to clashes with parents, teachers, and universities, as ROTC was often made mandatory at colleges and universities during the 1960s - 1970s
A Nation Divided - Hawks vs Doves
HAWKS
- Supported U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War
- The United States should use increased military force to win it
DOVES
- Opposed the Vietnam War
- Believed that the United States should withdraw from it.
- Even through the conflict, Johnson remains determined for a US Victory in Vietnam
1968 - The Tet Offensive
- January 30, 1968 - Vietnamese New Year weeklong celebration and funeral for those who lost their lives during the war that year
- Tet Offensive - a massive surprise attack by the Vietcong on South Vietnamese towns and cities ealy in 1968
- Vietcong attacked more than 100 towns and 12 U.S. air bases—simultaneously—in South Vietnam.
- It took more than a month for US and South Vietnamese troops to regain control in the South
TET OFFENSIVE CHANGES PUBLIC OPINION
- The Tet offensive rgeatly shook the American public, which had been told repeatedly and had come to believe that the enemy was close to defeat and that the United States would stop the spread of Communism in Southeast Asia.
- Daily, Americans saw the shocking images of attacks by an enemy that seemed to be everywhere.
Violence and Protests grasp the nation
- March 1968 - Johnson withdraws from his re-election campaign.
- April 1968 - Martin Luther King Jr Assassinated in Memphis, TN
- June 1968 - Robert Kennedy Jr. Democratic Nominee for president, assassinated after winning the California primary.
America’s Reaction - violence, chaos, and grief for the nation.