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Start of Vietnam WarStart of Vietnam War
Moving towards
Conflict
France in VietnamFrance in Vietnam
France was involved in fighting Vietnam during the French Indochina War—tried to re-establish its rule over Vietnam after WWII
US supported France in Vietnam by giving them economic and military support
French in VietnamFrench in Vietnam
Ho Chi Minh—1930 he began to organize Vietnams independence from France
He was CommunistVietminh—an organization whose goal was
to win Vietnam’s independence from foreign rule.
Ho Chi MinhHo Chi Minh
France Battles VietminhFrance Battles Vietminh
French took over South VietnamHo Chi Minh was in control of North
VietnamUS aided France because of Domino
TheoryDomino Theory is countries on the brink of
communism waiting to fall on each other like dominos
DominosDominos
France losesFrance loses
Dien Bien Phu—French surrendered after the Vietminh overran to the French outpost in northwest Vietnam.
Geneva Accords—divided Vietnam into North and South
Communists=NorthDemocracy=South
French Tank Left BehindFrench Tank Left Behind
The United States Steps InThe United States Steps In
President Eisenhower and President Kennedy provided economic and military aid to South Vietnam
Ngo Dinh Diem=South Vietnamese President He was corrupt and give little land to peasants Also restricted the practice of Buddhism because
he was Catholic
President DiemPresident Diem
US Steps in to VietnamUS Steps in to Vietnam
1957-Vietcong began attacks on Diems government
Ho Chi Minh supported them—used paths along the borders of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia known as Ho Chi Minh trail
End of DiemEnd of Diem
He moved many Vietnamese during the hamlet program=very upset
He killed and imprisoned hundreds of Buddhist clerics and destroyed their temples
US wanted Diem to be removedHe was assassinated and President Kennedy
was assassinated a few weeks later.
Monks protestingMonks protesting
President DiemPresident Diem
The Tonkin Gulf ResolutionThe Tonkin Gulf Resolution
President Johnson takes over as PresidentAugust 2, 1964 North Vietnamese patrol
boat fired a torpedo at an American destroyer in the Gulf of Tonkin
It missed, 2 days later in a heavy storm they say they were fired on again=many claim they never saw or heard hostile gunfire
Gulf of TonkinGulf of Tonkin
Tonkin Gulf ResolutionTonkin Gulf Resolution
LBJ wanted to launch bombing strikes on North Vietnam
Asked Congress for “all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against the forces of the US and to prevent further aggression”
All senators voted yes except 2
Declaring WarDeclaring War
Do you feel the US president should have the power to send troops to any part of the world/conflicts with out a declaration of war?
Tonkin Gulf ResolutionTonkin Gulf Resolution
American people or Congress did not know LBJ was leading secret raids against the N. Vietnamese and US destroyer was collecting information for these raids
Also, LBJ had the resolution prepared months before hand just wanted for a chance to push it through congress
Rolling ThunderRolling Thunder
LBJ used new war powers to launch “Operation Rolling Thunder”=bombing of North Vietnam in 1965
By June 1965 50,000 American troops in Vietnam=the Vietnam War has now become Americanized
Rolling ThunderRolling Thunder
Ia Drang ValleyIa Drang Valley
http://www.awesomestories.com/assets/ia-drang-we-were-soldiers-1
We were soldiers
War in VietnamWar in Vietnam
1965 Most of the United States supported containing Communism in Vietnam
61% supported, 24% opposedLBJ began sending in more USA troopsEnd of 1965180,000 American troops
US InvolvementUS Involvement
Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN)General William Westmoreland wanted
more US troopsThough Vietnamese couldn’t stand up to
the US fighting potential1967About 500,000 U.S. Troops in
Vietnam
Fighting in the JungleFighting in the Jungle
US had superior weaponsVietcong used guerrilla tactics to turn war
into stalemateVCUse hit and run and ambush tactics
Elusive EnemyElusive Enemy
Booby traps, land mines, under ground tunnels connecting villages through out the country side
Frustrating War of AttritionFrustrating War of Attrition
Westmoreland’s strategyWin by war of attrition
The idea of body count in the United StatesGoal destroy the moral of the VietcongVietcong remained defiant
Battles for the Hearts and Battles for the Hearts and MindsMinds
Part of American strategy winning support from South Vietnam populationleave the Vietcong no place to hide
Napalmgasoline-based bomb to set fire in Jungle
Agent Orangeleaf-killing toxic chemical
US TacticsUS Tactics
Search-and-destroy missionsuprooting civilians with suspected ties to Vietcong
Kill livestock, burn villagesCreated 3 million refugees in the South
Moral of Soldiers warm-upMoral of Soldiers warm-up
What are advantages to drafting soldiers?What are disadvantages to drafting soldiers?
Vietnam divides AmericaVietnam divides America
80% of drafted were lower economic level whites or minorities
Opposition towards war starts in college students
Sinking MoraleSinking Morale
US troops frustrated with guerrilla warfare, jungle fighting
Many soldiers that were drafted did not want to serve
These soldiers turned to drugsalcohol, Marijuana, Fragging officers
Vietnam divides AmericaVietnam divides America
1967 antiwar movement turned to resistance500,000 protestors were in New York’s
Central Park shouting “Burn cards, not people!” and “Hell, no, we won’t go!”
Threw draft cards into bonfireOverall200,000 people accused of draft
resistance, 4,000 draft resisters, 10,000 fled to America
Fulfilling DutyFulfilling Duty
Most soldiers believed in the cause to halt communism
Most fulfilled patriotic duty
Vietnam divides AmericaVietnam divides America
LBJ’s Great Society suffers$6 billion dollar reduction in funding
Vietnam 1st living-room warShowed combat footage, body-count
statistics, Americans in body bagsCredibility gapLBJ administration was
saying and what was really happening
Vietnam divides AmericaVietnam divides America
Most soldiers who fought were drafted under Selective Service System
Men 18-26Most common way to avoid war was
college defermentMost college students in 1960s white and
wealthy
Vietnam DraftVietnam Draft
Vietnam divides AmericaVietnam divides America
New Left movementFree Speech Movement at Berkeley1964
Started Campus Activismwanted to change dress codes, curfews, dormitory regulations
Protest movement emerges among college students
Berkeley CollegeBerkeley College
Vietnam dives AmericaVietnam dives America
Protest Movement grows1966 LBJ said college students needed to be
in good standing to get defermentsStarted huge college campus protestsStudents for a Democratic Society (SDS)
called for Civil Disobedience at Selective Service stations and told students to flee to Canada
Protests in AmericaProtests in America
The other voiceThe other voice
“I’m bitter…It’s people like us who give up our sons for the country…The college types, the professors, they go to Washington and tell the government what to do…But their sons, they don’t end up in the swamps over there, in Vietnam. No sir. They’re deferred, because they’re in school. Or they get sent to safe places…What bothers me about the peace crowd is that you can tell from their attitude, the way they look and what they say, that they don’t really love this country.”
Firefighter who lost his son in Vietnam
Vietnam divides AmericaVietnam divides America
Tet offensive1968, surprise attack by the Vietnamese on their New Years celebration
Took Americans 1 month to get back control of South Vietnam
Vietcong lost 32,000Americans 3,000However, psychological and political defeat
for Americans
Tet OffensiveTet Offensive
Dropped LBJ’s approval rating to 60% disapproval
50% of Americans felt it was a mistake to send in troops to Vietnam
American PresidentAmerican President
Election in 1968LBJ does not seek re-electionNixon vs. Hubert HumphreyDemocratic convention in Chicago 10,000 protestors12,000 Chicago police came…Riots broke
out
Nixon WinsNixon Wins
Nixon wins and promises to pull out of Vietnam
NixonNixon
