The Vietnam War

Unit 6 Chapter 3 Section 2

Vietnam

• Located in south east Asia on the South China Sea

• Climate is hot and humid

• Rainy season lasts through the summer (May-September)

Ho Chi Minh

• Petitions world leaders after WWI to recognize Vietnam’s independence

• After WWII, begins war with France for independence

• Dien Bien Phu (1954) – Vietnam defeats France, peace treaty follows

• Vietnam is divided into Communist North and Capitalist South along 17th parallel (sound familiar?)

United States Involvement

• Gulf of Tonkin – US ships fire upon Vietnamese torpedo boats

• Domino Theory – Idea that if Communism spread to Vietnam, it would spread throughout Asia and Australia

Familiar terms

• Tet Offensive (1968) – Viet Cong attacks on targets during holiday cease fire– Technically an American victory but at home

was seen as a loss

• Napalm – A chemical that acts as a gelatin version of gasoline

• Viet Cong – South Vietnamese Communists

Conclusion

• President Lyndon Johnson accused of lying to public about facts in war

• President Richard Nixon begins negotiations for peace

• President Gerald Ford formally announces the withdrawal of American forces (April, 1975)

The Anti-War Movement

• The I’m Fixing to Die Rag

Kent State University - 1970

• Four student protestors shot and killed by National Guard troops during an anti-war protest at KSU