The War Winds Down

The War Winds Down

Nixon Moves to End the WarHenry Kissinger: special assistant for nat’l. affairs/U.S. diplomat

LINKAGE – improve relations with USSR and China to persuade them to cut back aid to N. Vietnam

Negotiations with N. Vietnam carried on over 4 years!Cease-fire?

How ‘bout returning U.S. prisoners?Can S. Vietnam

remain democratic?

- Henry KissingerU.S. Negotiator

Nice try, but I don’t think so.

- Le Duc ThoN. Vietnamese

Negotiator

Nixon Moves to End the WarVIETNAMIZATION: the gradual withdrawal of U.S. troops while S. Vietnam assumed more of the fighting

- Nixon increased airstrikes on N. Vietnam to ensure bargaining power as the war came to a close

Let’s remove 25,000 troops from Vietnam…but

remember, this is NOT surrender!

Massacre at My LaiSpring, 1968An American platoon massacred 200+ unarmed South Vietnamese civilians in the hamlet of My Lai

Most were women, old men, and children

The commander who ordered the attack went to prison…

…for 3 ½ years.

Americans at home were FURIOUS!

How Did This Happen?

Other War Images Reaching Home

Kent State University – May 4, 19701970 – Nixon announces strikes in Cambodia (widening the war)College students across the U.S. hold peaceful protests

Tragedy at Kent State University, Ohiohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSCSRI4oa8M

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSCSRI4oa8M

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSCSRI4oa8M

The Final StrawNixon failed to tell Congress about the invasion into Cambodia =

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution repealed

1971 PENTAGON PAPERS leaked: revealed that many members of the previous Johnson administration disapproved of the war…

revealed many of the lies told to Congress and the American public

MY BACK!

CONGRESSU.S. PUBLIC

The U.S. Pulls Out of VietnamNixon vows to end the war – 1972 wins re-election!

January 27, 1973 – peace treaty is signed to “end the war”, exchange all prisoners, and for the U.S. to remove all troops

Just as the last U.S. troops were being removed in 1975, N. Vietnamese launched a full scale attack on the South

All of Vietnam was united under Communism - Saigon now called “Ho Chi Minh City”

Vietnam’s LegacyCost to the U.S. Cost to Vietnam - $170+ billion - Over 1,000,000 deaths - 58,000+ deaths - 300,000+ wounded - Deep psychological scarring - Deep mistrust of the U.S. gov’t

WAR POWERS ACT: The President MUST inform Congress of troop commitment within 48 hrs.

HOT POTATO REVIEW

HOT POTATO RULESHawks should form a circle. Doves should form their own circle.

EVERYONE should have a notecard and a pen/pencil•Pass the ball around your group’s circle clockwise. When the music stops, whoever is holding the ball must answer a question about the Vietnam War Era. (no student may be chosen twice consecutively…the ball will pass to his/her left)

• If one team gets it wrong, the other team gets a point.• If both teams get it wrong, the turn is over and we start again.• If both teams get it right, you duel for the point!

HOT POTATO QUESTION #1

Nixon promoted the idea of Vietnamization.

What is Vietnamization.


Extended meetings or classes to discuss social or political issues of Vietnam were called _________.


At which university did military police fire on students? How many students died as a result?


What is the difference between “Doves” and “Hawks”? Initially, which group was seen as

unpatriotic and why?


Who was the U.S. diplomat/special assistant to foreign affairs?

What was his strategy called that aimed to improve relations with USSR and China to persuade them to

cut back aid to N. Vietnam?


Which Democratic candidate for the 1968 election was assassinated by Sirhan Sirhan?

Who won the election of 1968?


Jellied gasoline that explodes on impact is called _____.

_______ is a chemical that strips foliage, leaving farmlands/forests as wasteland.


The U.S. military strategy in Vietnam was _______. This means defeating enemy sources by slowly

wearing them down.


The turning point of the war was when thousands of U.S. troops and S. Vietnamese were slaughtered on the Vietnamese New Year. This battle is known

as the ____________.


What did the War Powers Act do?


_____________ was the event in the Spring of 1968 that resulted in an American platoon slaughtering

200+ unarmed South Vietnamese civilians in a hamlet village

Documents

The War Winds Down