Topics on the page
Background and Overview
Gulf of Tonkin (1964)
Primary Sources
The War at Home
The Buddhist Crisis
Teaching and Learning Resources
African Americans and the Vietnam War
War Crimes
Clay v. United States Court Case
Women and the Vietnam War
Three Servicemen Statute, National Mall, Washington, D.C.
Vietnam War Key Events
Cross-Links
Link to AP US History Key Concept 8.1: The US and the Cold War
Influential Literature page: In the Lake of the Woods by Tim O'Brien
Focus Question:
How did the diplomatic and military policies of Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon impact the
causes and consequences of the Vietnam War?
- Eisenhower Administration (1953-1961):
President Eisenhower's administration focused on containing the spread of communism globally. In Vietnam, Eisenhower adopted the "domino theory", which argued that if one country fell to communism, neighboring countries would follow suit. He provided military and economic aid to the South Vietnamese government to prevent the spread of communism. In 1955, Eisenhower sent military advisers to train the South Vietnamese army.
- Kennedy Administration (1961-1963):
Kennedy inherited the Vietnam conflict from Eisenhower, and his administration's policy focused on supporting the South Vietnamese government through military and economic aid. Kennedy increased the number of military advisers in Vietnam and authorized covert operations to disrupt the communist insurgency. The Kennedy administration also supported the overthrow of the South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem, who was unpopular among the Vietnamese people.
- Johnson Administration (1963-1969):
Johnson escalated the U.S. involvement in Vietnam, committing troops to fight alongside the South Vietnamese army. He believed that a communist victory in Vietnam would have a domino effect on other countries in Southeast Asia. The Johnson administration's policy was to win the war through military force. The Gulf of Tonkin incident in 1964 led to the passage of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which authorized the use of military force in Vietnam without a formal declaration of war.
- Nixon Administration (1969-1974):
Nixon campaigned on a promise to end the war in Vietnam and pursued a policy of "Vietnamization," which involved gradually withdrawing U.S. troops and transferring the responsibility of fighting the war to the South Vietnamese army. Nixon also pursued a policy of detente with the Soviet Union and China, hoping to use their influence to end the war. In 1973, the Paris Peace Accords were signed, ending U.S. involvement in the war. However, the North Vietnamese violated the agreement, and the South Vietnamese government collapsed in 1975.
Background and Overview
Click Here for backstory and general overview of the War in Vietnam
Click here for an overview look at Vietnam War
173 Airborne Brigade in a firefight on Hill 823
- Go here for a short video from Kahn Academy
- Here for "domino theory" of Eisenhower administration
Here for an interactive timeline on the Vietnam War from the Vietnam War Commemoration
Listen to a critique of a Pentagon Vietnam War website by historian Nick Turse from the radio show On the Media (February 21, 2014).
See Kill Anything That Moves: The American War in Vietnam, Nick Turse (Metropolitan Books, 2013).
North Vietnamese torpedo boat engages USS Maddox
Gulf of Tonkin (1964)
For background and teaching resources, see The Gulf of Tonkin Incident from Nova.
The Gulf of Tonkin and Escalation, from Office of the Historian, U.S. State Department
This learning plan is an interactive debate on the Vietnam war.
Vietnam.docx
President Johnson's Message to Congress (August 5, 1964) and Joint Resolution of Congress, H.J. RES 1145 (August 7, 1964)
The Truth about Tonkin, U.S.Naval Institute
Primary Sources
"Peace in Vietnam and Southeast Asia," Lyndon Johnson's speech to the nation, March 31, 1968 when he announced his intention to limit the war and to not seek re-election in the 1968 election.
Exhibits from The Vietnam Center and Archive at Texas Tech University provides documents and images related to the American experience in Vietnam.
The War at Home
Kent State Massacre
How Nixon's Invasion of Cambodia Triggered a Check on Presidential Power - HISTORY
Christian G. Appy - Why the Vietnam War Still Matters
The Pentagon Papers
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A visitor at the Vietnam Veterans' Memorial |
The Buddhist Crisis
- The policies of Southern Vietnam's leader, Ngo Dinh Diem, targeted and persecuted the majority Buddhist population in Vietnam
- Buddhist Monks were particularly impacted by these policies
- For instance, weapons that were given to Vietnamese villagers to defend themselves from Viet Cong forces, were only given to Catholic citizens, leaving Buddhists largely defenseless
- Buddhist Monks had large demonstrations against this persecution, the most notable example being the self-immolation of Thich Quang Duc.
- Thich Quang Duc burned himself alive, an event that was photographed and currently is one of the most famous photographs from this period in history
Teaching and Learning Resources
Click here for online excerpts from Amazon.com from UMASS Amherst Professor Christian Appy's book Patriots: The Vietnam War Remembered From All Sides.
Click here for the LBJ Library's section on the Vietnam War. Includes photos, speeches, oral history, LBJ diary entries, timelines, and more.
Wrecked American helicopter
PBS program on American POWs
- Click here for a lesson plan that requires reading accounts of soldiers and politicians and the Vietnam War
- Click here for a collection of Vietnam War resources and lesson plans
- Click here for a lesson plan from the National Archives, utilizing photos from the Vietnam War
Click here for the virtual Wall of Faces from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund
- Click here for a wikipedia list of songs focusing on the Vietnam War.
- Click here to read about the top songs of the Vietnam War era.
Many people see similarities between the Vietnam War and the war in Afghanistan. Click here to read an article from CBS on the topic.
This war also had major effects on the views of Vietnamese people by both American soldiers and civilians back home, most of which were very negative.
- This is a list of racial slurs used by American soldiers to describe the Vietnamese forces, and it is clear that some of these are far from socially acceptable or appropriate.
In addition, many American servicemen overseas fathered children with Vietnamese women.
- This article talks about the experiences endured by these children, mainly orphans, who suffered scorn and disgust by both the Vietnamese and American populations.
Learning Plans
Wouldn't You Go to Prison to Help End This War?
National Security versus the People's Right to Know
African Americans and the Vietnam War
During the Vietnam War, a large amount of African Americans were involved in the conflict. The war has been referred to as a white man's war, but a black man's fight.
- One reason for this is thought to be the high level of unemployment. During the 1960s, white Americans were unemployed at 3.4%, but African Americans were unemployed at 7.3%. Many African Americans viewed enlisting in the war as a way to support themselves and their families. As a result, African Americans re-enlisted 3 times more often than whites.
- In addition, while many white men could either buy their deferment or enroll in school to avoid the draft, many African Americans did not have the same chances.
- In 1966, there was a program called "Project 100,000" which aimed to enlisted underprivileged men with lessened requirements in an attempt to better their employment opportunities. Over 350,000 men enlisted during this program, but 41% of them were African American.
- Of the 41% of African Americans, 40% were given combat jobs with little room for advancement and with little training. During 1967, about 1/3 of white men were drafted, but 2/3 of African American men were drafted in the same year. The amount of African American men drafted during the war was about 11%.
- For this information and more, click here or here.
"Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence" speech by Martin Luther King, Jr. April 4, 1967.
Black Vietnam Veterans on Injustices They Faced: Da 5 Bloods | Time.
Click here for PBS' History Detectives on African Americans in the Vietnam War.
Click here for a lesson plan on African Americans during the Vietnam War
War Crimes in the Vietnam War
Despite war crimes being evident throughout history, the Vietnam War was unique through it being the first war to publicly televise footage of the war, as well as the war crimes that were done by American soldiers, leading to the growing Anti-War movement in the United States
Click Here for article detailing the prominence of rape during the Vietnam War, as well as attempts to limit the spread of information to the American public
Click Here for video and article detailing survivors' accounts of the My Lei massacre
Click Here for article detailing the extent of war crimes that were under-reported during the Vietnam War
https://www.audible.com/pd/Agent-Orange-and-US-Government-War-Crimes-Podcast/B08TGHH29V This is a link to a podcast detailing the use of Agent Orange during the Vietnam War, and other war crimes committed by the U.S.
Ron Ridenhour’s Last Talk: My Lai and Why it Matters
​Four Hours in MY LAI, anatomy of a massacre
Clay v. United States
Muhammad Ali, 1967
Clay, aka Ali v. United States (1966-1971) details boxer Muhammad Ali's efforts to resist induction into the U.S. Army, a case that went to the Supreme Court and resulted in Ali being stripped of his heavyweight boxing championship.
- He had converted to Islam and refused to serve, citing religious beliefs.
- Convicted of draft evasion, fined $10,000, and had his license to box and his passport revoked.
- Barred from boxing during the prime of his career, from age 25 to age 29.
- He regained the title defeating George Forman in 1974 (see "Tough Suspensions in Sports Don't Always Stick," The New York Times, January 12, 2014).
- Click here to watch a video to see Muhammad Ali's speech about Vietnam War
Click here for the Supreme Court decision in Clay v. United States (1971)
Click here to read a newspaper article from The Guardian when Ali refused to go to war
O. Paris Peace Accords
Paris Peace Accords
Transcript of a 1998 Conference Reexamining the Paris Peace Accords
Pictures of the Vietnam War from Discovery News
"Sobering Lessons for the Afghan Pullout in Paris Peace Accord Anniversary" from National Journal
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