How did the Vietnam War impact Americans at home and at war?
Background and Events Leading to the Vietnam War
In 1954, the United States entered the Vietnam War thinking it would not last long; unfortunately, it ended up lasting 21 years. The Vietnam War was very controversial, in that there were many that were for the war, and many that opposed going into war. From 1954 to 1975 the Vietnam War went on, and killed 58,220 American soldiers out of the 3 million that went to war.[1] Prior to 1954 there were several events that led to the United States intervention in Vietnam. The main reason the United States intervened and entered in the war was to prevent repeating its mistakes, such as the pre-World War II Germany.[2] There were significant events before, during, and after the Vietnam War which supports that
not only did Vietnam soldiers suffer from the effects of the war, but the American soldiers did as well.
The events leading to the Vietnam start from the time of World War II. One of the first events was when Japan invaded and occupied Vietnam,
which was under French control at the time. When the French tried to regain their territory, they were defeated by Viet Minh forces.[3] This led to the intervention of the United States; the United States entered the war in order to help the French against Vietnam.
There were four different presidents that took office during the war: Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon. Although Eisenhower was president when the war started, he did not support the idea of going to war again. After having led the nation through the Cold War, Eisenhower did not believe it would be a good idea to enter Asian territory to fight another war. However, Richard M. Nixon and Admiral Arthur Radford wanted Eisenhower to intervene in Vietnam in order to help the French in Indochina.[4]
During Kennedy’s presidency there was an investigation in Vietnam called the “December 1961 White Papers”. The investigation concluded that the soldiers needed more aid in Vietnam; however, Kennedy only sent more advisers and machinery to the troops.[5] During Johnson’s presidency, the Gulf of Tonkin attack occurred, which was an attack on two American ships where was considered “neutral water”.[6] Nixon won the presidency in 1969 when he coined the term “Vietnaminization” which was a process where the South Vietnam troops would be trained in order to fight the war, which would allow American troops to retrieve from the war. In a White House address, Nixon stated, “I want to end the war to save the lives of those brave young men in Vietnam.”[7] Later, the war ended during Nixon’s presidency in January 1974, after the Christmas Bombing.[8] Unfortunately the
end of the war was not the end of the hardships for many American soldiers, as many later suffered from various disorders and diseases.
Word Count: 624
By, Laura Pratt
Background and Events Leading to the Vietnam War
In 1954, the United States entered the Vietnam War thinking it would not last long; unfortunately, it ended up lasting 21 years. The Vietnam War was very controversial, in that there were many that were for the war, and many that opposed going into war. From 1954 to 1975 the Vietnam War went on, and killed 58,220 American soldiers out of the 3 million that went to war.[1] Prior to 1954 there were several events that led to the United States intervention in Vietnam. The main reason the United States intervened and entered in the war was to prevent repeating its mistakes, such as the pre-World War II Germany.[2] There were significant events before, during, and after the Vietnam War which supports that
not only did Vietnam soldiers suffer from the effects of the war, but the American soldiers did as well.
The events leading to the Vietnam start from the time of World War II. One of the first events was when Japan invaded and occupied Vietnam,
which was under French control at the time. When the French tried to regain their territory, they were defeated by Viet Minh forces.[3] This led to the intervention of the United States; the United States entered the war in order to help the French against Vietnam.
There were four different presidents that took office during the war: Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon. Although Eisenhower was president when the war started, he did not support the idea of going to war again. After having led the nation through the Cold War, Eisenhower did not believe it would be a good idea to enter Asian territory to fight another war. However, Richard M. Nixon and Admiral Arthur Radford wanted Eisenhower to intervene in Vietnam in order to help the French in Indochina.[4]
During Kennedy’s presidency there was an investigation in Vietnam called the “December 1961 White Papers”. The investigation concluded that the soldiers needed more aid in Vietnam; however, Kennedy only sent more advisers and machinery to the troops.[5] During Johnson’s presidency, the Gulf of Tonkin attack occurred, which was an attack on two American ships where was considered “neutral water”.[6] Nixon won the presidency in 1969 when he coined the term “Vietnaminization” which was a process where the South Vietnam troops would be trained in order to fight the war, which would allow American troops to retrieve from the war. In a White House address, Nixon stated, “I want to end the war to save the lives of those brave young men in Vietnam.”[7] Later, the war ended during Nixon’s presidency in January 1974, after the Christmas Bombing.[8] Unfortunately the
end of the war was not the end of the hardships for many American soldiers, as many later suffered from various disorders and diseases.
Word Count: 624
By, Laura Pratt
Footnotes:
[1] National Archives and Records Administration. "Statistical information about casualties of the Vietnam War." National Archives and Records Administration. http://www.archives.gov/research/military/vietnam-war/casualty-statistics.html#category (accessed April 11, 2014).
[2] Gilovich, Thomas. 1981. "Seeing the past in the present: The effect of associations to familiar events on judgments and decisions." Journal Of
Personality And Social Psychology 40, no. 5: 797-808. PsycARTICLES, EBSCOhost (accessed April 11, 2014).
[3]A&E Television Networks. "Vietnam War History." History.com. http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/vietnam-war-history (accessed April 9, 2014).
[4] Olson, James. 2000. Vietnam War. Historical Dictionary of the 1950s. 302-303.
[5] "The Presidents during the Vietnam War." The Presidents during the Vietnam War. http://personal.ashland.edu/~jmoser1/usfp/morris.htm accessed April 10, 2014).
[6] "The Presidents during the Vietnam War." The Presidents during the Vietnam War. http://personal.ashland.edu/~jmoser1/usfp/morris.htm (accessed April 10, 2014).
[7] "Richard Nixon: Address to the Nation on the War in Vietnam." Richard Nixon: Address to the Nation on the War in Vietnam. http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=2303 (accessed April 11, 2014).
[8] "The Presidents during the Vietnam War." The Presidents during the Vietnam War. http://personal.ashland.edu/~jmoser1/usfp/morris.htm accessed April 10, 2014).
[1] National Archives and Records Administration. "Statistical information about casualties of the Vietnam War." National Archives and Records Administration. http://www.archives.gov/research/military/vietnam-war/casualty-statistics.html#category (accessed April 11, 2014).
[2] Gilovich, Thomas. 1981. "Seeing the past in the present: The effect of associations to familiar events on judgments and decisions." Journal Of
Personality And Social Psychology 40, no. 5: 797-808. PsycARTICLES, EBSCOhost (accessed April 11, 2014).
[3]A&E Television Networks. "Vietnam War History." History.com. http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/vietnam-war-history (accessed April 9, 2014).
[4] Olson, James. 2000. Vietnam War. Historical Dictionary of the 1950s. 302-303.
[5] "The Presidents during the Vietnam War." The Presidents during the Vietnam War. http://personal.ashland.edu/~jmoser1/usfp/morris.htm accessed April 10, 2014).
[6] "The Presidents during the Vietnam War." The Presidents during the Vietnam War. http://personal.ashland.edu/~jmoser1/usfp/morris.htm (accessed April 10, 2014).
[7] "Richard Nixon: Address to the Nation on the War in Vietnam." Richard Nixon: Address to the Nation on the War in Vietnam. http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=2303 (accessed April 11, 2014).
[8] "The Presidents during the Vietnam War." The Presidents during the Vietnam War. http://personal.ashland.edu/~jmoser1/usfp/morris.htm accessed April 10, 2014).