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What forms of Military intervention were used during the Vietnam War?

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What forms of Military intervention were used during the Vietnam War?

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The Vietnam War was one of the most brutal wars in American history for the soldiers that fought in it. Many actions were taken by both the United States and Vietnam to help push their side towards winning. During the Geneva Conference in 1954, an attack was commenced by Viet Minh, the communist leader, on Dien Bein Phu and it successfully overran the city in North Vietnam. Another attack done by communist Vietnam forces in the North launched on the Vietnam New Year called the Tet Offensive. It was a huge attack that actually leads to a defeat from the North's side, but the number of casualties and stir of the American people claim it to be one of the biggest disaster "wins" from our side in the Vietnam War. An attack brought upon by the U.S's side is known as the Cambodian and Laotian incursions, or basically a bunch of large-scale bombing in efforts to help remove the presence of the 🤬 Chi Minh trail. As a result, in the States, protests both peaceful and violent erupted across the country due to the lack of information told to the public and the amounts of casualties from either side. Both sides reacted in their own ways toward the war, all and all, resulting in many harsh battle conditions and casualties. Not to mention there are a ton more battles fought that would only increase the anger of the American public and the death count of the war.

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Why did tensions between the US government and the public increase during the Vietnam War?

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Why did tensions between the US government and the public increase during the Vietnam War?

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During the Vietnam War, public opinion of the government sharply dropped, as Vietnam was easily one of the most strongly opposed conflicts in American history. From the start of the war, people who were not in support, often times saw evading the draft as their only method of protesting and staying out of the conflict. This caused crack downs by the government to prevent it, and new forms of avoiding the draft, such as going to college which targeted the lower class into fighting. A large source of public discontent was also created my this being the first televised war, and gave people direct insight into what war looks like. Man found this disturbing, and when paired with stories such as the My Lai Massacre, people did not want to support graphic issues like this. Also, the release of the Pentagon papers proved that the government was not completely transparent with their actions and intentions, and previous public trust greatly diminished. These causes then fueled protests against the war and led to derogatory terms to emphasize anti-war sentiments, such as "baby killers" for soldiers and war-hawks for war supporters.

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How were the United States and Vietnam changed by the Vietnam War?

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How were the United States and Vietnam changed by the Vietnam War?

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Both the U.S. and unified Vietnam saw significant changes following the war. Vietnam saw decreased population, increased cases of poison exposure, and a unified Vietnam under the communist's northern image. The U.S. saw a massive increase in Vietnamese population due to refugees, pushback against executive power in warfare and foreign operations, and a major decrease in national pride due to the loss of a major war. In addition, both nations suffered the loss of many men, and had to take care of veterans who suffered immensely from the war.

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In what ways did the US try to end the Vietnam War? 

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In what ways did the US try to end the Vietnam War? 

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Instead of fighting for the Southern Vietnamese people, the Nixon Doctrine proposed that the military would teach them to fight for themselves. This became known as Vietnamization: aiding the civilians while staying out of combat. The Paris Peace Agreement was to restore peace between both sides of Vietnam and America. The US withdrew their troops and both sides exchanged prisoners.

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What did people in the U.S. do to protest our intervention?

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What did people in the U.S. do to protest our intervention?

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Liberal students were some of the first to start really protesting the war. Their cause grew greatly when more Americans knew of the mass bombing being done in Vietnam and the surrounding countries. In addition to the bombing, the Mai Lai massacre, in which many innocent Vietnamese civilians were killed, only served to increase public reaction. Marches against the war were soon organized and protest became mainstream. Soon major appearances, like Martin Luther King Jr. and Muhammad Ali, also rallied protest. Many famous musicians wrote songs that alluded to protest against our intervention. At a university known as Kent State, the National Guard was sent in to handle some protestors. It soon got bloody when the National Guard opened fire killing four students and injuring others. This time is cited as one of the most turbulent times in American history.

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The US began pulling out troops from Vietnam and pulling out due to ideas such as the increased opposition to the involvement in Vietnam. Reasons for this include the large amount of casualties and even events such as the Lai Massacre, which horrified the public. Nixon, among increased pressure to withdraw began pulling troops out but still wanted to provide financial aid to the South Vietnamese army. Nixon even came up with the idea of training the South Vietnamese to fight the war for themselves. The support of the war dwindled so low that Nixon even began to realize that if he wanted to be successful politically, he would have to withdraw all troops from Vietnam. The Paris Peace Agreement/Accords were also signed in 1973 which called for the withdrawal of all US troops from Vietnamese territory while also allowing the release of all US war prisoners. This ultimately reestablished peace in Vietnam and eventually Vietnam would become a unified communist state.

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How were American troops treated when they returned from Vietnam?

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How were American troops treated when they returned from Vietnam?

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When the troops returned after the war many were not received with open arms. The televisaion of the war and other media coverage exposed the average American to the "horrors of war". Many Americans were opposed to the war in the first place and troops were looked at as people who went to fight an evil war. The My Lai Massacre was widely shown in media and then was associated with all soldiers. One soldier said that he stepped off of a plane returning home from war expecting a heroes welcome but instead was called "baby killer" and other derogatory names. The soldiers also were not readily handed jobs upon return. Few jobs were available and people were prejudice against the war and the cause so would not hire them.

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What events and military action caused for increased tensions of the Vietnam War?

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What events and military action caused for increased tensions of the Vietnam War?

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Many aspect of the Vietnam War were looked down upon or thought pointless by many Americans. There was a great divide of people supporting the war, and others who were against it. The Vietnam War had many unfortunate events that spark heightened tensions between America and Vietnam. Many Americans had a strong fear of communism, and it was believed if we did not join the war, communism would spread all around the world. This idea was called the domino theory. Additionally, the Tet Offensive, a series of surprise attacks against South Vietnam, were done by the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese. These groups were a communist military group that weakened US public support for the war. This event also made it seem like the US could never win the war. Also, many people were trying to get out of the draft so they did not have to go to war since they did not agree with it. Another event that increased tensions was the My Lai Massacre, which was the mass 🤬 of many unarmed civilians of Vietnam carried out by US soldiers. Many civilians that were killed were women and children, which made Americans very angry with Vietnam soldiers. Americans did not support this act and thought it made Americans look heartless. When the pentagon papers were released, it showed Americans that Truman essentially got us involved with Vietnam when military aid was given to France, for a war against communist leader Vien Minh. The terrible events that took place during the Vietnam War increased tensions within the war, and the public opinions.

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What events and ideas encouraged protest of the Vietnam War amongst some Americans? 

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What events and ideas encouraged protest of the Vietnam War amongst some Americans? 

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The Vietnam War was one of the most controversial wars that involved America. While many were in support of the war for much of its duration due to fears of the spread of communism, there was a growing number of Americans who heavily protested the war. Much of this hatred for the war began with few Americans who morally believed in peace. However, specific events and standards gave the movement a much more prominent spotlight. One event was the My Lai Massacre where American troops performed mass 🤬 on unarmed Vietnamese civilians. This sparked controversy at home, as many protestors thought the war was unjust for killing innocent civilians. Another significant event, and probably the most prominent, was the Tet Offensive in 1968 where North Vietnamese troops and the Vietcong successfully attacked American and North Vietnamese troops, showing the American public that the war was far from over and proving unsuccessful for America. Finally, the idea that young American men were being drafted for a war when they could not vote or buy a drink emphasized the youthfulness of the men taking the brunt of America’s problems and angered much of the American public.

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During the Vietnam War era, the U.S. military drafted 2.2 million American men out of an eligible pool of 27 million.  People tried to seek refuge from the draft in many sorts of ways. For example, many upper class boys would attend college. Others intentionally failed aptitude tests. Thousands fled to Canada, the politically connected sought refuge in the National Guard, and a growing number engaged in direct resistance. Although, draft evading also had many consequences. Going to Canada, would escape you from the draft, but it could also land you in jail. Many people also looked down on draft evaders, which was also a large consequence.

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How were Americans able to be supportive knowing what some of the terrible things the US were doing over in Vietnam?

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How were Americans able to be supportive knowing what some of the terrible things the US were doing over in Vietnam?

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Many Americans were able to continue their strong support for the war due to their hatred and fear of communism. Many of them believed those people to be inferior to them and knowing the atrocities American soldiers were committing towards them did not bother them in the slightest. In their mind, they were getting what they deserved. Many younger people and educated people were more supportive of the war due to their naivety to war, unlike those who were older and more aware of the effects of war.