Transcript Vietnam PowerPoint

The Vietnam Era
Why did America Become
Involved in Vietnam?
• Domino Theory – the
belief that if one nation
in Asia fell to
communism,
neighboring nations
would follow.
• The United States wanted
to prevent the spread of
communism in Southeast
Asia.
American Involvement in the
Vietnam war from 1954-1964
• In the early 1950s, the United States, under
Eisenhower, gave France billions of dollars in
military aid to help it fight the Vietminh,
nationist rebels led by Communist leader Ho
Chi Minh.
• Eisenhower’s administration also dispatched a
few hundred soldiers who acted as advisors to
the South Vietnamese government and army.
• The Green berets were special military units
trained to fight guerrilla wars.
•
American Involvement in
Vietnam after 1964
Gulf of Tonkin
Resolution
napalm
Bombing of North
Vietnam
Agent Orange
Search and destroy
missions
Guerilla warfare
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
• Congress passed this
resolution which allowed
the president to “take all
necessary measures to
repel any armed attack
against the forces of the
United states”.
• This gave Johnson broad
authority to use
American forces in
Vietnam.
Bombing of North Vietnam
• The United States
unleashed an intense
bombing campaign called
Operation Rolling
Thunder. Many planes
attacked the Ho Chi
Minh Trail which was a
North Vietnamese supply
route.
• The bombing increased
in intensity from 1965
through 1968.
Search and Destroy Missions
• Our United States
troops sought out the
Vietcong or North
Vietnamese units and
destroyed them.
• Ground troops
coordinated their
moves with air
support.
Agent Orange
•
• A chemical herbicide
sprayed in Vietnam to
clear out forests and
tall grasses.
• Believed to have
contaminated many
American and
Vietcong soldiers
causing serious health
problems.
Guerrilla Warfare
• A hit and run
technique used in
fighting a war
• Used tactics such as
sudden ambushes
Napalm
• An explosive that burned
intensely used to destroy
jungle growth.
• Both the North
Vietnamese and Vietcong
forces used napalm in
flamethrowers, devices
that expel fuel or a
burning stream of liquids
• We used planes to drop
the napalm.
Why is the 1968 considered a turning
point in American History?
Because of ……
Tet Offensive
Credibility gap
Johnson’s
refusal to seek
another term as
president
Assassination Assassination of
Election of
of Martin
Robert
Richard M.
Luther King, Jr.
Kennedy
Nixon
Beginning of
Paris Peace talks
Tet Offensive
• On January 31, 1968 (The Vietnamese
New Year) the North Vietnamese and the
Vietcong launched a series of attacks
throughout South Vietnam. These attacks
became known as the Tet Offensive and
they marked a turning point in the war.
Credibility Gap
• President Johnson’s Administration developed a
credibility gap. This means very few Americans
trusted the administration’s statements about
the war.
Johnson refuses to run
for a second term
• Events in Vietnam and
the growing antiwar
movement disturbed
President Johnson. On
March 31, 1968, Johnson
appeared on television
and announced “I shall
not seek and I will not
accept the nomination of
my party for another
term as your president”.
Assassination of Martin Luther
King, Jr.
• On April 4, 1968, an
assassin, James Earl
Ray, Shot and killed
Dr. Martin Luther
King, Jr. in Memphis,
Tennessee.
• King died committed
to a moral battle of
non-violent protests,,
but his death sparked
off violence in 125
U.S. cities.
Assassination of Robert
Kennedy
• In early June 1968,
after Robert Kennedy
won the primary
election in California,
an assassin, Sirhan
Sirhan, shot and killed
him.
Richard Nixon wins the
presidency of 1968
• Nixon tapped into voters’
conservative sentiment.
• He pledged to represent
the “quiet majority” of
Americans - the nonshouters, non
demonstrators.
• He called these people
the “silent majority”.
Beginning of the Paris Peace
talks
• On March 31, 1968, after
consulting advisors,
President Johnson
appeared on television to
announce “a new step
toward peace” – he would
halt the bombing of
North Vietnamese cities.
• He asked the North
Vietnamese for a
comparable action so
that peace negotiations
could begin.
Policies of the Nixon Administration
toward the conduct of the Vietnam
War
“Peace with honor”
Vietnamization
Withdrawal of American
forces from Vietnam in
1973
Draft Reform
Paris Peace Talks
“Peace with Honor”
• Nixon pledged “peace with honor” . He wanted
to pull American forces out of Vietnam but he
did not want American withdrawal to be seen as
a sign of defeat. Nixon’s strategy had 3 parts:
– Reform of the selective service system
– Giving the South Vietnamese more responsibility in
fighting the war (Vietnamization)
– Intense bombing
Draft Reform
• College students could
no longer obtain draft
deferments.
• Only 19 year olds could
be called for service in
Vietnam.
• Draftees would be chosen
by lottery on the basis of
their birth date.
Paris Peace Talks
• President Nixon and his administration
continued to negotiate with representatives of
the North Vietnamese government.
• Nixon sent Henry Kissenger, his national
security advisor, to meet in private with the
North Vietnamese foreign minister. In the fall
of 1972 they reached a tentative agreement.
• This agreement collapsed because the S.
Vietnamese president objected to allowing the
N. Vietnamese forces to remain in S. Vietnam.
• Nixon stood firm and the North Vietnamese
returned to the peace talks. The S. Vietnamese
accepted the peace terms and signed a peace
agreement on January 27, 1973.
Withdrawal of American Forces
from Vietnam in 1973
• In 1973, the United States
agreed to pull its
remaining troops out of
Vietnam. The North
Vietnamese agreed to
return all American
prisoners of war.
• The Paris peace Accords
ended American
involvement in Vietnam,
but did not end the
conflict.
Doves and Hawks
• Students and other
opponents of the war
became known as
doves.
• Supporters of the war
became known as
hawks.
Kent State
• The Cambodian invasion provoked a storm of
anti-war protests on campuses across the nation.
• At Kent State university in Ohio, students
burned a military building on campus.
• The governor ordered 3000 National Guard
troops to Kent.
• The National Guard told protesting students to
evacuate the area. Some students started
throwing stones.
• Tear gas was shot toward students and they
began to run.
• One National Guard unit chased some students
and for reasons that are unclear, opened fire.
• 4 students were dead and 13 more were
Protest Songs
• Many popular
songwriters and singers
expressed their opinions
through popular protest
songs during the 1960s
and 1970s.
• Example – Bob Dylan’s
songs
The Times They are a
Changin
Blowin’ In The Wind
Counterculture
• A social movement
whose values go
against those of
established society
• Some common
symbols of the
counterculture are:
– Torn blue jeans
– Long hair for men
Students for a Democratic Society
(SDS)
SDS condemned
– Racism
– Poverty
– Nuclear weapons
Rejecting efforts at
reform, the students
in SDS called for a
radical transformation
in American society.
Hoping for Peace
• Many people who
expressed growing
opposition to the war
in Vietnam took part
in anti-war
demonstrations.
General William Westmoreland
• He was the American
commander in
Vietnam
Henry Kissinger
• He was President
Nixon’s national
security advisor.
Robert McNamara
• Robert McNamara was
President Johnson’s
Secretary of Defense.
• Johnson sent McNamara
to Vietnam on a fact
finding mission.
• McNamara told Johnson
that South Vietnam
could not resist the
Vietcong rebels without
more help from the
United States.
What were the immediate and long
term effects of the Vietnam War?
• Saigon fell to the communists in 1975.
• American groups scoured the Vietnamese countryside
for our MIAs (Missing in Action).
• The Vietnam War cost the United States over 150 billion
dollars. Our federal deficit expanded because of this.
• After the war there was inflation and unemployment.
• The Vietnam Veterans Memorial was constructed in
Washington, D.C. and dedicated in 1982.
Vietnam Veterans’
Memorial
• The construction of the
Vietnam Veterans’
Memorial in Washington,
D.C. provided a step toward
healing the country’s
wounds.
• It is made of polished black
granite and takes on the
shape of a private’s wings.
It bears the name of all the
Americans who died or
were missing in action in
the conflict.