1010thth American History American History

Unit IX – Post War AmericaUnit IX – Post War America

Chapter 29 – Section 3 – Chapter 29 – Section 3 – The End of the The End of the WarWar

Why are we in Vietnam?

• “Domino Theory”- Eisenhower

• Stop Aggression• Protect our

reputation- our “credibility”

The End of the WarThe Big Idea

Growing antiwar feelings in the United States helped convince the government to end U.S. involvement in the

Vietnam War.

Main Ideas

• Opinions about the Vietnam War divided American society in the 1960s.

• The war under Nixon expanded from Vietnam to Laos and Cambodia.

• The Vietnam War ended in 1973, but it had lasting effects on Vietnam and the United States.

Main Idea 1: Opinions about the Vietnam War divided

American society in the 1960s.

• Growing numbers of Americans began to criticize the war.

• College students often took the lead in organizing antiwar protests.

– One active group was Students for a Democratic Society.

– By end of 1968, 75 percent of college campuses had been sites for antiwar demonstrations.

• Some Americans held demonstrations in support of the war.

• Some young Americans developed a counterculture– a culture with its own values and ways of behaving.

– Members of this counterculture were called hippies.

– Emphasized individual freedom, nonviolence, and communal sharing

– Expressed rejection of traditional society by growing long hair and wearing unusual clothes

War Protests

• In 1970 Nixon announced that he had ordered troops into Cambodia.

• Antiwar protests intensified—especially on college campuses.

• Antiwar protests erupted into violence.

• Nixon believed that antiwar protesters represented only a minority of Americans.

• Radical antiwar groups turned to violent measures to oppose the war.

• More and more Americans began to oppose the war when they learned about the My Lai massacre and the Pentagon Papers.

Campus Violence

• Kent State University in Ohio

• 4 students were killed and 9 injured

• Jackson State College in Mississippi

• 2 students were killed and 9 wounded

Antiwar Movement

• Polls showed that fifty percent of Americans opposed the war.

• Coalition of clergy, trade unionists, and veterans established a nationwide day of protest called Moratorium Day.

• 250,000 protesters made up the largest antiwar demonstration in U.S. history.

Increasing ProtestsRadical Protests

• Some antiwar groups turned to violent measures.

• The Weathermen set off more than 5,000 bombs and carried out the Days of Rage.

• Most antiwar protesters did not support extremist groups or terrorist measures.

Anti-War Protests 1969

• In the United States the Cambodian incursion sparked renewed Anti-War reactions. Demonstrations got louder and stronger.

• Nixon appeals to the “Silent Majority” for support of the war.

• June 1969- “Sense of the Senate” barred military operations in any country without Congressional approval.

• June 24, 1970- Senate repealed the Tonkin Gulf Resolution.

Kent State May 4, 1970

Protests against the Cambodian Incursion at Kent State University in Ohio caused the Governor to call out the National Guard. A frightened guard unit opened fire at the unarmed protestors killing 4. More that 80 colleges and universities suspended classes.

Mary Ann Vecchio (01:07)Mary Ann Vecchio (01:07)

One Week's Dead (01:39)

Election of 1968• President Johnson decided not to run for another term of office.

• Several others campaigned for Democratic nomination.

– Vice President Hubert Humphrey

– Senator Robert F. Kennedy of New York

• Violence broke out at Democratic convention after police tried to stop antiwar demonstrations.

– Damaged chances of Hubert Humphrey, the Democratic nominee, of winning the election

• Republican nominee was Richard M. Nixon.

– Promised to restore order to society and bring “peace with honor” to Vietnam

• Richard Nixon won the 1968 presidential election.

Vietnamization & the Anti-war Movement (03:33)

Main Idea 2:The war under Nixon expanded from Vietnam to

Laos and Cambodia.

• With his national security advisor, Henry Kissinger, Nixon created a plan to pull U.S. troops form Vietnam and have the South Vietnamese Army take over all the fighting.

• Strategy called Vietnamization• Withdrawal of American troops began

• Nixon, without knowledge of Congress or American public, approved bombing raids on Cambodia and Laos to disrupt Vietcong supply lines.

• On April 30, 1970, Nixon announced that U.S. troops were sent into Cambodia to attack Communist bases.

• Nixon seemed to be expanding the war.

Cambodia and Laos

Nixon’s Plan

Nixon and Vietnamization

• The plan was to encourage the South Vietnamese to take more responsibility for fighting the war.

• It was hoped that this policy would eventually enable the United States to withdraw gradually all their soldiers from Vietnam.

• July 1969, the 540,000 US troops were to be reduced by 25,000.

• To increase the size of the ARVN (Army of the Republic of Vietnam), a mobilization law was passed in South Vietnam that called up into the army all men between seventeen and forty-three years of age.

Ho Chi Minh Trail

• The US could never stem the flow of supplies to the Ho Chi Minh Trail and this was crucial to keep the

guerrilla war going. • Communist forces had been using

what was then known as the Truong Son Route since at least 1959 to infiltrate men and materiel through Laos into South Vietnam. Not only was it a lifeline, it served as a basing area and a sanctuary in Laos for staging operations into South Vietnam.

Nixon’s Secret War Nixon’s Secret War 2:44 min

.

Cambodian Incursion 1969-1970• Nixon secretly widened the war to force

the North Vietnamese to negotiate.

• Secret bombing of North Vietnamese and Cambodian bases in Cambodia

• While enlarging the war Nixon also began to withdraw troops.

• In 1970, the communists in Cambodia overthrew the leader Prince Sihanouk and took over (Khmer Rouge). U.S. and South Vietnamese leadership were concerned with Vietcong and North Vietnamese bases located in Cambodia across the South Vietnam border (Mekong River).

• President Nixon gave the approval for an April, 30, 1970 attack across the border into Cambodia by the Allies and U.S. Tanks- an incursion. This seemed to be in direct conflict with administration’s attempt to scale down the war (Vietnamization)

1972 Election

• Student protests erupted all over the nation.

• In June 1971 the Pentagon Papers were published.

– Revealed that for years, U.S. officials had been lying to the American public about war’s progress

– Intensified antiwar feelings

• Twenty-sixth Amendment ratified in 1971

– Lowered voting age from 21 to 18

• Democratic candidate George McGovern tried to appeal to young voters.

• Majority of voters over 21 supported Nixon.

• Richard Nixon won presidential election by a landslide.

Paris Peace Accords & Leaving Vietnam (05:03)

Main Idea 3:The Vietnam War ended in 1973, but it had lasting effects

on Vietnam and the United States.

• On January 27, 1973, the United States signed a cease-fire called the Paris Peace Accords.

– Agreement between United States, North Vietnam, South Vietnam, and the Vietcong

– United States agreed to withdrawal of all troops.

– North Vietnam agreed to return all American prisoners of war.

• Despite the peace agreement, fighting broke out between North and South Vietnam in 1974.

– United States refused to send troops back to South Vietnam.

Southeast AsiaSoutheast Asia

• 250,000 South Vietnamese soldiers died in the war.

• 1 million North Vietnamese and Vietcong solders were killed.

• An estimated 2 million civilians killed

• North Vietnamese forces captured Saigon in April 1975, and Communist leaders created the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

• Communist dictators took over Laos and Cambodia.

Impact of Vietnam WarUnited StatesUnited States

• Some 58,000 Americans were killed in the war.

• More than 300,000 Americans were wounded.

• Returning American soldiers were not always welcomed home and many suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder.

• War Powers Act passed in 1973, requiring president to get Congressional approval before committing U.S. troops to armed struggle

• Vietnam Veterans Memorial dedicated in 1982

War Powers Act - 1973

• To ensure that Congress and the President share in making decisions that may get the U.S. involved in hostilities.

• Requires the President to consult with Congress prior to the start of any hostilities.

• Under the act, the President can only send combat troops into battle or into areas where ''imminent'' hostilities are likely, for 60 days without either a declaration of war by Congress or a specific Congressional mandate.

• The President can extend the time the troops are in the combat area for 30 extra days, without Congressional approval, for a total of 90 days.

Southeast Asia

• 635,000 South Vietnamese died; Vietcong and NVA war dead equaled 1 million

• Severe environmental damage from bombs and defoliants

• More than 1.5 million South Vietnamese fled the country after the fall of Saigon.

Veterans

• 58,000 Americans were killed; 600 were held as POWs; 2,500 soldiers reported MIA; 300,000 wounded

• Experienced a negative reception upon return

• Trouble readjusting to civilian life (post-traumatic stress disorder)

The Legacy of the WarPolitical Impact

• United States failed to prevent Communists from taking over South Vietnam.

• Spent more than $150 billion on the war

• Changed how many Americans viewed government

• Congress passed the War Powers Act in 1973.

Vietnam Veterans Memorial – 1:24Vietnam Veterans Memorial – 1:24

The Vietnam War’s Legacy• Two years after U.S. troops were withdrawn, North

Vietnamese troops invaded South Vietnam.

• After a short amount of fighting, South Vietnam surrendered.– The U.S. military rushed to evacuate Americans still working in

Saigon.

– Some 130,000 South Vietnamese were also evacuated and flown to the United States.

• After two decades of “temporary” division, Vietnam was reunited under a Communist government.

• In 1975, Communist forces called the Khmer Rouge gained control of Cambodia.– Vietnam forces invaded Cambodia in 1979, overthrew the Khmer

Rouge, and occupied the country till 1989.

Fall of Vietnam and Indochina- 1975• Vietnam

– Fall of Saigon Apr. 29, 1975- Ambassador Graham Martin and 7100 U.S. and SV personnel evacuated Apr. 30, 1975

• Cambodia– Khmer Rouge

• Laos– Pathet Lao and Pol Pot

Victory of North Vietnam - 1975

• Collapse of ARVN and South Vietnamese Government- The South Vietnamese Army withdrew from the Central Highland, leaving Saigon open to invasion from the North Vietnamese. The United States refused to provide additional aid

• April 21, the South Vietnamese president resigned and fled

• Fall of Siagon- On April 30, 1975, Saigon fell to North Vietnamese tanks.

• The End-On April 30, just as the last U.S. helicopter was lifting off, the North Vietnamese Army swept into Saigon

Cambodia and Khmer Rouge

• The Khmer Rouge, led by Pol Pot, killed close to 1.7 million people in the mid- to late 1970s.

• Money, private property, education and religion were abolished and Cambodia's towns and cities were emptied as the population was forced into massive, unworkable agricultural collectives.

• In addition to death from work starvation and exhaustion, the regime killed anyone suspected with connections with either the defeated Khmer Republic government or the previous Sihanouk government, as well as intellectuals (Pol Pot defined anyone who wore glasses as automatically an intellectual), professionals, and also ethnic Vietnamese, Chinese, Chams, Laotians, and Thai.

Pol Pot

Killing Fields• Killing Fields- 1975

– cities emptied or people sent to the countryside. Phnom Penh – new rules- religion, money and private ownership were all

banned; communications with the outside world elimated; family relationships dismantled. All previous rights and responsibilities were thrown out the window.

– New People with education, doctor, teacher, lawyers, etc. were killed. They chose to live in cities and were easy to identify.

– The CIA estimated that between 50,000 and 100,000 people were executed by the Khmer Rouge, but executions represented only a minority of the death toll, which mostly came from starvation.

• Boat People- refuges.

• Dec. 28, 1978- Vietnamese invasion of Cambodia- Liberators or Invaders? The end of the Khmer Rouge

Killing Fields

2:41 min.

End of Laos 1975

• Years of bitter revolutionary struggle, ending with Americas secret war between 1964 and 1973, left Laos the most bombed country in the history of warfare.

• Fall of Laos- In 1975 the communist Pathet Lao took control of the government.

• Pathet Lao was a communist, nationalist political movement and organization in Laos.

Hmong rebels

CIA secret army- left behind

The Legacy of the Pol Pot Regime and Khmer Rouge (01:46)