The Vietnam WarPart 3: American Popular Opinion

of The War(1962-1975)

Why did the American Public lose faith in the Vietnam War?

What were some major events that illustrate the divide in the nation?

American Public Opinionat first 61% in favor 24% opposed

Vietnam is sometimes called the “Living Room War”

Live coverage of the conflict was aired on TV nightly…

Once America saw how brutal the battle was…they started to question why

America was in Vietnam.

Reason #1: The Living Room War = TMI

Fighting the Vietcong

Cu Chi Tunnel (Saigon)

130 Miles!

“From the tunnels we were able to fight Americans from every angle,” said the Colonel Chau Lam, a veteran of the tunnels once known by the code name “Uncle Number Seven”. “They

didn’t know where we were coming from. That way we could

do more damage and limit casualties with fewer forces.”

-as quoted on MSNBC.com

"When foreigners

come there is war. When

foreigners go there is peace,“ -Viet Cong pamphlet

How do we fight an enemy we can’t find?* Search & Destroy = destroy everything, force the Vietcong out of hiding.

How can America tell if they are winning the battle?

•Westmoreland used body counts to prove the US was winning.

But the Vietcong keep hiding in the jungle…

•Napalm = jelly gasoline bomb.

•Agent Orange = chemical pesticide that kills all vegetation (plants)

Agent Orange = pesticide, used to kill jungle…bad side effects

EFFECTS

Reason #2: The Draft…was it fair?

• William Westmoreland = U.S. commander in South Vietnam

America’s Plan in Vietnam:

1.) We have better weapons, use them

2.) Fight a War of Attrition = gradual wearing

down of the enemy by continuous harassment.

This plan takes a lot of? … American Soldiers

Selective Service System = The Draft

You Get to Stay Home!• College Deferment: Males in College = did

not go to war. Usually wealthy/white• Conscientious Objector (CO) = people who

has moral/religious issues with the war• People flee to Canada est. 70,000 by

1972• Medical reasons (handicaps)

Who went to war? Who Did not? (1965-1975)

• Days of the year represented by numbers 1-366

• Draw the number that corresponds to day in the year (Feb 1st is 32nd day of the year)

• Each date then assigned a lottery number

• First 195 lottery numbers were called to serve

Would You Have Gone to War?

Year Number of US Soldiers

Year Number of US Soldiers

1960 900 1967 485,600

1961 3,200 1968 536,100

1962 11,300 1969 475,200

1963 16,300 1970 334,600

1964 23,300 1971 156,800

1965 184,300 1972 24,200

1966 385,300

Vietnam Troop Levels

These people go to war:

• The Poor & Middle Class– can’t afford college = get drafted

• African Americans

• Women– nurses, Red Cross, USO (entertainment)

Who went to war? Who Did not? (1965-1975)

The Draft plus All these bad things = Americans PROTEST

1962: Military Advisors are in Vietnam = Protest Begins

Students for a Democratic Society (SDS)• Organized: teach-ins, building take overs, riots

Why are Americans so Angry?Credibility Gap = loss of trust in the government

Americans Protest! (1962-1975)

Doing what's right isn't the problem. It is knowing what's

right.

I report to you that our

country is challenged at

home and abroad: that it is our will that is being tried and not our

strength; our sense of

purpose and not our ability to achieve a

better America.

I'm tired. I'm tired of feeling rejected by the

American people. I'm

tired of waking up in the

middle of the night worrying about the war.

1968 = Johnson did not seek re-

election