U.S. Involvement ,Escalation , and a Nation Divided Chapter 30.2 & 3 U.S. Involvement ,Escalation , and a Nation Divided

After the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution… LBJ ordered large waves of American troops into Vietnam in 1965. By 1967, the number of US troops in Vietnam climbed to ~500,000

War in the Jungle The US assumed that its vastly superior war equipment would mean quick and easy victory. They were wrong – the jungle terrain in Vietnam made most of the US technology useless. The result: Guerilla-style warfare (short firefights, “fight-and-run” strategy)

The Vietcong were smart… They utilized complex tunnel systems between villages to quickly attack and then disappear. In response, the US would often send in airstrikes using napalm, a type of bomb that dropped a heavily flammable substance that quickly spread fire through the jungle terrain.

Agent Orange Agent Orange was a chemical used to kill off and remove the thick jungle terrain to make it easier for the American troops. However, the soldiers who handled and spread this chemical would deal with many lifelong health issues as a result of it.

Search-and-Destroy Most U.S. troops were sent on search-and- destroy missions 1. Attack villages suspected of housing or helping Vietcong 2. Destroy the village if necessary This left many Vietnamese with highly negative attitudes and resentment toward the US for decades, and in some ways, even today.

The War at Home At home, the war was not very popular. The longer the war dragged on the worse it got – every day reports were coming in with more American deaths. Even within the military the war was not very popular. Through the popularity of television, this was the first American war that people were watching on a daily basis. It became known as the “living-room war.”

A Nation Divided Hawks vs Doves – The country was fiercely divided. Those who supported the war were called Hawks and those who opposed it were called Doves. WHY??? The New Left emerged in the 1960s – this is when the Democratic Party and its supporters moved away from wanting the country to move in a socialist direction. This movement was mostly started by college age youth. (Compare to Bernie Sanders today!)

Demonstrations against the war: Students on college campuses across the country started to protest the war. Returning veterans also protested the war. African-Americans were used disproportionately on the front lines during the war – which fueled groups like the Black Panthers protests.

Song Analysis: Tomorrow we will analyze some music from the Vietnam era.