Warm-Up  Start a new Table of Contents for the 4 th Quarter: Vietnam through Present Day & EOG Review  No homework today for SS DateSession # ActivityPage # 4/91 Vietnam: The Beginning 1

Vietnam War: What do you know about the Vietnam War?

THE YEAR IS 1970…ARE YOU GOING TO VIETNAM?

Key figures in the Vietnam War Ho Chi Minh William Westmoreland Lyndon B. Johnson American commander in South Vietnam who told people in the media that the United States was close to winning the war, even though it wasn’t President of North Vietnam who led the efforts to defeat South Vietnam and support of the South Vietnamese Vietcong President of the United States who was president during much of Vietnam War; greatly escalated the U.S. soldier involvement in the conflict

Key figures in the Vietnam War Richard Nixon Ngo Dinh Diem President of South Vietnam who whose corruption and harsh standards led numerous people to turn to the Vietcong President of the United States during the latter part of the Vietnam War – came up with “Vietnamization” plan

Vietnam in the ’50s Southeast Asia (aka: French Indochina) Following World War II, the French controlled southeast Asia (known as Indochina) Ho Chi Minh formed the Indochinese Communist Party (ICP) and led revolts against the French to gain independence for Vietnam By 1954, the French fell to the Viet Minh and they withdrew from Indochina, leaving Vietnam a divided country

Vietnam in the ’50s Division of Vietnam along the 17 th parallel The Geneva Accords are the peace agreement reached between France & the Viet Minh in The agreement divided Vietnam along the 17 th parallel, and was meant to be temporary until the 1956 election would reunify the country…until then the North and South were allowed separate governments…uh oh

South Vietnam Problems Ho Chi Minh was very popular in the North, while Diem had little support in the South. Ho Chi Minh was very popular in the North, while Diem had little support in the South. Diem was disliked because: Diem was disliked because: he discriminated against the Buddhist population he discriminated against the Buddhist population he was corrupt he was corrupt he refused to hold the 1956 election that would have reunited the country under communist rule. he refused to hold the 1956 election that would have reunited the country under communist rule. Diem’s opponents included Diem’s opponents included South Vietnamese Communists nicknamed the Viet Cong who fought to overthrow Diem South Vietnamese Communists nicknamed the Viet Cong who fought to overthrow Diem Buddhist monks burn themselves in protest against Diem’s rule

Who Supports Who? North Vietnam supports the Viet Cong by sending soldiers and supplies along a network of paths called the Ho Chi Minh Trail– the paths wove through the jungles and mountains of neighboring Laos & Cambodia The U.S. sends support in the form of military advisors, aid, & equipment to South Vietnam… WHY WOULD WE DO THIS?

Domino Theory The Domino Theory was the belief that if one country fell to communism, the other Southeast Asian nations would eventually fall to communism as well

U.S. Helps Overthrow Diem By 1963, Diem still refused to establish a democratic government, so with U.S. support Diem was overthrown in a military coup. Diem was killed bringing chaos to South Vietnam. Unfortunately, Kennedy was also assassinated leaving Lyndon Johnson to make the next move in Vietnam…

THEVIETNAMWARTHEVIETNAMWARTHEVIETNAMWARTHEVIETNAMWAR

Ticket Out the Door With your group, analyze the 2 images your group is given. Your analysis must include the following: Image 1: First page – brief description Image 2: Second page – brief description 1.What is the difference between the 2 images? 2.What is the emotional impact of each image? 3.Why do you think these photos were taken? 4.How do you think the perspectives of people back in the United States differed from those actually fighting? 5.Create one question for each image. Make sure all group members names are on the paper!!

Warm-Up  Update your Table of Contents  No homework today for SS  Watch the video footage & images of Vietnam Q0XQ4 DateSession # ActivityPage # 4/112 Vietnam: The Action & Perspectives of My Lai 2

Gulf of Tonkin Incident USS Maddox In 1964, President Johnson announced that North Vietnam ships had fired on two American destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin Johnson insisted that the North Vietnamese attack was unprovoked asked Congress to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution giving President Johnson the power to use military force in Vietnam without an actual declaration of war – his policy of escalation continued to increase military involvement in Vietnam Bombing of North Vietnam and the first combat ground troops were sent in 1965

Operation Rolling Thunder The U.S. bombing campaign conducted against the North Vietnam from 1965 until 1968 The three-year assault was intended to get North Vietnam to stop supporting South Vietnamese Viet Cong

Guerrilla Warfare of the Viet Cong Guerrilla Tactics They used surprise attacks by small bands of fighters They used surprise attacks by small bands of fighters They had extensive underground tunnels in which to travel and hide They had extensive underground tunnels in which to travel and hide They hid deadly booby traps throughout the jungle They hid deadly booby traps throughout the jungle

Viet Cong Advantages  They were familiar with the landscape & adapted to the climate  They were very dedicated to their cause & had more support  They mixed in with the general population making it very hard to identify the enemy

U.S. Response  “Stripping the Jungle” to reveal and destroy Viet Cong hide outs using chemicals such as napalm and Agent Orange  Search-and-Destroy missions which eliminated entire villages in efforts to destroy any Viet Cong

Break for Action…  This time not only watch the video footage & images, but listen to the lyrics of the music as well  GB0ZVU

Tet Offensive Many surprise attacks organized on U.S. military throughout South Vietnam on January 30-31, 1968 during Tet – the Vietnamese New Year Many surprise attacks organized on U.S. military throughout South Vietnam on January 30-31, 1968 during Tet – the Vietnamese New Year Tet was the turning point in the war and showed that the U.S. was nowhere close to winning the war Tet was the turning point in the war and showed that the U.S. was nowhere close to winning the war

Credibility Gap William Westmoreland Robert McNamara Opposition to the Vietnam War grew in the United States after we realized the government was not being truthful about the war Many Americans believed a credibility gap had developed LIARS

My Lai Massacre March 16 th, 1968 An American platoon massacred hundreds of Vietnamese civilians – they were “told” they were members of the Vietcong in a village called My Lai “It became necessary to destroy the town in order to save it” The My Lai massacre increased feelings among many Americans that the war was brutal and senseless

Charlie Company  _NciIA

Warm-Up  Start a new Table of Contents for the 4 th Quarter: Vietnam through Present Day & EOG Review  No homework today for SS DateSession # ActivityPage # 4/91 Vietnam: The Action 2

Election of 1968 "I shall not seek, and I will not accept the nomination of my party for another term as your President." March 31, 1968 Even though Johnson changed his policy regarding the war after these incidents, refuses to run for re-election After Johnson refused to run for re- election and Bobby Kennedy was assassinated, the Democrats ended up choosing LBJ’s vice-president, Hubert Humphrey, as their presidential candidate Republicans nominate former vice- president Richard Nixon, who lost to JFK in 1960

Election of 1968 Nixon becomes president!

Draft Lottery Begins-1969 Many Americans who were against the war believed the United States had an unfair draft system Minorities made up a large percentage of people drafted and most soldiers were under 21 years old

Kent State Massacre May 4, 1970 In April of 1970, President Nixon announced that American troops had invaded Cambodia Anti-war protestors saw this as an escalation of the war, sparking violent protests on college campuses At Kent State University in Ohio, protestors became violent. The Ohio National Guard was called in and fired upon the student demonstrators, killing four students

26 th Amendment Ratified President Nixon signs the 26th Amendment guaranteeing the right to vote for people over 18. Anger over the draft led to debates about the voting age. Demonstrators help public rallies and marches. The average age of a American soldier in Vietnam was 19. Because you had to be 21 to vote, many people called for changes in voting laws, saying that if you’re old enough to fight in war, you should be old enough to vote. In 1971, the 26 th Amendment was ratified, lowered the legal voting age from 21 to 18

Vietnamization Vietnamization called for a gradual withdrawal of American troops as South Vietnamese took more control Even though the U.S. had begun cutting back its involvement in the Vietnam War, the American home front remained divided and volatile as Nixon’s war policies stirred up new waves of protest

U.S. pulls out of Vietnam In January of 1973, North and South Vietnamese reach a cease-fire agreement; By 1975, the United States withdraws all of its people from Vietnam In late1975, North Vietnam violated the ceasefire and captured the South Vietnamese capital of Saigon. The war was over and the communists had won

War Powers Act (1973) Law was an attempt to set limits on the power of the president during wartime Required the president to inform Congress of any commitment of troops with 48 hours

The Pentagon Papers In 1971, a former Defense Department worker leaked what were known as the Pentagon Papers to the New York Times The documents showed how various administrations deceived Congress, the media, and the public about how the war was going The government had not been honest with the American people