3. Where is Vietnam?

4. The Domino Theory American policymakers developed the “Domino Theory” as a justification for the involvement in Vietnam.  This theory stated, “If South Vietnam falls to the Communist, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Burma, India and Pakistan would also fall like dominos. ”.

5. Why Did the United States Fight a War in Vietnam?  Two Events that Convinced President Truman to help the French fight the Viet Minh: 1. The fall of China to Communism in 1949. 2. Soviet-supported North Korea invading South Korea, creating the Korean War in 1950.

6. Conflict Between France & Vietnam  In July 1954, after one hundred years of colonial rule by France and then Japan:  The French are forced out of Vietnam by Ho Chi Minh’s Viet Minh Forces in a remote mountain outpost of Dien Bien Phu in Vietnam.

7. The Geneva Peace Accords  The Geneva Peace Accords, signed by France and Vietnam in the summer of 1954, provided for the temporary division of Vietnam at the 17th parallel, with national elections in 1956 to reunify the country.  The northern half of Vietnam was controlled by a Communist government, led by Ho Chi Minh.  supported by the Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China with Hanoi as the capital city

8. A New Nation in the South  President Eisenhower’s administration helped create a new democratic nation in southern Vietnam.  In 1955, with massive amounts of American aid, Ngo Dinh Diem won a dubious election that made him president of South Vietnam

9. South Vietnam Under Diem  Repressive Dictatorial Rule by Diem:  Diem’s family holds all power and wealth  Buddhist majority persecuted by his brother (Diem is Catholic)  Torture and lack of political freedom  Suspended any local elections.

10. Opposition to Diem The National Liberation Front (NLF) was formed December 20, 1960  Buddhist monks and nuns were joined by students, business people, intellectuals, and peasants in opposition to Diem’s corrupt rule.

11. Publicized Self-Immolation  On June 11, 1963, a Buddhist monk set himself on fire in Saigon to protest Diem’s policies of raiding the Buddhist pagodas of South Vietnam, claiming that they had harbored the Communists that were creating the political instability.

12. President Kennedy and Vietnam 1960-1963  Increases military ‘advisors’ to 16,000 to help Diem and crush the NLF.  Sends in more weapons, but no ground troops.  On Nov. 2, 1963, supports a military coup that kills Diem and his brother  Kennedy is assassinated later that month (Nov. 22, 1963)

13. Viet Minh vs Viet Cong  Vietminh – North Vietnamese Communist Forces loyal to Ho Chi Minh.  Viet Cong – (slang for Vietnamese Communists) Members of the NLF who oppose Diem and ANY of his supporters in South Vietnam (including U.S.)

14. The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, 1964 In 1964, a North Vietnamese gunboat attacked the USS Maddox in the Gulf of Tonkin Congress responded with the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution which gave Lyndon Johnson broad powers to “defend Vietnam at any cost”.

15. Ho Chi Minh Trail  Trail used to supply North Vietnamese Forces and Viet Cong  Ran from North Vietnam to South Vietnam through the countries of Laos and Cambodia.  U.S. forces were not allowed to enter other countries to pursue VC or Viet Minh forces or to stop the flow of supplies.

16. Fighting in Vietnam

19. U.S. Troop Deployments in Vietnam

20. The U.S. military used a variety of tactics to fight the war in Vietnam napalm herbicidesAgent Orange The military used napalm to destroy villages & herbicides (Agent Orange) to destroy crops

21. Effects of “Agent Orange”

22. “Search and Destroy” Missions  These deadly missions involved, usually, a platoon (30-50 men) divided into smaller units, or squads, dropped in the jungle for 30 days at a time.  Average infantryman saw 240 days of combat out of 1 tour (1 year).  Instead of taking over land, these missions emphasized killing as many Viet Cong as possible, forcing their surrender.  Patrols usually avoided well traveled paths due to booby traps.

23. Punji Traps  The spikes were often coated with feces to introduce disease/infection into the wound.

24. The Tet Offensive, 1968 Tet Offensive In 1968, the Vietcong launched the Tet Offensive against 16 U.S. bases in South Vietnam. The attack was contrary to media reports that the U.S. was winning the Vietnam War

26. Pentagon Papers

27. “Credibility Gap”  Public doubting what LBJ and the US govt. stated about the war in Vietnam as being the truth – felt the govt. was trying to cover up what was really happening in Vietnam.

28. Roy Benavidez – Received the Medal of Honor from President Ronald Reagan in 1981  May 2, 1968 - Roy Benavidez, a Green Beret and Staff Sergeant on his second tour in Vietnam, heard “get us out of here!” on the base radio at Loc Ninh, South Vietnam. He jumped onto a Medevac to help.  A 12-man Special Forces team had been ambushed right inside Cambodia in the jungle while on a secret reconnaissance mission to gather information.  After leaping off the helicopter, Sergeant Benavidez was shot in the face, head and right leg, but he ran toward his fellow Green Berets, finding four dead and the others wounded.  After getting men onto the helicopter, the pilot was killed and helicopter crashed as he tried to take off.  Benavidez then dragged men off that helicopter and waited for 6 hours for another helicopter, returning fire and trying to save the wounded. In that time, he as also shot in the stomach, thigh and hit in the back by grenade fragments. 

29. Roy Benavidez (cont.)  Finally, he shot two enemy soldiers as he dragged the survivors aboard another evacuation helicopter He was also bayoneted by a North Vietnamese soldier, whom he killed with a knife. He was holding his intestines in his hands when he finally got onboard the helicopter.  When he arrived at Loc Ninh, Sergeant Benavidez was unable to move or speak due to a broken jaw. Just as he was about to be placed into a body bag, he spit into a doctor's face to signal that he was still alive and was evacuated for surgery in Saigon.  He survived and lived on with 2 pieces of shrapnel in his heart and a punctured lung, suffering and in pain daily.  After receiving the Medal of Honor, President Reagan urged him to share his experiences with young people, so he traveled and spoke at schools to stress the importance of education that wasn’t available to him.  He died at the age of 63 in 1998. He was from El Campo, Texas.

30.  Roy Benavidez saved the lives of 8 men that day. One was Brian O’Connor, a fellow Green Beret, who shared his story that led to Benavidez receiving the Medal of Honor.

32. Draft Dodging http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/vietnam-war- protests/videos/dodging-the-draft

33. Richard Nixon & the Election of 1968 LBJ’s decision not to run for re-election & the assassination of Robert Kennedy left the Democrats divided for the election of 1968 Republican Richard Nixon took advantage of the divided Democrats & won the 1968 election

34. Vietnamization – “Peace with Honor ”  Nixon’s plan to gradually withdraw U.S. troops & replace them with South Vietnamese soldiers by 1973.

35. Cambodia Bombings But, Nixon really wanted a “knockout blow” in Vietnam & secretly sent U.S. troops into Cambodia & ordered bombings of Laos. -Bombings in Cambodia secretly began in 1969 but continued through 1973 as communist forces tried to take over Cambodia. -Cambodia fell to Vietnamese forces in 1978.

36. When Americans found out about Nixon’s attacks on Cambodia & Laos, it set off the largest protest in U.S. history 250,000 people, mostly students on college campuses, protested the war & some protests turned violent

37. Kent State Shootings – May 4, 1970  4 students died when the National Guard shot into a crowd of violent protestors at Kent State University in 1970

38. The “Silent Majority” Nixon appealed to the American people, calling on the "great silent majority“ – belief that more than 50% of Americans supported the war but remained silent.

39. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v =IdR2Iktffaw The Fall of Saigon HOW DOES THE VIETNAM WAR END?!?!

40. Fall of Saigon  On April 30, 1975, North Vietnamese forces stormed the presidential palace in Saigon, forcing the surrender of South Vietnamese forces.  The city was renamed “Ho Chi Minh City” and the war was finally over.

41. War Powers Act  Passed in 1973 – Requires the president to notify and get approval from Congress to commit troops overseas for more than 60 days.  Limits the war powers of the executive branch.