1. Vietnam France has been involved in Vietnam since the later 1700’s.
They have a colonial type presence in the country (French Indochina)
1945 leader Ho Chi Minh declares an independent Democratic Republic of Vietnam (Communist)
A massive Civil War breakout, and by 1954, the French totally get out of Vietnam
The country is split into the Communist North, and South which was supported by the US at this point? CONTAINMENT

3. The US gets involved
Following the policy of Containment, the US gets involved as early as Eisenhower after the French leave in 1954
Under Kennedy, we have thousands of military advisors and trainers working with the South Vietnamese resisting the influence of the North
By the time Johnson is President, he has inherited this Vietnam situation and soon, we will have hundreds of thousands of troops in Vietnam

5. Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
August 2th N. Vietnamese gunboats fire on US warships in the Gulf of Tonkin. No damage is done and the US does not respond.
August 4th Radar and Sonar operators misread their instruments and falsely believe that N. Vietnam has launched several torpedoes at US ships. This event does not happen
President Johnson responds by bombing N. Vietnamese bases and congress passes the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution “Take all necessary measures to repel an armed attack against the forces of the US and to prevent further aggression”.

6. Gulf of Tonkin

7. The war escalates
We deploy ground troops, and we bomb (Operation Rolling Thunder). These are the main strategies we use in Vietnam, and the US will continue to escalate these activities throughout the rest of the 1960’s
Initially, the War is not unpopular. After the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, Johnson’s approval rating goes from percent
As it continues to escalate, opposition to the War in the US will intensify
,000 US troops in Vietnam
,000 US troops in Vietnam
,000 US troops in Vietnam
Over the course of the War, the US will drop more bombs on Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, as the allies drop in Europe and the Pacific in WWII

9. Fog of War

11. Bombing Footage

15. Public Opinion Changes
Although polls show a majority of Americans supported the Vietnam War and initial escalations, by 1966, there is a major anti-war movement developing
The Vietnam was is basically the first War to be shown on TV. This is huge. Every night Americans turn on the news and see the death reports and battle carnage from reporters in the field. Cameras and now portable enough to get in the action and get it back to the US for the nightly news cycle.

16. Anti-War Protestors
People who oppose the Vietnam War make up a very diverse group.
Old School Pacifist Groups
Civil Rights Advocates like MLK
Some members of the Clergy (many different denominations)
Students

17. Students For A Democratic Society (SDS)
Starts off as a group of mostly white college students inspired by the Civil Rights era who wanted to advocate for social change
Port Huron Statement 1962: expressed disillusionment with the nation’s consumer culture and the growing gap between rich and poor
SDS will evolve into one of the major anti-war groups and organize millions of young Americans in the anti- war movement
An example of the “New Left”

19. The New Left
A liberal social movement born in the early 1960’s
This group is distinguished from the old left (Socialists and Communists)
Spread first through Universities (UC Berkeley Free Speech Fight 1964)
Many members of the New Left will participate in the Civil Rights struggle (Freedom Rides specifically)

21. Forrest Gump/Abbie Hoffman

23. Student Protests
As the War escalates, protests across college campus and in the streets of major cities also escalate
When conscription (The Draft) is reinstated, protests grow even more
Burning of a Draft Card becomes a highly symbolic form of protest

25. Days of Rage
Protests are happening on a weekly basis and many of them are ending up violent or in a state of riot
The US Gov claims to be winning the war, but every day Americans see more bad news in the media. Hundreds of US soldiers die every week
The death toll in Vietnam is rising with the Tet Offensive
MLK is assassinated
RFK is assassinated

26. Bobby Kennedy on MLK https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCrx_u3825g

27. 1968 Democratic National Convention
Held in Chicago just a few weeks after Booby Kennedy is killed
Thousands of students and protestors show up to make their stance against the policies of the Democratic Party known once again
Chicago Mayor Richard Daly calls out the police to disperse the protest and a riot ensues on live television
This is the Democratic Party symbolically crumbling in front of the eyes of the American People
Republican Richard Nixon will win the White House

28. 1968 DNC

29. My Lai Massacre 1968
In the presence of a LIFE Magazine photographer, US soldiers massacre over 100 non combatants that they suspect of supporting the N. Vietnamese (Viet Cong).
Why?
The event is covered up for a year until the story breaks.
This event fuels even more anti- war sentiment and discredits the US on an international level

31. Nixon in Vietnam
To reduce US combat deaths, Nixon lowers troop levels, but steps up bombing big time. 550,000 in 1968 down to 334,000 in 1971 down to 24,000 by 1973
The goal is to keep training the S. Vietnamese and get the S. Vietnamese to take over the fighting
Despite lower US troop levels, death is still common in Vietnam. It just means more civilians and more S. Vietnamese are dying
Policy is called Vietnamization
It is a direct result of the pressure and expectations many Americans now have about the US commitment to Vietnam

32. As Nixon takes over as President, he expands bombing of N
As Nixon takes over as President, he expands bombing of N. Vietnamese into the neighboring country of Cambodia
This is a major step in the escalation
Results in even more major protests in the US, one significant one happens at Kent State in Ohio

33. Kent State 1970