2. A Nation Divided

3. Public Opinion 1965 1967 66% supported Teach-Ins begin
Informally discuss opposition to the war
Civil War
South Vietnam was corrupt
1967
Credibility gap widens
T.V.
Contradicting viewpoints/images

4. Two sides Tet Offensive 1968 Surprise attack on New years Day
Major cities
Provincial capitals
American Embassy
Two sides
General Westmorland
“well laid plans went afoul”
Public Opinion
Shocked!
Media influence
Walter Cronkite
“…bloody experience in Vietnam is to end in a stalemate.”
Credibility gap widens even more

5. Draft College students Low-income/minorities No way! 1969 1971 Defer
No choice
No way!
Burned draft cards
Fled
Prison
1969
Lottery system
1971
26th Amendment was passed

6. Hawks Doves Pro-war Antiwar Viewed as 1968-53% 1968-24%
Determined to stay and fight
Openly criticized doves
Pride
Johnson
Antiwar %
Viewed as
Naïve
Unpatriotic
Unappreciative to resisting communism
Eugene McCarthy
Robert Kennedy

7. “The whole world is watching!”
1968 Rolls On
March
Johnson states he will not run
April
MLK assassinated
James Earl Ray arrested
June
Robert Kennedy assassinated
August
Chaos at the Democratic Convention Center
Antiwar platform
Riots
Abbie Hoffman
“The whole world is watching!”

8. Politics Democrats Independent Republicans Hubert Humphrey
Associated with violence & chaos
Called for a complete end to the bombings
Independent
Governor George Wallace
Outspoken segregationist
Republicans
Richard Nixon
Promised unification
Restore law and order
Plan for ending the war

9. Assignment 1 (10 points) Assignment 2 (5 points)
Create a poster that would be appropriate for your position on the war
Use pictures or symbols associated with your side (can be a person or idea)
Keep in mind it CAN be a slogan, however, you need to decorate it
Must be colored
Must clearly express your side (put your sticky note on it)
Assignment 2 (5 points)
Write a headline that supports your poster. For example, if you are a hawk, your headline may include a quote from General Westmorland.
Be ready to share with the class
Due at the end of the hour

10. Review
Why did support for the Vietnam War begin to dwindle by the late 1960s?
Mounting causalities
The draft
Credibility gap
Media coverage