The Vietnam War Essay

Many people in the 1960s and early 1970s did not understand why the United States was involved in the Vietnam War. Therefore, they had no desire to be a part of it. The Selective Service System, which was used to conduct the draft, had aspirations of directing people into areas where they were most needed during wartime. However, people took advantage of the draft system’s deferment policies to avoid going to war. Others refused induction or simply did not register. There were also people who left the country to escape the draft. The Vietnam War proved to be an event that many Americans did not agree with, and as a result, citizens took action to elude the draft entirely or to beat the draft system.

This backlash against the war mainly came from the middle to upper class, educated individuals who had money and resources capable to skip the draft on a deferment. Their perception of the war was much different than that of the families that suffered, such as those in Morenci. Thousands of young men, from small towns across America, joined the military every year heading to Vietnam, but as Mike Cranford points out they did not know any better, “I didn’t even know what a Vietnam was. And we’re going off to fight for democracy? We small town kids who didn’t know any better.” (Longley, 246) This seems to be a reoccurring theme throughout the stories of other soldiers in the book; they had no other choice but to get into the military (Longley, 60). This is different from that of the upper class that had the ability to dodge the draft by going to college or other means, like that of the sons of John Wayne who the Army never drafted. This division between small and large America created two distinct thoughts about the war, the upper class believed it to be wrong and a waste of time, whereas the lower class, the soldiers, believed that war contributed a greater cause for

The Vietnam War started on November 1, 1955, and ended on April 30,1975. When the North Vietnamese Army(Vietcong) took Saigon, South Vietnam's capital, killing thousands of Americans and South Vietnamese soldiers in the process, the war came to disastrous conclusion. The war was sought out to be a victory, however, falling short with internal problems. The war was very unpopular and caused many disruptions with drafting, costing the United States billions of dollars and generating hate towards the veterans who served. Draft Evasion is an intentional decision not to comply with military action, regardless of the position they’re called for, and was one of many reasons for the deprivation of the war. Refusing to submit to the draft was considered

During the Vietnam War, Americans were selected for military service by a government agency called the selective service. Those young men between the ages of eighteen and twenty six were forced into an involuntary process called the draft. Protesting against conscription or “the Draft” had always been a part of wartime America. Though for many citizens the Vietnam War would be the drawing line. Mentioned in What’s Your Number? an article written by Historynet, the first drawing of numbers using a draft lottery system to select who would and would and would not be drafted for the Vietnam War took place on December 1, 1969 (Historynet 2009). This marks the beginning of turmoil and uncertainty for those men born between the years 1944 and 1950

Young men were drafted into war; however, people were able to dodge the draft through various circumstances, conscientious objectors, most prominent being that they were part of a peace church, the government also allowed for those in college to stay and continue their education. This meant that a disproportionate amount of soldiers fighting in the war came from working class families, and so a rift was created between working class and college educated, who predominantly opposed the war. Throughout the 60s anti-war protests broke out, and people would burn their draft cards in the street. That angered those who felt that the action was un-American, and directly combated the struggle of the military personnel across the seas. Nixon, after having won the election in 1968 actively opposed the anti war movement, he even linked dissent with treason, and refused to pull troops from Vietnam. Despite the outcry of voices demanding an end to the war, Nixon and his vice president Agnew sided with the “silent majority” putting those who opposed in a minority, so that when the war continued it appeared as if it were all part of the democratic

The Vietnam War was not only fought on the battle field, but also in the cities and on the college campuses of The United States of America. The author, David Maraniss describes through the novel, in finicky detail, both the ruthless ambush of the Black Lion battalion near Lai Khe, Vietnam, in this instance sixty-one soldiers were massacred, and an antiwar protest that takes place at the University of Wisconsin. Rallying against the drafting of students on campus by company that manufactured napalm.

The War not only affected those in Vietnam, but those still at home in America. Americans had split into two groups, known as the hawks and the doves. The hawks were people who supported the war and wanted the country to be victorious in its fight with Communism. The doves were the people that disagreed with the war. These were traditionally students, and people of the younger generation. Many veterans when they would return home, would join in these mass protests. One popular protest, which took place at Kent State University, resulted in 9 wounded people with 4 dead. The police at Kent State took action against a mass protest by opening fire. This is the evil that is created through war. Without the Vietnam war, there is no protest at Kent State. Without the Vietnam war, the college kid’s lives are spared. Without the Vietnam War, thousands of lives could have been saved. Neil Young said it best in his song Ohio. Ohio discussed the brutality of war but mainly the police brutality against the kids at Kent State. Vietnam was a tragic stain in American history.

Vietnam was so significant to the United States partly as it would be the first war they would lose. It also had a tremendous financial impact on the country and the casualties were also more in the public eye than ever before due to the media. They learnt that: "a long war for limited objectives, with its steady stream of body bags, will not be supported by the American people" (Martino, 1996, p37). Some suggest that the US should have avoided any involvement in the war.

Students were one of the first organizations who rallied behind ending the Vietnam war. In part because they were the most affected, especially young male college students who were targets for the draft. Although there were many student organizations like The Student Peace Union (SPU) and Young Socialist Alliance (YSA) the face of the students by 1965 would be the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS)(11). Founded in 1960, the SDS began as a student branch of the League for Industrial Democracy(27). A misconception about the SDS was that they were advocates for “draft-dodging” program and that they were the leading anti-war organization(60). On the contrary, the SDS believed in a broader social change that would help end the Vietnam War.

Kent State was like any other university in America in the 70s. Students were there to expand their knowledge while they explored all the other abundant things college had to offer them. Along with several other universities at the time, Kent State began seeing a rise in student protests. Many students around the U.S. began speaking out against the controversial Vietnam War, showing their anti-war views in hopes of being heard. “In late April of 1970 . . . the United States invaded Cambodia and widened the Vietnam War,” causing even more widespread outrage and anger, especially among youth (Lewis, Hensley, “The May 4 Shootings at Kent State Univeristy: the Search for Historical Accuracy”). As the days went on after this declaration was made, the

The draft that occurred during the Vietnam War had a big effect on all of the men involved. Some tried to run away from the fact that they were going to be drafted by running away to Canada, and others knew there was nothing they could do about it and hopped onto a plane to head to Vietnam. Even though many men were drafted, about two-thirds of troops volunteered (Bia, Vietnam War Draft). Those that volunteered did so to avoid the draft and so they could choose where they wanted to be placed when they fought (Dunnigan, Real Facts About Service in Vietnam). Some wanted to be put elsewhere, such as the Marines or the Navy. Overall, many young men we’re not thrilled about being drafted into the Vietnam War and some did all they could to get away

The anti-war protests of the 1960s was a response of resentment by minorities and young educated college students against the nation’s desire to participate in war against Communism in Vietnam and conduct a military draft. The protests, originally began with peaceful public demonstrations by activists, who were nonviolent; however, the peaceful demonstrators were frequently attacked and victimized by the police and other citizens, who did not share their same opinion. Throughout the peaceful protests the activists suffered many beatings in the hands of the police and as a result, many of the activists claimed the right of self-defense and turned to taking offensive actions against their oppressors including the police and other citizens. Later, the scene of violence and mayhem quickly shifted to college campuses, to which college students began protesting the draft (Gurr, 1989, pp. 183-185). At the time the average age of an American soldier serving in Vietnam was 19 and students quickly rebelled after realizing that young Americans were legally old enough to be drafted to fight and die, but were not yet legally allowed to vote or drink alcohol (UShistory, nd.).

Before this incident occurred President Richard Nixon announced on April 30, 1970 that the United States had invaded Cambodia and needed to draft 150,000 soldiers. This provoked countless protest on many campuses around the country. One of the most eventful protest during this time was at Kent State University on May 4, 1970. At the time of the protest twenty-eight guardsmen fired at a crowd wounding nine students and killing four (“Kent State Incident,” n.d.). But the Justice Department declined an investigation on the incident. Instead the President Commision on Campus unrest did state that the action of the guardsmen was uncalled for and unwarranted. No charges were given to the guardsmen who fired at the crowd because there was not enough evidence provided (“Kent State Incident,” n.d.). Protest can become dangerous depending on the

In 1967, 64 percent of all eligible African-Americans were drafted versus only 31 percent of eligible whites (Black 2009). This fact testifies to only a small portion of why nearly all African-Americans found themselves protesting against the Vietnam War. The lack of civil rights in the U.S deterred many blacks from supporting Vietnam, a conflict aimed at liberating the rights of another people. African Americans were frustrated with a country who fought for other citizens and saw no purpose in fighting for a peoples’ freedom but their own. Although African-Americans were specifically discriminated against both in Vietnam and America, they were not alone in their anti-war position. The majority of the American public opposed the Vietnam War. As the war dragged on, people found no reason to fight in Vietnam and believed that the United States should prioritize their own citizens first. Many public figures, such as Martin Luther King, Jr., and Muhammad Ali, held similar claims. Their opinions aligned with the public’s concern and suggested that the U.S withdraw troops and focus resources on the civil rights issues at home. These public figures fought for a specific minority, but, in light of the entire American population, the majority of people opposed the war.

In response to great opposition to United States’ involvement in the Vietnam War, the antiwar movement of the 1960s sprung forth. A vast majority of involvement in this movement was represented on college campuses across the nation. Many college students wholeheartedly believed that the war in Vietnam served no point. America was simply once again sticking its nose in business that was not our own. As a result of the war, universities nationwide in the sixties were in uproar as students attempted to express their opinions through both violent and nonviolent means.