VIETNAM ANTI-WAR PROTESTS
Feb 22, 2016
VIETNAM ANTI-WAR PROTESTS
AGENDA FOR TODAY QUICK WRITE: Tell me everything you know
about anti-war protests; specifically what happened during the Vietnam war on the home front?
Lecture on home front protests
Protest poster project
Discussion of Posters
ANTI-WAR PROTESTS IN THE UNITED STATES
Started in 1964 when U.S. involvement in Vietnam really started to take shape.
Involved many different groups throughout the entire United States. Students for a Democratic Society (SDS)
Major reasons behind protests Draft System
Moral arguments against U.S. involvement
Domino Theory?
Expansion of War into Cambodia
Draft System Any young man that was 18 or older was
subject to go to war. Towards the beginning of the war, if a young man was in college, they were able to defer military service until after graduation; leaving lower, working class and African Americans subject to go to war.
Led to protests and many people burning their draft cards.
Burning of Draft Cards First burning of a draft card took place in
1965 and many more followed suit over the years; seen as a symbol of protest. A law was passed in 1965 to punish anyone
who “knowingly destroys or mutilates” his draft card. Violations included prison time so many didn’t
show up when they were called or fled to Canada or other countries.
Moral arguments against U.S. involvement
First time a war was broadcast on the nightly news Any glorification of war was a myth now as
the American public was subject to graphic images of casualties.
There was no clear sign of victory, so the images only strengthened the protests.
Domino Theory? Many supporters of the war argued that
Communism would spread to Vietnam with China and Russia in the same region. But military critics of the war pointed out
that the war was political and that the military mission lacked any clear idea of how to achieve its objectives.
South Vietnamese government was pretty corrupt so many Americans objected to supporting their government.
Expansion of War into Cambodia In 1970, Nixon proposed that the military
was to go into Cambodia and destroy all Viet cong bases there. The expansion of the war was met with
great disapproval of the American public which staged more protests.
Hawks v. Doves Up until 1968, 68% of Americans favored
continuing the war as opposed to 32% who wanted to end it. Things changed in 1968….why??? Hawks: Those who insisted the U.S. stay
and fight. Doves: Those who wanted the U.S. to
withdraw.
Hawk or Dove??
Washington D.C. Many protests occurred here but there
were two major ones. 1965- first major protest organized by SDS
“March on Washington” drew more than 20,000.
1967- Lincoln Memorial Rally drew tens of thousands of protestors.
Kent State The war had appeared to be winding
down, so when talk of invading Cambodia occurred, students and Americans across the country were enraged more than ever.
Campuses across the country participated in “a nation-wide student strike”.
Kent State College campus in Ohio that on May 1st-
4th 1970 completely changed U.S. history.
A small demonstration was planned on May 1st with 500 students where they planned for a bigger one to protest the expansion of the war into Cambodia for May 4th.
Upon hearing the plans for a large demonstration the mayor met with Kent City officials and a representative of the Ohio National Guard.
Kent State Following the meeting, the mayor called
the governor of Ohio and requested a unit of the National Guard be sent to the college and they moved in around 10pm that night.
Kent State On May 4th, a protest was scheduled at noon. University officials attempted to ban the
gathering, handing out papers that the event was cancelled. Despite those efforts, 2,000 people gathered on the
commons. National guard was brought in to disperse the
students but the crowd refused so the guard used tear gas.
Tear gas didn’t work with high winds and the students began to throw rocks and other objects back at the guardsmen.
Kent State The guardsmen began to advance on the
group of students with bayonets lowered. One member of the guard began to fire
upon the students and others joined in. Result was 4 students were killed and 9
others injured.
Sterling Hall Bombing Occurred on the University of Wisconsin-
Madison campus on August 4th, 1970. A group of 4 students, called the “New
Year’s gang” bombed this hall as a protest of the university’s research connections with the U.S. military. Resulted in a death of a university physics
researcher and injured four others.
Sterling Hall Bombing Bomb was intended to destroy the Army
Mathematics Research Center. None of the people killed or injured by the
bomb were involved or employed by the center.
Protest Poster Project Create a poster that could have been
used during a Vietnam War-era protest. Feel free to use any slogans you may have
seen throughout the presentation or make one up based on the information you know about the war.
Can be a pro-war (Hawk) or an anti-war (Dove) poster. Be prepared to share yours with the class and
tells us why you picked the slogan or drew the pictures you did.
Common slogans/chants used in protests:
Here are some of the common slogans/chants used to get you started with your project:
"One, two, three, four! We don't want your f***ing war!" "Draft Beer, not boys", "Hell no, we won't go", "Make love, not war" "Eighteen today, dead tomorrow” “Hey, hey, LBJ, how many kids did you kill today?" are examples of anti-war slogans.
"Love our country", "America, love it or leave it" and "No glory like old glory" are examples of pro-war slogans