The Vietnam War

Agent Orange

A defoliant chemical used by the US in the Vietnam War

Guerilla warfare

A form of irregular warfare in which a small group of combatants such as paramilitary personnel, armed civilians, or irregulars use military tactics including ambushes, sabotage, raids, petty warfare, hit-and-run tactics, and mobility to fight a larger and less-mobile traditional military

My Lai

A mass killing of helpless inhabitants of a village in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War

Vietcong

A member of the communist guerrilla movement in Vietnam that fought the South Vietnamese government forces 1954-75 with the support of the North Vietnamese army and opposed the South Vietnamese and US forces in the Vietnam War.

War of Attrition

A military strategy in which a belligerent attempts to win a war by wearing down the enemy to the point of collapse through continuous losses in personnel and material. The war will usually be won by the side with greater such resources

Silent Majority

A term used by President Richard Nixon to indicate his belief that the great body of Americans supported his policies and that those who demonstrated against the involvement of the United States in the Vietnam War amounted to only a noisy minority

Teach-ins

An informal lecture and discussion or series of lectures on a subject of public interest

Hawks

Favors entry into war

Who occupied Vietnam prior to US intervention?

France + Japan

Ngo Dinh Diem

Led South Vietnam during the Vietnam War and the US government supported him

Kent State University

May 4th, 1979 in Ohio, 4 students were killed and 9 were injured. The students were having a peaceful protest and that's when 8 national guards shot into the crowd

Strategic Hamlets

Moved citizens from their homes into military bunkers for safety

Geneva Accords

Negotiations to end the conflict were held in Geneva, Switzerland. (Cambodia, Thailand, and Laos = Independent). Vietnam temporarily divided along the 17th parallel

Ho Chi Minh Trail

Network of jungle paths winding through Cambodia & Laos, bypassing the border b/w North & South Vietnam

Ho Chi Minh

President of North Vietnam + "Bringer of Light"

Henry Kissinger

Served as National Security Advisor

Dove

Someone who opposes the use of military presence to resolve a dispute

Buddhist persecution

The Diem Policies (backed by the US) discriminates against Buddhism most popular region in Nam). It bans traditional Buddhist symbols and Police brutality toward Buddhist sympathizer. Buddhist monks respond by lightning themselves on fire in protest

War Powers Act

The President MUST inform Congress of troop commitment within 48 hours

Veitnamization

The US policy of withdrawing its troops and transferring the responsibility and direction of the war effort to the government of South Vietnam.

Containment

The action of keeping something harmful under control or within limits

The Domino Effect

The idea that if Vietnam fell to communism then other countries will turn communist

Pentagon Papers

The name given to a secret Department of Defense study of U.S. political and military involvement in Vietnam from 1945 to 1967, prepared at the request of Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara in 1967

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

The president may "take all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against the forces of the US and to prevent further aggression"

Operation Rolling Thunder

The title of a gradual and sustained aerial bombardment campaign conducted by the US 2nd Air Division (later Seventh Air Force), US Navy, and Republic of Vietnam Air Force (VNAF) against the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) from 2 March 1965 until 2 November 1968

Why were Americans frustrated with the war in Vietnam?

The war dragged on & U.S. men were dying by the thousands with little or no progress and speculation began to grow. People wanted to know what troops were still doing over in Vietnam

Ho Chi Minh City

Was called Saigon before being taken over

Tet Offense

Was one of the largest military campaigns of the Vietnam War, launched on January 30, 1968, by forces of the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese People's Army of Vietnam against the forces of South Vietnam, the United States and their allies

What are the effects of Television news coverage of the Vietnam War?

Would show people in the USA how bad the Vietnam War and how violent it was