Vietnam War lesson 1

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• mavo
• Leerjaar 2

The Vietnam War

How it started

The Vietnam War happened after a few other major events. 
Vietnam had been a colony of France which caused them to not be able to rule on their own, but Vietnam was ruled by France instead. 

The Vietnamese people were not happy with this which is why they started resisting France's rule in the 20th century. 

After WW2 ended in 1945, Ho Chi Minh, who was the leader of the communist-led independence movement, said Vietnam’s independent now. But France did not want to let go of its colony, leading to the First Indochina War between French soldiers and the Vietnamese independence fighters (soldaten voor de vrijheid). In 1954 France suffered a big defeat at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.  Following this, the Geneva Accords temporarily divided Vietnam along the 17th parallel, creating a communist North led by Ho Chi Minh, and a U.S.-backed anti-communist South. 

During the cold war, specifically in 1955, the United States began supporting the South Vietnamese government. The U.S. was afraid that if Vietnam would fully become a communist country, the surrounding countries would do the same (the domino theory)
In 1964, the U.S. said that its ships had been attacked by North Vietnamese forces in what became known as the Gulf of Tonkin Incident. This event gave the U.S. government the the right to up their military force, although later evidence revealed that the attack had been partly a lie.

(Hanyok, 2008).

From 1965 to 1973, the U.S. started a big military campaign in Vietnam, which involved widespread bombing operations such as Operation Rolling Thunder. One of the most devastating tactics used by the U.S. was the deployment of Agent Orange, a toxic herbicide meant to destroy jungle cover. This chemical caused serious long-term health problems and environmental damage. There are still children born with birth defects to this day

(Aspen Institute, n.d.).

https://youtu.be/IYy1_canUJU 

Discuss with your partner

• Do you think everyone from the United States supported the war in Vietnam?
  
  
• Do you think they protested?
  
  
• Which way do you think they protested?

Pick one of these songs:

• Fortunate son by the American rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival
  
  
• Give Peace a Chance by John Lennon

Why does this song serve as a way of protest? What does the song say?

Fortunate son 

The song lyrics criticise the social injustice about the way the young men were selected to fight in the war. Especially how these men were usually young men, barely men who came from working-class families whereas wealthy families could often avoid their young men being sent into service due to financial support. This is expressed through lines such as “It ain’t me, I ain’t no senator’s son,” (Creedence Clearwater Revival, 1969) which emphasises the class differences. 

Give Peace a Chance

This song worked as a protest song because it was easy to sing, had a strong emotional message, and was backed by a worldwide known artist. It became a musical symbol of the peace movement, especially for those who opposed the Vietnam War.

Now listen to this song

• Army dreamers by Kate Bush

What is the meaning of this song?

Whose point of view is it from?

Do you think a lot of people dealt with the guilt portrayed in this song? 

Next lesson

Bring your laptop and a notebook.

You have made a summary of

what we discussed this lesson

Find a song that relates to protest
 against war or conflict or talks about
 peace in these situations. Also compare it to the song you picked before.

Do it yourself

Find a song that relates to protest against war or conflict or talks about peace in these situations. Also compare it to the song you picked before.