Vietnam War and American Culture
Vietnam Wars Impact on American Culture
Donna Whittle
DeVry University
Introduction to Humanities
I. Introduction and Thesis Statement In the 1960’s America went through many cultural changes. Martin Luther King Jr., a civil rights activist, delivered his famous, “I have a dream” speech. African Americans were fighting for peace, freedom and equality. The United States was involved in the Vietnam War, committed to anti-communism. African Americans were deployed to Vietnam. The Vietnam War and Civil Rights Movement coincided. African Americans believed fighting for democracy abroad would help gain civil rights at home.
II. Events that Led to the Advancement January 20, 1961, John F. Kennedy became president of the United States. Americans believed this was the beginning of the golden age. Contrary by the end of the sixties it seemed the nation was falling apart. Kennedy was assassinated and Lyndon B. Johnson became president (History.com, n.d.). Vietnam War escalated and was backed by the White House. President Johnson failed to realize the racial nightmare the American involvement in Vietnam would create (Gallagher, 2006).
III. Effects of Advancement Domino theory of cold war containment policy of the United States held that if one country in a region turned communist, other surrounding countries would soon follow; this theory convinced many that to save all of Southeast Asia, it was necessary to resist communist aggression in Vietnam (Armstrong, 2014). College and high school students became increasingly empowered, hundreds and thousands protested against the Vietnam War. Students were increasingly involved in political affairs, other young people supported cultural instead of political revolution (Armstrong, 2014). Vietnam was a pawn in the anti-communist agenda of the United States; Vietnam was a pawn in the late nineteenth-century colonial race between Britain and France (Maga, 2010).
IV.
Donna Whittle
DeVry University
Introduction to Humanities
I. Introduction and Thesis Statement In the 1960’s America went through many cultural changes. Martin Luther King Jr., a civil rights activist, delivered his famous, “I have a dream” speech. African Americans were fighting for peace, freedom and equality. The United States was involved in the Vietnam War, committed to anti-communism. African Americans were deployed to Vietnam. The Vietnam War and Civil Rights Movement coincided. African Americans believed fighting for democracy abroad would help gain civil rights at home.
II. Events that Led to the Advancement January 20, 1961, John F. Kennedy became president of the United States. Americans believed this was the beginning of the golden age. Contrary by the end of the sixties it seemed the nation was falling apart. Kennedy was assassinated and Lyndon B. Johnson became president (History.com, n.d.). Vietnam War escalated and was backed by the White House. President Johnson failed to realize the racial nightmare the American involvement in Vietnam would create (Gallagher, 2006).
III. Effects of Advancement Domino theory of cold war containment policy of the United States held that if one country in a region turned communist, other surrounding countries would soon follow; this theory convinced many that to save all of Southeast Asia, it was necessary to resist communist aggression in Vietnam (Armstrong, 2014). College and high school students became increasingly empowered, hundreds and thousands protested against the Vietnam War. Students were increasingly involved in political affairs, other young people supported cultural instead of political revolution (Armstrong, 2014). Vietnam was a pawn in the anti-communist agenda of the United States; Vietnam was a pawn in the late nineteenth-century colonial race between Britain and France (Maga, 2010).
IV.
References: Armstrong, S. (2014) AP*U.S. History. New York: McGraw Hill Education. Maga, T.P. (2010). The Vietnam War (2nd ed.). New York: Penguin Group. The 1960s. (2014). The History Channel website. Retrieved 12:51, January 14, 2014, from http://www.history.com/topics/1960s. Vietnam War. (2014). The History Channel website. Retrieved 12:52, January 14, 2014, from http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war.