Vietnam: The Unforgettable War

Soldier low-crawling in Vietnam

The Vietnam War (1959-1975) was a Cold War-era military conflict between nationalist that desired to unify the country of Vietnam under a communist government and the United States accompanied by the South Vietnamese attempting to prevent the spread of communism. The war had a major impact on United States politics, culture, and foreign relations. Many Americans were divided over the United States government’s justification for, and means of fighting, the war. The Vietnam War required a great human sacrifice as it was one of the bloodiest wars fought by the United States and caused more than 6 million fatalities, including 3.5 million Vietnamese from North and South Vietnam, 1.5 million Laotians and Cambodians, and almost 60,000 United States soldiers.

Soldiers in a trench, Vietnam

 Additionally, opposition to the war contributed to the counter-culture youth movement of the 1960s and the war contributed towards youth cynicism towards actions of the United States government. The war had a lasting negative psychological impact on the lives of thousands of young men and women who would return from the war without any true governmental assistance. The Vietnam War fueled by political agenda caused disastrous psychological and physiological effects on the soldiers entrusted to spread liberation and freedom. 

Protestors of Vietnam War

High-profile opposition to the Vietnam War turned to street protests in an effort to turn U.S. political opinion against the war. The protests gained momentum from the Civil Rights Movement that had organized to oppose segregation laws, which had laid a foundation of theory and infrastructure on which the anti-war movement grew. Veterans of the Vietnam War returned home to join the movement, including John Kerry, who spearheaded Vietnam Veterans Against the War, V.V.A.W., and testified before Congress in televised hearings. Anti-war protests ended with the final withdrawal of troops after the Paris Peace Accords were signed in 1972. However, the lingering effects of dysfunctional psychological and untreated physiological conditions were presented immediately as soldiers began to return home to unwelcoming crowds.

Vietnam War Protestor

The Psychological Effect of Combat is a concept in which many military mental health officials are investigating to provide a means of explanation for the rise in dysfunctional psychological assessments of veterans returning from combat related situations. Unquestionably, the Veterans Administration data indicate that, as of 2010, three times more Vietnam veterans have died from suicide after the war than died from enemy action during the war, and this number is increasing every year.

Citations:

Grossman, Dave, and Bruce Siddle. Psychological Effects of Combat. Los Angeles: SoCal

Publishers, 2001.

Pike, Douglas. The Origins of the War: Competing Perceptions in The Vietnam Debate.

Lancaster Publishers, 1998.

Sheehan, Neil. A Bright Shining Lie: John Paul Vann and America in Vietnam. New York:

Vintage, 1989.

Stone, Oliver, and Peter J. Kuznick. "JFK:The Most Dangerous Moment in Human History." The

            Untold History of the United States. New York: Gallery, 2012. 305-10. Print.