HIST-H 102 Lecture Notes - Lecture 20: Lyndon B. Johnson, French Communist Party, Tom Hayden
Document Summary
Dien bien phu (nw vietnam) victory, spring 1954. Effect: french accede to creation of communist vietnam north of 17th parallel. French: agreed to 3 nations (cambodia, laos & vietnam) No in north; anti-communist nationalists in south. North vietnam: supports viet cong who sought unification. Us: contain spread of communism; smuggled arms. Jfk early 1961: counterinsurgency training for south vietnamese. Lyndon b. johnson: functional declaration of war; feb & march of 65 sustained bombing. Ho, vietminh & successor (national liberation front): agents of global communism. But ambitions forgotten; inertia set in against withdrawal. No president wanted to lose a country to communism. Experience, personality & temperaments of different presidents a factor. Military commitment: over 500,000 troops; 58,500 american deaths; 100s of civilian casualties in vietnam. Builds on anti-arms race sentiment (e. g. sane, 1957) Civilian critics: south vietnam government illegitimate; war immoral. Media coverage & new media technologies brought images of war into home.
