History and Culture

• During the 800 years of Chinese occupation, Vietnam absorbed much Chinese culture, influencing its political system, the arts, literature, and education.
• Educated Vietnamese conversed and wrote in Chinese. Much of the poetry, painting, and architecture, however remained distinctly Southeast Asian
• Most significantly, the occupation did not eradicate Vietnamese nationalism, as evidenced by periodic efforts to evict the Chinese
• Men ruled their families( although women informally had a lot of influence), children obeyed their parents, marriages were arranged, and male children remained on their ancestral land to help.
• After the fall of France to Nazi Germany in 1940, French colonies fell under control of Vichy France, the puppet government set up in Northern France by the German Italian Axis Powers

Vietnam War Music

• Rolling in the deep by Adele- 2010, Sorry by Justin Bieber- 2015, Jingle Bells, I Want You To want me by Cheap Trick-1977, Take On Me by A-ha-1984
• Ticket To Ride by The Beatles-1964, Work From Home by Fifth Harmony- 2004, In The Mood, William Tell- Overture, Tubthumping by Chumbawaba- 1995
• All You Need Is Love by The Beatles- 1967, Don't Stop Believin' by Journey-1981, Apocalypse Now- The Rid, I Gotta Feeling by The Black Eyed Peas-2000
• Walk Like An Egyptian by The Bangles-1985, Dancing Queen by ABBA- 1975, Love Will Tear Us Apart by Joy Division-1980, The Long Black Veil by Johnny Cash- 1965,
• Silent Night, The 5th, Turn Down For What by Lil Jon-2013, Blue Suede Shoes ( Live) by Elvis Presley- 1956, Deck The Halls, Black Beatles by Rae Sremmurd-2016
• Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana- 1991, Space Oddity by David Bowie-1969, and Here It Goes Again by Ok Go- 2005

Vietnam War Protests

• In August 1964, North Vietnamese torpedo boats attacked two U.S destroyers in the Gulf Of Tonkin, and President Lyndon B. Johnson ordered the retaliatory bombing of military targets in North Vietnam
• And by the time U.S planes began regular bombings of North Vietnam in February 1965, some critics had begun to question the government's assertion that is was fighting a democratic war to liberate the south Vietnamese people from communist aggression
• By November 1967, American troop strength in Vietnam was approaching 500,000 and U.S casualties had reached 15,058 killed and 109,527 wounded
• The Vietnam War was costing the U.S some $25 billion per year, and disillusionment was beginning to reach greater sections of the taxpaying public
• On October 21, 1967, one of the most prominent anti-war demonstrations took place, as some 100,000 protesters gathered at the Lincoln Memorial around 30,000 of them continued in a march on the Pentagon later that night

Vietnam Media

• Since the beginning of the World War II, television gradually became familiar to the public.
• At the end of the war, it began to be manufactured in large-scale. In the 1950's, there were only 9% of American home owned a television, but this figure rose dramatically to 93% in 1966
• In a survey conducted in 1964, 58% US respondents said that they "got most of their news" from television. Television, therefore, became the most important source of news for American people during the Vietnam era
• Along with the rise of television, new record technologies such as video camera and auto recorder also arose. Journalists and reporters were now able to take much more photographs and record video materials

Family Life

• Vietnamese life is profoundly influenced by ancestor worship. Children learn at a very early age that they owe everything to their parents and their ancestors
• Doing well in school and working hard honours one's parents and the family name. Respect for the parents and ancestors is extended to all elders, whose life experiences are valued
• Marriage and family are very important in Vietnam. In the countryside, parents often arrange marriages; divorce remains uncommon, though is more frequent in cities
• In traditional Vietnamese families, roles are rigid. The man of the house is primarily responsible for the family's economic well being and take pride in his role as provider
• Women are expected to submit to their husbands or to their eldest sons when widowed, and girls to their fathers. Older children help to look after younger siblings
• Discipline is viewed as a parental duty, and spanking is common once children are past early childhood. Communism in the 1960's brought big changes for women, who were suddenly given equal economic and political right to choose their own husband
• Years of warfare and dislocation in camps have also altered family roles. With so many men away at war, women took on many traditionally male duties including managing factories and co-operatives

Home front

• The majority of Americans believed that the conflict in Vietnam was a war that did not need to be fought. The Vietnam War was the first war to be portrayed on television, and citizens were unaccustomed to the brutalities of war such, as children dying, mass murders, and the immense loss of soldiers
• United States intervention of Vietnam was seen as unnecessary and unjustifiable. Many believed that it was a civil war meant to be fought within the country, and America had no rights to intervene
• The anti-war movement caused a large amount of riots to begin. Rebellions caused violent protests and revolts, and many of American citizens were injured and even killed in these outbreaks.
• The people believed that the war was unnecessary and pointless, and this caused a large amount of tension and upheaval in the country.
• Due to the extreme lack of support for the war, life on the home front was much different than before the war. Polarization was great between supporters and anti-war believers
• Many anti-war organizations such as the committee for Non-Violent Action and the committee for Sane Nuclear Policy were formed in order to begin an anti-war movement
• A majority of college students were pacifists and believed that the war was immoral

African Americans in the Vietnam War

• The Vietnam War saw the highest proportion of blacks ever to serve in an American War. During of the U.S involvement, 1965-69 blacks who formed 11 percent of the American population made up 12.6 percent of the soldiers in Vietnam
• The majority of these were in the infantry and although authorities differ on the figures the percentage of black combat fatalities in that period was a staggering 14.9 percent a proportion that subsequently declined
• Volunteers and draftees included many frustrated blacks whose impatience with the war and the delays in racial progress in America led to race riots on a number of ships and military bases, beginning in 1968 and the services response in creating interracial and racial sensitivity training
• The participation of Americans of African descent in the U.S military has a long and distinguished history. But although African Americans have participated in all American wars, they have sometimes faced almost as bitter hostility from their fellow Americans as from the enemy
• Nevertheless, particularly since the 1970's the U.S military has made a serious effort at racial integration, and while much remains to be done, the military has achieved a degree of success in this area that surpasses most civilian institutions

Vietnam War Tatics

• Main force Vietcong units were uniformed , full-time soldiers and were used to launch large scale offensives over a wide area. Regional forces were also full-time, but operated only within their own districts
• When necessary, small regional units would unite for large scale attacks. If enemy pressure became too great, they would break down into smaller units and scatter
• In December 1965, Ho Chi Minh and the North Vietnamese leadership ordered a change in a way the war in the South was to be fought
• From now on, the Vietcong would avoid pitched battles with the Americans unless the odds were clearly in their favor. There would be more hit and run attacks and ambushes
• To counter the American build-up, Vietnamese Army troops would be infiltrated into South Vietnam

Sources

• WWW.historyonthenet.com/authentichistory/1961-1974-vietnam/1-overview/1-culture/index.html
• WWW.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/vietnam-war-protests
• thevietnamwar.info/media-role-vietnam-war/
• WWW.vietnam-culture.com/articles-87-6/Family-life.aspx
• https://sites.google.com/site/nam2011ap/homefront
• WWW.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/S_Z/stevens/africanamer.htm
• WWW.pbs.org/battlefieldvietnam/guerrilla/