In 1968, the chant from protesters was Hey, hey, L.B.J. Welcome home from Vietnamwere so thankful for the sacrifice you made Required fields are marked *. U.S. Navy Mistake? Vietnam Veterans as well as Vietnam Era Veterans were spat at and called 'baby killers'. Thanking veterans for their service today does not absolve us of our guilt and we can never wash away the national stain of such treatment. Soldiers came And we pray that those who left us and flew up to meet Their King Only this time, the young people of the same age as the returning Veterans were not protesting their generation of warriors but were showing them respect and thanking these brave patriots. Understanding this is essential: Those with responsibility to send the young to war need always to consider the enduring consequences of war and the human cost of undertaking this action. National Security. WebThe "baby killer" epithet was pretty unfair, since it was based on the actions of a few: the Mai Lai Massacre, plus things like carpet bombing and napalm bombing, which was ordered by a relative few higher ranking officers, and for which the pilots & crew were not responsible (they had no way of knowing who they were bombing). If other soldiers in on other wars killed children, the fault in calling only Vietnam vets The Operation Song Alumni Group has been meeting for their spring 23 songwriting sessions and the fruit of their most recent session (February 3, 2023) is a song titled Welcome Home From Vietnam. How much is flight ticket from nigeria to vietnam 2021? Americans might wonder why we should help refugees. What's the story behind Minneapolis' smaller houses with huge front yards? The image of Americas Vietnam Veteran improved drastically starting in 1980 with the debut of a new television show, MAGNUM, P.I. As Americans became disillusioned by the war, some of their sons and daughters, siblings and friends continued to go to Vietnam. Before Nord Stream Sabotage, VT RADIO: Exposing East Palestine Train Derailment Disaster with VTs Jack Heart, Dr. Fauci Admits COVID Shots Didnt Have A Chance Of Controlling The Pandemic, More Home Care Services Needed for Military Veterans, VA is Lying Facebook Group is Social Media Done Right, Pregnant Dog Found Starving to Death in Cage Needs Help to be Reunited With Marine Who Rescued Her, Healthy Eating Options More Accessible to Military Community through the Exchange, VT RADIO: Exposing East Palestine Train Derailment Disaster with VTs Jack Heart, Israels Illegal Violent Occupation: When De-Escalate Means Ramp Up, Citizen Kane Rupert Murdoch Openly Admits Fox News is Complete Bullshit. The anti-war movement had extensive outreach programs towards veterans and active duty personnel which would be impossible if they were as hostile as commonly believed. With no idea of what was waiting for you back in your home town Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. America was seeing so many casualties in a conflict that most Kissinger measured how we were winning by body count in an unconventional war. The baby boomers who were of military age and eligible to serve in Vietnam, but chose to protest and disrespect Vietnam Veterans, never wanted to be associated with the patriotic and brave men and women who chose to serve. The entitled elite who used the term baby killers against us re-purposed the term from World War I, when the English used it to refer to what the German use of zeppelins did over English cities. David Maxwell, a 1945 Contributing Editor, is a member of the board of directors of Shona ba Shona. He is a retired US Army Special Forces Colonel who has spent more than 20 years in Asia and specializes in North Korea and East Asia Security Affairs and irregular, unconventional. Civilians, including mental health professionals, have an opportunity and an obligation to better understand veterans experiences and to join them in confronting difficult truths about the violence of war, its meaning and its consequences, they stated in the paper. Made us question why we ever joined the fight But we took it out on you, and now its time to make things right V1: On the TV, in the papers, you were treated so unfair You got blamed for Vietnam instead of the ones who sent you there Some folks called you baby killers, called you monsters and worse He recalled, For Americans who did not come of age in the early 1960s, it may be hard to grasp what those years were like the pride and overpowering self-assurance that prevailed. When they marched across rice paddies, he said, they carried, along with our packs and rifles, the implicit convictions that the Vietcong would be quickly beaten and that we were doing something altogether noble and good.. Those I am not aware of many McCloughan is credited with saving the lives of members of his platoon nearly 50 years ago in the Battle of Nui Yon Hill in Vietnam. Vietnam Veterans always felt we did the right thing when we answered the call to stop communism in South Vietnam, the biggest threat to global democracy in the latter half of the 20th century. They described how they felt after killing in combat and some opened up about hidden agonies. After Greene made his best effort to check the truth of the accounts to be printed, he inserted a minimum of his own commentary in the text, preferring to let the veterans' words speak for themselves. Even though the WANNABE now wants to steal our valor, they cannot, because we will expose them for what they are, WANNABEs, hypocrites and liars! According to the National Vietnam Veterans Foundation, individuals falsely claiming to have served in the Vietnam War for those same statistics totaled 9,492,958 people! The politicians lied, and sixty-thousand died Why Is Assange in Jail and Not Seymour Hersh? 2023 The Regents of The University of California, University Development & Alumni Relations, Langley Porter Psychiatric Hospital and Clinics, Killing in War Leaves Veterans with Lasting Psychological Scars, Study Finds, Screen Time Tied to Suicide Risk for Tweens But Dont Panic, Out of Adderall? Russian Forces strike Ukrainian Armys Electronic Intelligence Center in Kiev Region. As Churchill wrote, The Statesman who yields to war fever must realize that once the signal is given, he is no longer the master of policy but the slave of unforeseeable and uncontrollable events. He argued, Let us learn our lessons., https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/11/opinion/the-baby-boomer-war.html. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Vietnam veterans are again doing what they did in the 1970s and helping their fellow veterans from Afghanistan to aid, evacuate, and integrate refugees who are at great risk. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. The reason why the Vietnam War became so unpopular is that For example, a bearded dragon can suffer from gout or kidney failure due to old age, too much protein in the diet, toxicity. Those boomers in uniform were more blue-collar and minority than their generational median, but they were not some marginal part of it, nor were they the only ones to fight. The popular media called it "Americas costliest and longest war" (1965 to 1975). It may have happened a few rare times, but there is no legitimate documented cases where Veterans coming home were ever called baby killers or spit on. In doing so, we can begin to break through the postwar silence that masks moral injury, sustains isolation and reinforces trauma.. He and his family escaped from Cambodia after surviving the Killings Fields and refugee camps in Cambodia and Thailand. There has never been, nor will there ever be, a charge to any veteran or family member for our services. WebTwenty-one-year-old Steven A. Wowwk arrived as an infantryman in the Armys First Cavalry Division in Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam in early January 1969 to fight in an escalating and In the era when the North Vietnamese invaded the South, the world was facing Russian colonialism, the spread of communism, nuclear arms, the Cuban missile crisis and other threats to world peace. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. McCloughan is credited with saving the lives of members of his platoon nearly 50 years ago in the Battle of Nui Yon Hill in Vietnam. Your email address will not be published. There were controversies about the memorial, but the disagreed upon concerns were addressed then settled, and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial is one of the most visited sites in our Nations Capitol today. Mr. Schultz and Mr. Noyes both said they were called baby killers when they came back from Vietnam. A persistent but unfounded criticism leveled against those who protested the United States’s involvement in the Vietnam War is that protesters spat upon and otherwise derided returning soldiers, calling them baby-killers, etc. One veteran put it this way: All I knew is I hurt inside and I didnt know why, you know? In fact, there were16 parades, As an appendix, Dapin lists the battalions that participated, the number of Why was america’s policy of containment a failure in vietnam? Welcome back where you belong.you know there shoulda been a ticker tape parade It also includes UCSF Health, which comprises three top-ranked hospitals,UCSF Medical Centerand UCSF Benioff Childrens Hospitals inSan FranciscoandOakland, and other partner and affiliated hospitals and healthcare providers throughout the Bay Area. Sergeant Major El Sar is now the Command Chaplain Sergeant Major for the U.S. Army Japan. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais). WebUS personnel were in Thailand for 10 years, so closed to 300,000 served there, not just 3-5000. also, according to DCAS-Vietnam Conflict Extract File, dated April 29, 2008, the Why Were Vietnam Soldiers Called Baby KillersYour bearded dragon can die from organ failure and it can sometimes seem as a sudden death. WebMore than 58,000 made the ultimate sacrifice, and hundreds of thousands more were injured physically, psychologically, or both coming back to a nation which spat upon them or called them baby killers. It was indeed a painful chapter in American history. Your email address will not be published. One, it was hard to go there again. The Gulf war starting with the build-up of troops, weapons and supplies in August of 1990 with Operation Desert Shield, and then combat operations called, Operation Desert Storm, from January 17, 1991, until February 28, 1991, had two high ranking generals planning and carrying out the tactics that were Vietnam Veterans. There have been extremely sad songs, some very scary, some hilariously comical, and some funny and off- color. We fought to "contain" communist aggression and adopted the "domino theory," believing that if one country in a region fell, the rest would. These WANNABES did not want to be Vietnam Veterans when we went off to war and turned our homecoming into a lifes event that will never leave us. The theme for Welcome Home from Vietnam was a suggestion from one of the alumni members (an Iraqi War Vet) to honor our Vietnam Veterans for the upcoming March 29th commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the official ending of that war. It's not like they had a choice to even join. 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Homecoming: When Soldiers Returned from Vietnam Joshua Smith, 82nd Airborne Divisions 2nd Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, talks to group of Afghan children during a combined patrol clearing operation in Afghanistan's Ghazni province, April 28, 2012. And David Sirota is wrong about the history and policies of that war and about the treatment of returning military men and women ("The myth of the spat-upon war veteran," June 8). Sir, thanks for your service and 20 years of sacrificial loved for our beloved country. In October 1967, Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter James Reston's front page article in the New York Times described his eyewitness account of protest behavior so vulgar that spitting was the least of the transgressions. WebV ietnam was the "Television War" meaning that the horrors of the war were being broadcast into civilians' lives, every night. WebAnswer (1 of 2): I served with the USMC in Vietnam in 1966.1967 and when I got home, I didnt want anything from anyone, because I had my life and all of my parts too. Untill several years latter of course, now the veterans of Vietnam are respected as well WW2 Veterans were greated with parades. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. U.S. Army Sgt. These Vietnam Veterans continued to do the same when the Iraq War started, and as our fellow countrymen and countrywomen began to return to American shores. Go to Fox Nationto start a free trial and watch the extensive library from your favorite Fox News personalities. He has served the U.S. around the world including multiple assignments in support of ministering to Special Forces troops in three Special Forces Groups. Send this article to anyone, no subscription is necessary to view it, 'Moonshot' CNA program trained hundreds. Vikings, Thielen talking through contract and role with cap decisions looming, Gophers beat top-ranked Ohio State 3-1 to win WCHA Final Faceoff, One of state's richest families feuds over $1 billion estate. How you were treated by the country you defended, So heres a song. Editorial Guidelines and Publishing Standards. "They were very humble individuals for two reasons. For More Information: www.OperationSong.org. I've studied the history, and I've lived it. Of course there was anti-war press there that did everything to denounce the war and call our soldiers murders and baby killers, which of course the hippies ate it up on the tv and news and it spread like fire. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Made us question why we ever joined the fight But we took it out on you, and now its time to make things right V1: On the TV, in the papers, you were treated so unfair You got blamed for Vietnam instead of the ones who sent you there Some folks called you baby killers, called you monsters and worse One example: A 1967 Bucks County Courier Times article reporting that two sailors were spat on outside a high school football game by a gang of about 10 young men. Kelly recounted how about 200 anti-war protesters showed up one year to harass the Medal of Honor recipients at their annual dinner. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. Losing limbs, and losing best friends, losing half your sanity Of all the tropes about the Vietnam War, one stands out far above the rest in American memory: It was the baby boomers war. friend and some information about Christian video life to put my social media Although more than 50% of the songs I have written, you could call country, in style, I have also done rock numbers, blues numbers, bossa nova, and one big band Andrew Sisters style song which we produced with a full horn section and three female singers. WebAnswer (1 of 6): Its a hateful name to call any veteran, and even today, Id be careful calling a Vietnam Vet that name to his face. Mistakenly kill a civilian and push the populace into the hands of the Viet Cong or kill a Viet Cong before they got you. The impact of their indifferent, if not hostile, reception was all the greater because they had assumed the responsibility of citizenship they understood was theirs. Written in Collaboration with Operation Song Writer David Kent and the Operation Song Alumni. It is not uncommon for Vietnam Veterans to hear from the younger generations that wore the American military uniform after our service, Thank you, you and other Vietnam Veterans paved the way for us. Those are powerful words and make one very humble coming from this younger generation of patriotic, strong and ALL-VOLUNTEER FORCE of Americans. She said many veterans also described feeling guilt and shame about their experiences, while others felt numb after being exposed to so much killing and death in combat. You can also access information from the CDC. And even though its 50 years overdue. He lives with his best friend, his wife, and they have 34 rescued cats, 7 rescued dogs. https://veteransradio.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/WELCOM-HOME-FROM-VIETNAM.mp3, INTRO just for you. Vietnam veterans were treated in despicable ways by Americans from being spit on to being called baby killers. Our Vietnam experience ended more than 40 years past, and it deserves to be judged by history. I'm just a little skeptical as why would people attack random enlisted men when there's a draft? A teacher walks into the Classroom and says If only Yesterday was Tomorrow Today would have been a Saturday Which Day did the Teacher make this Statement? We are still seeing the effects play out in Afghanistan. You got blamed for Vietnam instead of the ones who sent you there It was searching for elusive enemy forces while encountering Vietnamese civilians who just wished the Americans would leave and the war would end. WebA persistent but unfounded criticism leveled against those who protested the United States’s involvement in the Vietnam War is that protesters spat upon So did college dropouts and graduates and not only as officers. Politics. One major drawback for the returning Vietnam Veteran, most of them came home alone, not with their units, and were easy targets of hostility, disdain, and disrespect for the groups of war protesters gathering at our Nations airports and other areas returning Veterans dis-embarked. These brothers/sisters did not live to see the attitudes in this country about Vietnam Veterans change, and personally, a WANNABE is showing disrespect, dishonor and trying to steal the valor ofthese brave men and women when the WANNABE claims to be a Vietnam Veteran! By April 30th, 1975 when Saigon finally fell to the communists, the Vietnam War was over for America but not the men and women that returned home. Made us question why we ever joined the fight So it was a "damned if you and damned if you don't" situation. Thank you. The anti-war movement didn't even condemn Lt. Calley of the My Lai massacre infamy, seeing him as a scapegoat while his commanding officers walked free (in the event, Calley served something like two days in jail for murdering 22 people). That movie bore as little relation to the conduct and experience of the Vietnam War as South Pacific did to World War II except the latter was kinder to those serving. They found his refusal to do the same offensive. Edit, I think the use of Agent Orange has been criticized far more after the war, since it's effects have taken so much time to really come to fruition. The race became a referendum on the issue, which was bad news for Mayor Lori Lightfoot. Depending on what year is considered the beginning of the Vietnam War, 1959, 1961, 1965, history tells us the escalation of the war began in 1965 with a major building up of American forces that lasted until 1968. For many of these veteranssome of whom may already suffer from post-traumatic stress (PTSD)the guilt, shame, anger and isolation they suffer compound psychological trauma related to their war experiences. WWII Medalist James Conners was unable to avoid a particularly obnoxious man yelling, "Killer, killer, killer." This younger generation started to say, thank you to the Vietnam Veterans in their community, and that helped to enhance the image of the Vietnam Veteran that was maligned and lied about by those from their generation that did not want to WebWhy were Vietnam vets treated badly when returning home? WebThe short answer is that it was the result of a highly effective, decades long campaign by many forces in society bent on casting blame for America's defeat in the war To the average U.S. soldier, it was very difficult to distinguish between who was a civilain try to eck out an existence and a Viet Cong rebel.