The National Liberation Front: The Vietnam War

The Vietnam War was a chaotic time in the history of the United States due to America losing countless men in a costly war thousands of miles away. It not only divided our country politically, but also on a moral and a philosophical frame. To understand why the United States would be drawn into such a war, one must understand the immediate history of that era. Vietnam was at war with France in 1954. The French, overwhelmed at the battle of Dienbienphu, requested American air support. America considered stepping in the war, but they were afraid of entering another war after recently ending a war in Korea. The United States only option was to engage in air assault; however, they could not tell enemy from foe in the jungles. Vietnam defeated …show more content…
This United Front created a new force called the National Liberation Front in response to the South Vietnam’s democratic push. This new NLF called for anyone, communist or non-communist, that opposed Diem. The United States recognized this group as a threat and denounced the NLF. The NLF claimed to be made up of a majority of anti-war protestors and non-communist members. The United States tagged them with the term “Viet Cong” which was a slang wording for Vietnamese Communist. In 1961, President Kennedy sent a group of spies to South Vietnam to report conditions. This act was labeled “December 1961 White Paper”. The team reported that there needed to be an increase of military equipment. The United States was in a bind. It is as if they were holding onto a wire while hanging over a cliff. They could either let go of the wire and let South Vietnam fall into communist hands or increase supplies and risk starting a war. War was the last thing that the United States wanted after the Cold War and the Korean War. President Kennedy found a loophole. He was on accord with South Vietnam as he promised that he will increase supplies, but not increase troops. The United States and Saigon started the Strategic Hamlet Program which was an attack on the NLF. The members of the NLF were placed into controlled camps. This was so the revolution would not spread throughout the …show more content…
There were pictures of monks set on fire that made world headlines and made the American public very angry at the United States Government. Many of Diem’s generals approached the United States Embassy in Saigon in wishes for American approval to overthrow the Diem government. On November 1, 1963, Diem and his brother were executed. South Vietnam was in crisis. The country had no leader and the United States looked responsible. Three short weeks later, President Kennedy was assassinated for no apparent reason. The Kennedy Administration continued to help South Vietnam. President Lyndon B. Johnson was the successor of Kennedy. President Johnson wanted to further push the idea of communism out of South Vietnam. As more supplies and vehicles were sent into Vietnam, the Viet Cong were angered. The Democratic Republic of Vietnam was angry at the United States. The DRV attacked two ships of the United States. The Johnson administration was trying to get powers for the president to declare war. The government knew that they were in so deep that they could not come out. The House and Senate passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which gave more powers to the Johnson Administration, with only two opposing votes. The Joint Chiefs of Staff urged to air raid the DRV and stabilize the uprising in Saigon. Many people in the White House opposed this idea. It was only until two