The Vietnam War at Home

Reasons for Change

• Economic Impact – Taxes

• Technological Advances

• Draft

Economic Impact• “Great Society” and

Economic boom of the Kennedy years, takes a hit

• Cost of War increasing

• Inflation rate at 2% in early 60s nearly tripled

• Johnson wanted to pay both for war and “Great Society” policies

Tax Increase

• 1967 – Cost of war too high, Johnson had to ask for a tax increase

• Conservatives agreed demanded a $6 billion reduction in Great Society funding

“Living Room War”

• First war where footage showed in the nightly news

• Media images went against reports from Government

• Began to change American Attitudes, 1967 begin to see the change

The Controversial Draft

• Men called between ages of 18 and 26

• Anti-war sentiment caused many men to seek deferment from the draft– Medical, college

- This meant many were lower class, couldn’t afford college

“Fortunate Son” Creedence Clearwater Revival

The “New Left”

• Youth/Protest movements part of 1960s culture

• Demanded sweeping changes, but avoided socialism

• Students for a Democratic Society– Participatory democracy– Greater individual freedom

• Free Speech Movement

Campus Activism• Students protested:

– dress codes– Curfews– dorm regulations– mandatory ROTC

• Vietnam gave them a galvanizing issue

• Teach – ins on college campus to protest war

• April 1965, SDS organized March on Washington, many more to follow

• Johnson responded that deferments were only to students with good academic standing

Protest Music of the Vietnam War Era

Whats Goin’ On - Marvin Gaye

For What It’s Worth – Buffalo Springfield

Ohio - Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young

Give Peace a Chance – John Lennon

Hawks vs. Doves

• Country Broke into 2 – Doves – opposed war – Hawks – fight to the end

• Despite visible protest, 2/3rds of Americans remained committed to war in 1967

• Dec. 1967– poll taken showed 70% of Americans believed war protests were “acts of disloyalty”

Firefighter who lost his son said…

“ I’m bitter… its people like us who give up our sons for the country… The college types, the professors, they go to Washington and tell the government what to do…. But their sons, they don’t end up in the swamps over there, in Vietnam. No sir. They’re deferred, because they’re in school. Or they get sent to safe places…. What bothers me about the peace crowd is that you can tell from their attitude, the way they look and what they say, that they don’t really love this country.

Effect on Politics

• Continuing stalemate, protests, attacks from Doves and Hawks = turmoil for president and admin.

• Robert McNamara resigned

• Johnson’s lost popularity = did not accept 1968 nomination for the presidency

“If I’ve lost Walter (Cronkite), then

it’s over. I’ve lost the Average

Citizen.”