why was the vietnam war memorial so controversial

Though that facility is not open to the public, certain memorial artifacts are put on view as part of traveling exhibits. The first phase encompassed the detail planning and preparations for holding the competition, said Spreiregen. For the first time, MACV worked with South Vietnams government to create annual plans. Because Warner was from Virginia and Mathias from Maryland, the two had worked together on many regional issues. No one wanted the war to happen in the first place, so having a memorial was a constant reminder of the war no one wanted . I heard there was a group of serious veterans, not just people getting together to have a beer in the evening, but a group that was serious about getting together to address the problems of the veterans.. "The problems they saw were that it wasn't celebratory, that it made fighting and dying in an American war seem tragic," says historian Kristin Haas. What does the Vietnam Veterans Memorial look like? - 2023 Just before Christmas 1979, Warner hosted a fundraising breakfast in his Georgetown home. He had been a war correspondent during World War II and had reported from Vietnam during Americas early involvement. They were the only father-son pair to die in Vietnam.) 4: The Artistic Controversy, 3/1982-11/1985 >>>>> 1988. The Vietnam War is the commonly used name for the Second Indochina War, 19541975. WebIt was built to honor those soldiers who died or were declared missing during ---- Vietnam War (1959-1975) for 16 years The memorial was designed by a --- student of architecture, ----- 21 year old, Maya Ying Lin The memorial shaped liked a V, and it is made of ---- black granite The walls are inscribed with over ---- names of soldiers 58,000 Some antiwar protestors blamed the men and women who served in Vietnam, taunting them and spitting on them when they came home. This presented the new MACV commander (Military Assistance Command, Vietnam), General William C. Westmoreland with a thorny challenge: how to show the American people progress was being made. Scruggs envisioned a Vietnam War memorial that would focus attention on the lives that were lost, thus transcending divisive debates about why the war was fought. The series of events began on Wednesday, November 10, 1982, and culminated with a service at the National Cathedral on Sunday, November14. Those memories were fresh in the mind of the daughter of Chinese immigrants senior year when, as part of an assignment in her funereal architecture seminar, she designed a walled monument to veterans of the Vietnam War that was etched with the names of those who gave their lives. Why the Vietnam War Memorial is amazing By June 1977, Scruggs was attending graduate school at American University in Washington, D.C. and had embarked on a research study exploring the social and psychological consequences of Vietnam military duties. Men looking for each others names on the wall would realize who was standing nearby, and embrace in tears. The solution on how to locate a name evolved into a directory of names with an alphabetical listing andthe panel and line number of each name. You had to live through that period to really understand it. . The U.S., possessing the largest foreign military presence, essentiallydirected the war from 1965 to 1968. The two sections were not unlike North and South in the United States prior to the Civil War; their people did not fully trust each other. We had to constantly find the most effective next step to take and be sure not to get waylaid by tangents. The group started to hold regular planning meetings. It was becoming apparent that we had been able to be instruments to something far greater than anything we had ever imagined.. Republican Richard Nixon won the presidency in the fall elections. Lin knew it was critical to maintain the simplicity of the design throughout the design development and construction process. Vietnam, however, was divided at the 17th parallel. Though a congressional investigative committee the previous year had warned that America could find itself slipping into in a morass that would require more and more military participation in Vietnam, Johnson began a steady escalation of the war, hoping to bring it to a quick conclusion. ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) People of all ages got to explore a special helicopter at the nations second largest Vietnam veterans memorial on Saturday. Healing meant many things to many people. It would be a way to honor the veterans and to help themand the countryheal. In 1972 a poll determined he was the most trusted man in America.. On July 9, 1964, China had announced it would step in if the U.S. attacked North Vietnam, as China had done in the Korean War. Networks of information began to flow. To make his dream a reality, he planned to get support from people as diverse as former anti-war presidential candidate George McGovern and Gen. William Westmoreland, who commanded U.S. forces in Vietnam. They would include a big National Salute to Vietnam Veterans at Veterans Day. READ MORE: Why Were Vietnam War Vets Treated Poorly When They Returned? Learn more about featured topics of the Vietnam War and Vietnam Era. The Salute opened with a vigil Wednesday morning at the National Cathedral, where all of the nearly 58,000 names on The Wall were read by volunteers around the clock, day and night, through midnight Friday. At the time, well-managed open design competitions were common in Europe, but not in the United States. In the early 20th century, Vietnamese nationalism began to rise, clashing with the French colonial rulers. No American air strikes came to aid the overstretched South Vietnamese, despite Nixons earlier assurances to Thieu. There is no distinction between officers and enlisted men, between heroic medal winners and those who died before their colleagues got to know themthey are simply named, in order. Some critics even resorted to racially insulting Lin, the daughter of Chinese immigrants. Many people will not comprehend this design until they experience it. Scruggs added: Make this place look like an airstrike was called in, he instructed. Why Were Vietnam War Vets Treated Poorly When They Returned? Similar, even larger, atrocities were conducted by VC and NVA unitssuch as an NVA attack on a Buddhist orphanage at An Hoa in September 1970 or the execution of 5,000 people at Hue during the Tet Offensivebut the concept of American soldiers killing civilians in cold blood was more than many Americans could bear. The construction process hits a snag when relentless and powerful critics, led by Tom Carhart, find an unsavory political message in the supposedly apolitical winning design -- ultimately forcing a compromise, the addition of a flag and a statue with three soldiers to the Wall. If all of the names could be in one place, these names would have great powera power to heal. It was a war fought between the communist Viet Cong from North Vietnam, and the Their military experience meant they had contacts far and wide, at all levels of all professions, within government and the private sector. Millionaire H. Ross Perot made a sizeable donation. Population in the south was mostly clustered in a few areas along the coast; the north always enjoyed a larger population. Compounding the pain was that societys ill treatment of the veterans extended to their families. They treated the moms the same as they treated the vets. On the other side, the same thing was occurring, with even more inflated numbersvastly more. From the registration forms, it was apparent that architects, artists, designers, as well as veterans and students of all ages and all levels of experience were planning to participate. Security was improving even as American forces were in the process of withdrawing. In fact, he would spend a lifetime trying to honor their memory. Holding a competition is like launching a rocket. In previous war, progress and setbacks could be shown on maps; large enemy units could be engaged and destroyed. General Price, along with Senators Warner and Mathias and future Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, gave moving addresses before the command was given, and 150 shovels entered the ground with enthusiastic veterans enjoying the moment. Opines that the vietnam war memorial was constructed for a noble purpose and is an historic reminder of how many men were lost. Businessman H. Ross Perot, who had pledged $160,000 to help run the competition, called it a trench and withdrew his support. Compare Augustus of Prima Porta and Self-Portrait with Jewish Identity Card. A few of the most vocal opponents, including James Webb and H. Ross Perot, had previously been strong supporters of a memorial. The wars length and the growing number of casualties were fueling tensions. Civilian deaths during that time period were estimated at 2 million, but the U.S. estimate of civilians killed in the north at 30,000. Photo by William Bill Lecky. HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate. In December Doubek became the Executive Director, working on a half-time basis for the first few months, and opened the VVMF office on January 2, 1980. North Vietnam Adding to Americans disillusionment was the race issue. Saigon had fallen to communism only 6 years before, and the Cold War against the Soviet Union continually held the world hostage to nuclear annihilation. By the end of the first afternoon, one of the jurors, Harry Weese, returned to our impromptu conference lounge and told me, Paul, there are two designs out there that could do it.. In less than two weeks, these strategic bombers had shattered the norths defenses. It was like a Woodstock atmosphere in Washington for those who had served in Vietnam, recalled Scruggs. WebWhy was the Vietnam Way Memorial so controversial? All comments are held for moderation and will appear after approval. A lingering question of the war is what might have happened if Eisenhower and Ho had arranged a meeting; possibly, an accord could have been reached, or possibly Ho was simply seeking to limit American involvement, in order to more easily depose the Diem government. Hanoi offered to restart peace talks, yet remained intransigent in its demands. Because the U.S. failed to achieve a military victory and the Republic of South Vietnam was ultimately taken over by North Vietnam, the Vietnam experience became known as the only war America ever lost. It remains a very controversial topic that continues to affect political and military decisions today. General Westmoreland had been promoted to Army Chief of Staff and replaced in Vietnam by Gen. Creighton Abrams. The choice of the lettering style Optima, designed by Hermann Zapf was a font Lin selected after considering a multitude of options.The font Optima seemed to fit that desire to match an almost printed quality with a hand-cut feel. Early Protests Vietnamese monk protesting with self What are the three things being represented by the Vietnam womens memorial? Courtesy of Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. Vietnam The VVMF group liked them all and approved of them with trust and enthusiasm, even selecting three sculptors, making a total of eight jurors. This grew into the operation known as Rolling Thunder that began on March 2, 1965, and continued to November 2, 1968. Originally, Vietnam ended at the 17th parallel, but it gradually conquered all the area southward along the coastline of the South China Sea and west to Cambodia. The ceasefire allowed Nixon to declare peace with honor, but no provisions existed for enforcing the terms of the accords. Others hold meaning only to those who left them at the wall, such as an experimental war-era Case jungle survival knife, of which only 144 were made. People would leave the Memorial clutching handwritten phone numbers and promising to write letters. The body count policy fell into disfavor and was not employed in future American wars; in Vietnam it led officers to inflate enemy casualties. They set their sights in support of the clear, simple vision Scruggs outlined:to honor the warrior and not the war. 's blog. The amount of division in the United States during the vietnam war is astonishing as it I ran over to see a truck on fire and a dozen of my friends dying. They had been unloading an ammunition truck when the explosion occurred. Paul Haagas spouse, Heather Sturt Haaga, soon came forward to lend her experience in fund raising. It would help veterans heal. It was designed by American architect Maya Lin. In 2009 the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund assumed responsibility for the maintenance of the site. He has written that he was prepared for a 25-year war; he realized he did not have to achieve military victory; he only had to avoid losing. Ruling out an invasion of North Vietnam assured that a purely military victory would not be possible, a fact that was at odds with many Americans expectations for the war. Why was the Vietnam The guidelines stipulated that the memorial should contain the names of every American who died in Vietnam or remained missing in action, make no political statement about the war, be in harmony with its surroundings and be contemplative in character. He organized the advisors and volunteers into task groups: public relations, financial management, fund raising, legislation, site selection, and design/construction. In 1964 an Ohio woman took up the challenge that had led to Amelia Earharts disappearance. Across the apex of the wall stands The Three Soldiers, no larger than life-size. Two younger monks poured a mix of gasoline and jet fuel over him and, as the three had planned, set fire to him. For weeks, heated discussions took place around the topic of who should be part of the design jury. And every item that is left behind at the Wall is saved at the National Parks' Museum Resource Center in Maryland. Mathias and Warner continually stressed that their objective was to provide the country with a symbol for reconciliation. The flag-waving crowds even cheered., Over the four days there were also workshops, parties, events, and reunions. Ike may not have seen the message, but at any rate he was focused on establishing NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) as a wall against additional communist advances in Europe and was intent on securing Frances participation in NATO. 16 The Vietnam War had divided the American nation. Color should mean nothing now., Sideys piece continued: At the end of five hours and much shouting, General Mike Davison, retired, who led the Cambodian incursion in 1970, proposed a compromise: add the figure of a soldier in front of the long granite walls that will bear the 57,709 names of those who died or are missing and the tribute to all who served. He had studied the work of psychiatrist Carl Jung, a student of Sigmund Freud, who wrote of shared societal values. The original design proposal called for all of the names to be individually hand-chiseled in the stone, but it was soon realized the time and money it would take to do that were impractical. The reputation of the jurors was important to attract the best designers and to minimize second guessing by the Federal approval bodies. Financial costs had risen to $30 billion a year. ", 3: The Political Controversy, Undoubtedly, news media played an important role in Americans saying, Enough. Indeed, Vo Nyugen Giap had always envisioned using media as one of his spear points for victory. Each juror was required to read Fields of Fire, A Rumor of War, and other current literature about the Vietnam War. The Vietnam Womens Memorial was established to honor the women who risked their lives to serve their country. I remember The Washington Post had pages and pages of stories in the A section. Vietnam veterans were, at long last, receiving the recognition they deserved. Some opponents simply did not like the fact that Lin was a young student, a woman, and of Asian descent; how in the world could she possibly know how to honor the service of the Vietnam veteran? It seemed every time they contacted someone, they were greeted with enthusiasm for the idea. The controversy about the wall reflected Americas feelings at that time regarding our involvement in Vietnam. But Lin doesn't like anybody "drawing mustaches" on her design and, with the support of many in the Art world, pressures the Commission of Fine Arts to scuttle the compromise and hatch a new one. What explains Hanoi re-activated the Viet Minh to conduct guerilla operations in the south, with the intent of destabilizing President Diems government. As the owner of her own New York City architectural studio, she designs a wide variety of structures from houses to museums to chapels. When Lin asked how many Smiths would be on The Wall, the team realized how important the chronological listing was to the design. The veterans themselves began the project, not the government. That afternoon, the winning design was selected, said Spreiregen. Then, on March 30, 1972, the North Vietnamese attacked across the 17th parallel with 14 divisions and additional individual regiments. Some items include letters written to fallen soldiers, or notes explaining the significance of the item. 925 0 obj <>stream There are over 58,000 names inscribed in the memorial, all representing either confirmed deaths or those who are still missing. It is still far and away the greatest memorial of modern timesthe most beautiful, the most heart-wrenching, the most subtle, and the most powerful, a Vanity Fair commentator wrote. An official groundbreaking ceremony was held on March 26, 1982. The entire text size and layout Lin saw as an open book. The program, which had been poorly managed, was abandoned after about two years, following the coup that deposed Diem. The added component of military security made the location even more attractive, since it would ensure no interference with the designs or the judging. Vietnam: A Controversial War The women soldiers the nurses suffered too. It was very hurtful, Cupp recalled. China conquered the northern part of modern Vietnam in 111 BC and retained control until 938 AD; it continued to exert some control over the Vietnamese until 1885. One person even left behind a motorcycle. Washington Takes Oppression of Gun Owners to New Lows, Finding a Firearm: My Wifes First Pistol, Throwback Thursday: 5 Long-Slide Pistols I Cant Live Without. Like the war itself, the monument proved controversial. Range Report: How Good Is the Smith and Wesson M&P FPC 9mm Folding Carbine? Why was the Vietnam Veterans Memorial wall so controversial? Throughout her freshman and sophomore years, she watched as stonecutters added to the honor roll by etching the names of those killed in the Vietnam War. Oooo, not any more, not any more. Im the News & Social Editor at HistoryNet and a World War II researcher with an unparalleled affinity for Sir Winston Churchill, Spitfires, and Michigan football. Maya Lin worked closely with Cooper-Lecky on all aesthetic aspects of the design. Their initial timeline was aggressive, with an ultimate goal of dedicating the Memorial on Veterans Day 1982just a little more than 36 months away. It was decided that VVMF would hold a design competition, open to any American citizen over 18 years of age. Or, people would tell me, Well why did you let him go? Of course, what choice do you have?. In March of 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson sent the first U.S. combat troops into South Vietnam to fight the spread of Communism from North. The war was extremely divisive in the U.S., Europe, Australia, and elsewhere. It was the most thoughtful and thorough discussion of design that I have ever heard, and I have heard many, he recalled. Once Scruggs decided to build the memorial, the next step was to get some people behind him. We want you, our readers, to be able to make informed decisions. The whole week was extremely emotional, Becky Scruggs remembered. When the winning Vietnam Veterans Memorial design was dedicated on November 13, 1982, a storm of controversy followed. Yet, she believes that it succeeds in glorifying the human lives lost in battle. The public wanted to have a hand in helping to build the Memorial and in honoring the warrior, not the war. North Vietnamese officers, after the war, said the only thing they feared was an American-led invasion of the north, but the U.S. was not going to risk starting World War III, and at the time that seemed to loom as a distinct possibility. All of them realized how critical it was that a memorial be apolitical. North Vietnam was a prodigy of both the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and Red China. The pilot of an F-8E Crusader did not see any ships in the area where the enemy was reported, and years later crew members said they never saw attacking craft. Why was the Vietnam War Memorial so controversial Please be respectful of others. Moreover, could it accomplish all of that while listing the approximately 58,000 names in an artistic, meaningful way? https://www.history.com/news/6-things-you-may-not-know-about-the-vietnam-veterans-memorial, 6 Things You May Not Know About the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. On Saturday, a grand parade took place where veterans marched joyously out of sync, some hand-in-hand or with their arms draped around one another, holding banners, flags, and signs. But if the challenges seemed insurmountable, no one expressed any fears. The Gold Star Mothers is a group of mothers whose sons or daughters have died serving their country. "The practice that is ubiquitous now of, at the site of some kind of public tragedy, people bringing their teddy bears and their toys and letters and flowers it didn't happen in public places in the United States before Maya Lin's memorial.". The Vietnam Wall Controversy - About - Overview With its popularity among the American people has also come critical acclaim; in 2007 the American Institute of Architects named it tenth on the list of Americas Favorite Architecture. What was once a controversial, disturbing reminder of an unpopular war finally has become a cherished place of healing. The battle was suddenly over.. In July 1959, North Vietnams leaders passed an ordinance called for continued socialist revolution in the north and a simultaneous revolution in South Vietnam. I have a Master's degree in military history from King's College, London and my cornucopia of interests include: World War II, World War II, and World War II. They complained about the walls being black. Early in his efforts Scruggs had called on Emogene Cupp, then the national president of the American Gold Star Mothers. Vietnam veteran Tom Cathcart was among those objecting to the memorials black hue, which he said was the universal color of shame and sorrow and degradation. Other critics thought Lins V-shaped design was a subliminal anti-war message that imitated the two-finger peace sign flashed by Vietnam War protestors. Many people also blamed the soldier for the war, so The monument's location, stretching between the Lincoln and Washington monuments, adds to its air of respect, says journalist Laura Palmer, who was a reporter in Saigon in the early 1970s. An author, teacher, and lecturer, Spreiregen had written the authoritative book on design competitions. 2023, A&E Television Networks, LLC. North Vietnam, had by then established a presence in Laos and developed the Ho Chi Minh Trail through that country in order to resupply and reinforce its forces in South Vietnam. Expert Answer Answer The memorial is a black granite V-shaped wall near the western end of the Mall etched with the names of the nearly 58,000 men and women who we View the full answer Previous question Next question Ironically, the leadership of North Vietnam came to a similar conclusion: they had to inflict enough casualties on Americans to end support for the war on the U.S. homefront and force a withdrawal before the U.S. could build up sufficient numbers of men and material to defeat them. One of Mathias early key suggestions was that the memorial should be on the Mall, especially because the anti-war demonstrations had taken place there. The design Lin envisioned listed the names chronologically by date of casualty. But how and where could all of the submissions be displayed? Corruption and instability in South Vietnams government did not instill confidence in its people, or in the Americans working with it. Vietnam Vietnam is a very important war in the story of Americas history. Since all submissions were anonymous, the eight-member jury made its selection based solely on the quality of the designs. The location secured, the seemingly uncontroversial process of articulating goals for a memorial and staging a competition draws over 1100 entries then the largest such design competition in the United States and the winner is Maya Lin's "Wall. Throwback Thursday: 5 Long-Slide Pistols I Can't Live Without, Full Feature: Anderson Manufacturing Kiger 9C Pro 9mm, The History Fixed and Adjustable Iron Sights, Throwback Thursday: All About Bullet Grain, Rifle Hack: Sighting for 100 Yards at a Distance of 25 Yards. The memorial was similarly controversial at first. They responded quickly, recapturing lost ground and decimating an enemy who had finally come out to fight in the open. Communist losses were extremely heavy. The veterans even faced controversy over their own memorial. When Lin first visited the proposed location for the memorial, she wrote, I imagined taking a knife and cutting into the earth, opening it up, an initial violence and pain that in time would heal. Her memorial proved to be a pilgrimage site for those who served in the war and those who had loved ones who fought in Vietnam. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. Because of this, Mathias appointed her to manage the details and to work with Scruggs, Doubek, and Wheeler on the legislation for the memorial. To achieve this effect she chose polished black granite for the walls. He was an excellent partner and fundraiser. Mathias knew the legislative process. Many people were shocked that of the 1,421 designs submitted by number in a blind competition, the final design had turned out to be the idea of a 21-year-old undergraduate student named Maya Linan Asian-American woman. Following the Tet Offensive of 1968, the NVA had to assume the major combat role because the VC was decimated during the offensive. Her minimalistic granite wall was initially derided as a black gash of shame by Vietnam veteran Tom Carhart. CBS evening news anchor Walter Cronkite returned to Vietnam to see for himself what was happening. No one wanted the war to happen in the first place, so having a memorial was a constant reminder of the war no one wanted. It echoed the theme that regardless of how anyone felt about the war itself, everyone cared about honoring the men and women who had served and those who had ultimately lost their lives. Before he spoke, however, all eyes had turned toward the kitchen door, from which has emerged his then-wife, actress Elizabeth Taylor. The names were similarly read out loud in 1982, 1992, 2002 and 2007. The first cut was further reduced to 90 by midday Wednesday. Images of fighting, of dead and wounded soldiers, of POWs held in North Vietnam were beamed into Americas living rooms night after night, as was footage of hundreds, sometimes thousands of antiwar protestors marching through the streets. I am always incredibly moved and heartened, especially when a veteran tells me that The Wall has helped them in some wayit could not mean more to me. At its beginning, the wall is only 8 inches tall, and the names etched upon the reflective black rock begin slowly, as American involvement began slowly with the addition of advisors to South Vietnam in the late 1950s.

The Passion Of The Christ: Resurrection, Jennifer Days Of Our Lives Looks Old, Articles W