Anti-War Movement in the United States

Anti-War Movement in the United States

During the late 60s and early 70s, anti-war movement was steadily

progressing in the United States. The peace movement was directed to

stop all forms of war. As the sixties wore on many anti-war groups

began to form in the United States to protest for peace. These

included the Black Panthers, the SDS, Woodstock, music and flower

power, and the Hippy Movement. The anti-war movement attracted people

from college campuses, middle class suburbs, labour unions and

government institutions. Pacifists were also against the war on moral

and religious grounds as they believed all war is wrong because it is

against Christian teaching. By the end of the sixties, opposition to

the war was so strong that an anti-war statement was effective and

powerful.

Source A is an extract from the book ‘four hours in my Lai’, by

Michael Bilton. It is a secondary source as the book was published in

1992 however it is very reliable because the author had done extensive

research and also has accounts from soldiers who took part in the war.

The source explores one possibility on why the American public were

becoming against U.S involvement in Vietnam, ‘soldiers were most

likely to die in the first month’. This also suggests that going to

war would result in the unnecessary loss of lives. Bilton suggests

another reason for the anti-war movement when he quotes ‘a rookie army

was constantly throwing inexperienced men against experienced

guerrillas on their home ground’. This also suggests that going to war

was pointless.

Source B is a photograph of napalm victims. It is a primary and

reliable source as it was publishe...

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more gruesome. ‘Blood looks very red on the colour television screen’.

At this time of the war technology had advanced and many people had

colour televisions and could see the real horrors of the war. Many

families who had sent their boys to Vietnam wanted them back safely

because the dead bodies shown on the TV could be one of their loved

ones.

So overall I think that sources A to E give sufficient evidence to

explain why there was an anti-war movement in the U.S during the late

1960’s and early 70’s because they are all valid and very reliable.

They also explore all the different reasons which could have sparked

an anti-war movement. The sources suggest that the anti-war movement

mainly began when the American public became aware of what was

actually going on in Vietnam. This was due to anti-war propaganda.