United States Involvement During The Vietnam War

Although the date of the start of the Cold War is disputed, it is agreed upon that it started after WWII when the US and USSR developed differing political views and when both parties eventually interfered in other countries to persuade them to either be communist or democratic. The US and USSR interfered in all continents trying to persuade all countries into taking their side, this would eventually lead to rebellions and militias overthrowing multiple governments all over the world. But this was not the only way the US and USSR butted heads; the US and USSR also fought each other in the famous “Space Race” where they both raced each other to see who could land a man on the moon first. The US would ultimately win this race and this represented
This was a moment that a lot of our family members lived and even fought through. This was a war similar to the Korean war where the US attempted to stop the spread of communism to South Vietnam using force but instead of stopping it like they had in Korea they inevitably lost. This was a war that had lots of support in the beginning as Americans had lots of pride and patriotism for their country but soon they lost this as many young and innocent people died in the Vietnam war. This caused disagreement between Americans and their communities as well as the communities and their government as the government insisted upon fighting the Vietnam War. This would eventually cause protests and riots, specifically on college campuses and in big cities. My Grandpa was a person who lived through all of these events and was even connected to a lot of them as well as he experienced certain events first hand like the space race when he worked at a rocket research facility, how the USSR and communism affected other countries when he lived in South America, and the Vietnam War protests when he went to college and covered them in his school
Furthermore, he is able to provide a point of view unlike most people’s from this time because he grew up in a different country and experienced the effects of these wars first hand. The Cold War and Vietnam War were a time of tension and confusion for the entire world. As countries picked sides between the US and USSR and fought their own governments, they were also trying to figure out how to run their country. This was the same case for the US, the US was trying to fight communism while also trying to satisfy their citizens at home. Most citizens were satisfied with the Cold War as they wanted to support their country in their endeavors against it. This was seen when people supported the US in the Space Race and their interventions in South America. But this support would soon be strained as the US entered Vietnam to prevent the fall of South Vietnam. At first it was supported just as the Korean war had been supported, but as young innocent men were dying with little to no progress being made, people started to despise the Vietnam