1963-1969
1963
 Pres. Johnson becomes
the 36th President after
JFK’s assassination
 Pres. Johnson pledges
support for Pres.
Kennedy’s legislative
agenda, which included
civil rights & education
legislation
Important events & bills passed
 Economic Opportunity Act
(1964)
 a variety of educational,
employment, and training
programs which were the
foundation of the “war on
poverty”
 1964 election- elected w/ a
61% popular vote for his first
term
 “Great Society” program in
1965- aid to education,
protection of civil rights, urban
renewal, Medicare,
conservation, beautification,
control & prevention of crime
and delinquency, promotion of
the arts, & consumer protection
Civil Rights Movement events- 1964
 Mississippi Freedom Summer- voter registration in the state.
 December 10 - Dr. Martin Luther King is awarded the Nobel
Peace Prize
 Civil Rights Act of 1964- Right to vote, guarantee access to
public accommodations, and withhold federal funds from
programs that discriminate.
http://www.history.com/videos/10-days-freedom-summer
Civil Rights Movement events- 1965
 February 21 - Malcolm X is shot to death in Manhattan, New
York, probably by three members of the Nation of Islam.
 March 7 - Bloody Sunday: Civil rights workers in Selma,
Alabama begin a march to Montgomery but are stopped by a
massive police blockade as they crossed the Edmund Pettus
Bridge. Many marchers are severely injured and one killed.
 Voting Rights Act of 1965 passed
http://www.history.com/videos/malcolm-x#malcolm-x
http://player.discoveryeducation.com/index.cfm?guidAsset
Id=A1B7C0D3-32CE-4D53-96A1-FE79CC5F78C0
Civil Rights Movement events- 1966 & 1967
1966
 June 5 - James Meredith
begins a solitary March
Against Fear from Memphis,
Tennessee to Jackson,
Mississippi. Shortly after
starting, he is shot with
birdshot and injured. He
continues the march later.
 Black Panthers founded by
Newton & Seale in
California
1967
 June 13 - Thurgood Marshall
is the first African American
appointed to the U.S.
Supreme Court.
Civil Rights Movement events- 1968
 April 4 - Dr. Martin Luther
King is shot and killed in
Memphis, Tennessee by
James Earl Ray.
 April 11 - Civil Rights Act of
1968 is signed. The Fair
Housing Act is Title VIII of
this Civil Rights Act - it
bans discrimination in the
sale, rental, and financing
of housing.
Vietnam War- background (1940s)
*don’t write, but get info. from the blog
1945
 After Chinese and French rule and Japanese occupation, Ho Chi Minh
and his People's Congress create the National Liberation Committee of
Vietnam to form a provisional government. Japan transfers all power to
the Viet minh.
 Ho Chi Minh Declares Independence of Vietnam
 British Forces Land in Saigon, Return Authority to French
1946
 France recognizes Vietnam as a "free state" within the French Union.
 Indochina War Begins
*Following months of steadily deteriorating relations, the Democratic
Republic of Vietnam launches its first concerted attack against the
French.
*Ho Chi Minh
“Bringer of Light”
"My only desire is that all of our Party
and people, closely united in struggle,
construct a peaceful, unified,
independent, democratic and
prosperous, and make a valiant
contribution to the world Revolution."
(Hanoi, 10 May 1969.)
Vietnam War- background (1950-1955)
*don’t write, but get info. from the blog
1950
 Chinese, Soviets Offer Weapons to
Viet minh
 The United States sends $15 million
dollars in military aid to the French
for the war in Indochina. Included
in the aid package is a military
mission and military advisors.
Viet minh flag
1954
 Battle of Dien Bien Phu Begins
*A force of 40,000 heavily armed
Vietminh lay siege to the French
garrison at Dien Bien Phu. French
defeated.
*President Eisenhower outlines the
Domino Theory: "You have a row of
dominoes set up. You knock over
the first one, and what will happen
to the last one is the certainty that it
will go over very quickly.“
 Geneva Meeting Begins
*Vietnam is divided at the 17th
parallel
French at Dien Bien Phu
Vietnam War- background (1955-1959)
*don’t write, but get info. from the blog
1955
 Ngo Dinh Diem becomes
President of Republic of Vietnam
1956
 French Leave Vietnam
1959
 North Vietnam forms Group 559
to begin infiltrating weapons into
South Vietnam via the Ho Chi
Minh Trail. The Trail will become a
strategic target for future military
attacks.
Vietnam War- background (1960-1962)
*don’t write, but get info. from the blog
1960
 Hanoi forms the National Liberation Front for South Vietnam. The Diem
government dubs them "Vietcong.“
1962
 The U.S. Air Force begins using Agent Orange -- a defoliant that came in metal
orange containers-to expose roads and trails used by Vietcong forces.
Viet cong flag
Agent
Orange
being
dropped
Vietnam War- background- 1963
*don’t write, but get info. from the blog
1963
 Tensions between Buddhists and the Diem government are further strained as
Diem, a Catholic, removes Buddhists from several key government positions
and replaces them with Catholics. Buddhist monks protest Diem's intolerance
for other religions and the measures he takes to silence them. In a show of
protest, Buddhist monks start setting themselves on fire in public places.
 With the approval of the United States, operatives within the South
Vietnamese military overthrow Diem. He and his brother Ngo Dinh Nhu are
shot and killed.
Thích Quảng
Đức &
self-immolation
Last words…
 The last words of Thích Quảng Đức before his self-immolation were documented in
a letter he had left:
“Before closing my eyes and moving towards the vision of the Buddha, I respectfully
plead to President Ngo Dinh Diem to take a mind of compassion towards the people
of the nation and implement religious equality to maintain the strength of the
homeland eternally. I call the venerables, reverends, members of the sangha and the
lay Buddhists to organize in solidarity to make sacrifices to protect Buddhism.”
David Halberstam wrote:
 I was to see that sight again, but once was enough. Flames were coming from a
human being; his body was slowly withering and shriveling up, his head blackening
and charring. In the air was the smell of burning human flesh; human beings burn
surprisingly quickly. Behind me I could hear the sobbing of the Vietnamese who
were now gathering. I was too shocked to cry, too confused to take notes or ask
questions, too bewildered to even think... As he burned he never moved a muscle,
never uttered a sound, his outward composure in sharp contrast to the wailing
people around him.
Vietnam War- 1964
 Gulf of Tonkin Incident
On August 2, three North Vietnamese PT boats allegedly
fired torpedoes at the U.S.S. Maddox, located off the coast
of North Vietnam. A second attack is alleged to have taken
place on August 4.
 Gulf of Tonkin Resolution- Aug. 7
 approved by Congress & authorizes LBJ to "take all
necessary measures to repel any armed attack against
forces of the United States and to prevent further
aggression." The Resolution allows Johnson to wage
all out war against North Vietnam without ever
securing a formal Declaration of War from Congress.
 The reports now appear to have been mistaken. Later, when
more information about the Tonkin incident became
available, many concluded that Johnson and his advisers
had misled Congress into supporting the expansion of the
war.
 In 1965, President Johnson commented privately: "For
all I know, our Navy was shooting at whales out
there."
http://www.history.com/videos/lbj-gulf-of-tonkin-incident
Vietnam War- 1965
 Sustained American bombing raids of
North Vietnam, dubbed Operation
Rolling Thunder, begin in February.
The nearly continuous air raids will go
on for three years.
 The first American combat troops
arrive in Vietnam to defend the
U.S. airfield at Danang.
 The practice of protesting U.S. policy
in Vietnam by holding "teach-ins" at
colleges and universities becomes
widespread. The first "teach-in" --
featuring seminars, rallies, and
speeches -- takes place at the
University of Michigan.
http://www.history.com/videos/operating-rollingthunder
Vietnam War- 1967
 Vietcong’s massive system of tunnels is discovered
 Napalm being used
http://www.history.com/shows/cities-of-the-underworld/videos/citiesof-the-underworld-3-vietnam-vinh-moc-tunnels#cities-of-theunderworld-3-vietnam-vinh-moc-tunnels
http://www.history.com/videos/vietnams-underground-warfare#vietnamsunderground-warfare
•150 miles of tunnels
•Some 23 ft. deep
•Room for 16,000 viet cong
“Tunnel Rats”- American soldiers sent to seek out enemies in the
tunnels
http://www.history.com/videos/tunnel-rats-show-courage#tunnel-rats-showcourage
Rolling trap
See-saw
trap
Folding chair trap
Trap
door
trap
The spikes
under the trap door
Vietnam War- 1968
 North Vietnamese Launch Tet Offensive
Turning point in the Vietnam War
 North Vietnam army & viet cong vs.
South Vietnam army, U.S., and its
allies
 From a military point of view, Tet is a
huge defeat for the Communists, but
turns out to be a political and
psychological victory.
 My Lai Massacre
 Search & destroy mission
 No viet cong found, but b/w 300-500
My Lai villagers murdered.
 initially covered up by high-ranking
army officers, but it was later made
public by former soldiers.
Don’t write:
 Later during the courts-martial,
platoon leader Lieutenant William
Calley was accused of directing the
killings, and in 1971 he was convicted
of premeditated murder and sentenced
to life in prison; five other soldiers
were tried and acquitted. Many,
however, believed that Calley had been
made a scapegoat, and in 1974 he was
paroled.
The end for LBJ
 1968- LBJ announces he won’t run for re-election in order to devote his time to
seeking peace in Vietnam & at home
 "I shall not seek, nor will I accept the nomination of my
party for another term as your President."
Nixon
http://www.history.com/videos/history-rocks-vietnamsoldier#history-rocks-vietnam-soldier
LBJ
LBJ died
Jan. 22, 1973
at age 64,
from a third
heart attack.
(two days after
Pres. Nixon’s
inauguration).