My Lai Massacre
Griffin Bassman
Form V
Mr. Jasikoff
5/18/13
The Massacre At My Lai
Starting in 1964, the war at Vietnam seemed necessary and useful, in the minds of the public. After years of combat, the American opinion slowly worsened, and by 1967, the war was highly questionable. The public support was completely lost after the information of the gruesome massacre at My Lai was leaked. During all of this, the American public was trying to figure out how the Americans who partook in this event became so evil. While secondary sources provide information about the United States soldiers, the details of the My Lai Massacre, and the trial of Lieutenant Calley, oral history grants the historian a wider perspective by showing the soldiers’ motives for revenge and the emotions of those involved. The United States soldiers in Vietnam experienced a war unlike any other in America’s history. One of the main reasons that this war was so different was that the conditions of the soldiers were so terrible. One soldier described what it was actually like living in Vietnam. “We lived out in the jungle and patrolled three villages. We moved from one village to another all the time. You didn't want to stay in one spot for too long. The enemy would try to find out where we were and try to ambush us. So, usually at about 2 a.m. we started to move around from one village to another” (Alex Ditinno). This man shows how terrible their living conditions are. After having a constant fear of being ambushed, having to sleep in dirty and uncomfortable environments for days, and having to wake up in the middle of the night to leave villages, the soldier’s minds are going to be effected. The average age of a soldier in the war was nineteen years old. Before their brains are even fully developed they experience such atrocities that they grow an enormous hatred inside. The only people that they can bring out that hatred on were the Vietnamese. The enemies were known to the Americans as the
Form V
Mr. Jasikoff
5/18/13
The Massacre At My Lai
Starting in 1964, the war at Vietnam seemed necessary and useful, in the minds of the public. After years of combat, the American opinion slowly worsened, and by 1967, the war was highly questionable. The public support was completely lost after the information of the gruesome massacre at My Lai was leaked. During all of this, the American public was trying to figure out how the Americans who partook in this event became so evil. While secondary sources provide information about the United States soldiers, the details of the My Lai Massacre, and the trial of Lieutenant Calley, oral history grants the historian a wider perspective by showing the soldiers’ motives for revenge and the emotions of those involved. The United States soldiers in Vietnam experienced a war unlike any other in America’s history. One of the main reasons that this war was so different was that the conditions of the soldiers were so terrible. One soldier described what it was actually like living in Vietnam. “We lived out in the jungle and patrolled three villages. We moved from one village to another all the time. You didn't want to stay in one spot for too long. The enemy would try to find out where we were and try to ambush us. So, usually at about 2 a.m. we started to move around from one village to another” (Alex Ditinno). This man shows how terrible their living conditions are. After having a constant fear of being ambushed, having to sleep in dirty and uncomfortable environments for days, and having to wake up in the middle of the night to leave villages, the soldier’s minds are going to be effected. The average age of a soldier in the war was nineteen years old. Before their brains are even fully developed they experience such atrocities that they grow an enormous hatred inside. The only people that they can bring out that hatred on were the Vietnamese. The enemies were known to the Americans as the