Vietnam War Equality

Before the Vietnam War, there was the Civil Rights movement. A movement dedicated to to gain equal right for all. One major difference that was discovered to be preventing racial equality was income. As white families lived in their mail-order homes, people of color struggled with making enough money to make ends meet. This realization is what caused the president, Lyndon B. Johnson, to take action. Since the President believed in equal right, and after he signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, he wanted to further spread equality by stating to have an "unconditional war on poverty." To further show his devotion to the cause, Johnson signed the economic Opportunity Act, thus creating the Office of Opportunity (OEO). The creation of the OEO provided …show more content…
During the Vietnam War, the OEO didn’t get the stamp of approval needed from Johnson, ceasing any further funding towards the program. This decision was due to the fact that Johnson was trying to save money in hopes of appealing to the Congress, hopefully leading to increased support and funding for the war. Therefore, the "War on Poverty" was never able to fully impact the lives of those in need, due to insufficient funds. This realization caused an uproar throughout the African-American community, causing Martin Luther King Jr. To make the statement, "The war on poverty was shot down on the battlefields of Vietnam". Mr. King's statement was a message of disappointment that was felt by Americans across the nation. To further demolish any trace of the OEO, President Richard Nixon and Vice President, Gerald Ford, emasculated the program. Nixon and Ford then proceeded to take the little money or programs the OEO had and transferred it to other federal agencies, or just got rid of it all …show more content…
soldiers. Before the war, 30% of soldiers had tried a drug other than marijuana, 11% had tried an opiate, but no one during that time had tried heroin, until the war. In fact, the only kind of drugs soldiers were taking were amphetamines, that were given to them by doctors, in order to stay alert throughout the day. However, in 1969, heroin started to arrive, infiltrating American culture due to its purity, price, and availability. After the introduction of heroin, a 1971 survey unveiled that about 15% of all soldiers were addicted to heroin, shocking the nation. In order to combat all of the social problems, President Nixon had to come up with a solution. Nixon consulted with a man named Dr. Jerome H Jaffe, who then developed a national strategy. Dr. Jaffe recommended a radical change in policy for handling soldiers addicted to heroin. Under the supervision of Dr. Jaffe, Nixon introduced urine tests and treatment for entering and the current military. This plan was put into place on June 17th, 171, only six weeks after the plan's initial proposal. In addition of this, Nixon formed the Special Action Office for Drug Abuse Prevention (SAODAP) in that same month. The action showed during this time by government officials was a step in the right direction from what used to be the protocol before these new regulations were put into place.