Primary Sources of the Vietnam War:
Document 1:
South Vietnamese General Nguyen Ngoc
Loan, chief of the National Police, fires
his pistol into the head of suspected Viet
Cong officer Nguyen Van Lem (also
known as Bay Lop) on a Saigon street on
Feb. 1, 1968
1) Describe what is going on in this picture:
2) Why do you think General Nguyen Ngoc Loan (on left) did this?
3) As an American, how could this picture make you oppose the Vietnam War?
Document 2:
South Vietnamese and American forces
follow after terrified children, including
9-year-old Kim Phuc (center) as they run
down Route 1 near Trang Bang after an
aerial napalm attack on suspected Viet
Cong hiding places on June 8, 1972
1) Describe what is going on in this picture:
2) How would this picture change the perspective of American soldiers fighting the war and the
American public?
Document 3:
The Reverend Thich Quang Duc, a 73year-old Buddhist monk, soaked himself
in gasoline before setting himself on fire
to himself and burning in front of
thousands of onlookers at a main
highway intersection in Saigon on June
11, 1963. He did this to protest
increased fighting in Vietnam.
1) Describe what is going on in this picture:
2) As an American, how could this picture make you oppose the Vietnam War?
Document 4:
1) Describe the objects/people you see in the cartoon:
2) Describe the actions taking place in the cartoon:
3) What is the overall message of the cartoon? What impact may it have on public opinion of the
Vietnam War?
Document 5:
1) Describe the objects/people you see in the cartoon:
2) Describe the actions taking place in the cartoon:
3) What is the overall message of the cartoon? What impact may it
have on public opinion of the Vietnam War?
Document 6:
Deaths in Vietnam War (1965–1974)
United States deaths
58,193
ARVN military deaths
282,000
NVA/VC military deaths
444,000
Civilian deaths (North and South
587,000
Vietnam)
Total deaths
1,313,000
1) Who had the most and least causalities in the
Vietnam War?
2) How can these statistics possibly create opposition to
the war?