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The my lai massacre essay
My lai massacre
Analysis of the My Lai Massacre
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On March 16, 1968, there was a massacre of around 300-400 innocent noncombatant people mainly old men, women, and children in My Lai located in the Quang Ngai region of Vietnam. My Lai was a small village of only around 700 total people. (p.3) Those responsible for this horrific act were all members Charley Company, which is a part of the United States’ military. Their mission was clear and they followed through. The mission was to “search and destroy” and “Sanitize” My Lai. (Olson, Roberts, p.8-9) Lieutenant Colonel Frank Barker ordered My Lai to be "leveled"(p.19) In March 1968 within the Quang Ngai Province it was reported by the Untied State’s military there were around 262,200 enemies to the USA, this number includes combat troops of …show more content…
Bernhardt and Hugh Thompson Jr. Hugh Thompson Jr. was the only man to even attempt to stop the killings. Thompson even went as far as landing his helicopter between the soldiers and villagers in order to protect the villagers, he also threatened to shoot his fellow soldiers himself if they continued on with the massacre. When Thompson Jr. returned to base that same day he reported what he had witnessed. (p.23) Unfortunately, Hugh Thompson Jr.’s report to his superiors was covered up. The cover up went all the way through the chain of command. Lieutenant Colonel Frank Barker wrote twelve days after the massacre that is was a successful mission and that “Friendly casualties were light and the enemy suffered heavily.”. (p.31)
In March of 1969 Ronald Ridenhour after hearing about the My Lai massacre started his own investigation and then wrote to over thirty politicians about what he heard about My Lai. At that point the American public had still not heard about the horrific My Lai massacre until in December 1969 military photographer Ron Haeberle in 1969 sold and published his photos form the My Lai massacre in Life magazine. After the photos were publish massive negative public outcry and protests erupted all around the country. The American public was
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(p.24) I don’t believe this was at all justice served. Under the Geneva conventions and also the U.S. army rules and regulations soldiers do not have to follow orders to commit war crimes, not only that they are supposed disobey and report to authorities any and all war crimes that they are aware of. (p.56) Murdering of innocent unarmed people and the rape of women and children all fall under war crimes. Even if the excuse of the argument that was used to acquit most of the men was that the murders were just and they were only following orders and acted in self-defense, it still never took into account the 20 women and children who were raped. Rape could never be justified as self-defense nor is that ever a just non-war crime order to execute. (p.76, 99) Not only were these war crimes, but under the Geneva convention and U.S. army rules a solider must report war crimes done, however, only one soldier who witnessed the crimes actually reported it. These were clearly civilians out of the about seven-hundred peoples’ possessions that were found in the village where only two guns were found, and never was one shot reported coming from any of the villagers.
Another atrocity that occurred during this war was the My Lai Massacre. This was the mass murder of unarmed civilians in South Vietnam during March 16, 1968. Around November 1969, the world saw this and was outraged with the killings of innocent civilians prompting and giving the public more reasons to stop the war. Although the war was very unpopular, men and women were still fighting and dying for America. Heroes such as Captain John W, Ripley of Dong Ha, Medal of Honor recipients, and overall troops that gave the ultimate sacrifice were forgotten for a brief period.
Twenty lives were lost, including two of the striker’s wives and eleven children, but only one of these lives belonged to the National Guard. With this in mind, it can be debated whether or not this event should be considered a battle or a massacre. Some have argued that, because of the striker’s retaliation, the event should be considered a battle, but because of previous abuse and the guard’s disregard for who they were firing at it and careless destruction, it should be considered a massacre.
Kelman, Herbert C., Hamilton, V. Lee. “The My Lai Massacre: A Military Crime of Obedience”. Writing & Reading for ACP Composition. Ed. Thomas E. Leahey and Christine R. Farris. New York: Pearson Custom Publishing, 2009. 266-277. Print.
the guards began mistreating the prisoners, not physically, but emotionally and psychologically, taking advantage of the power and authority appointed to them by the experimenter (Zimbardo 109). Crimes of obedience and mistreatment to other human beings are not only found in Milgrim’s and Zimbardo’s experiments. In 1968, U.S. troops massacred over 500 villagers in My Lai. The incident is described by social psychologist Herbert C. Kelman and sociologist V. Lee Hamilton in the article “The My Lai Massacre: a Crime of Obedience.” Lt. William Calley, charged with 102 killings, claims to have followed orders from his superiors, only accomplishing his duty, which is also a theme throughout the movie, A Few Good Men. After presented with a request from William Santiago, a marine on his base, to be transferred, Jessup refuses. The film depicts, through Colonel Jessup 's authority, the refusal to obey a reasonable request as well as the pride one possesses when fulfilling his duty
of the rape of a 14 year old girl by twenty GIs ... in front of the
On March 16, 1968, in the Quang Ngai region of Vietnam, specifically My Lai, the United States military was involved in an appalling slaughter of approximately 500 Vietnamese civilians. There are numerous arguments as to why this incident even had the capacity to occur. Although some of the arguments seem valid, can one really make excuses for the slaughter of innocent people? The company that was responsible for the My Lai incident was the Charlie Company and throughout the company there were many different accounts of what happened that reprehensible day. Therefore there are a few contradictions about what had occurred, such as what the commanding officers exact instructions for the soldiers were. Even with these contradictions the results are obvious. The question that must be posed is whether these results make the American soldiers involved that day “guilty”. There is the fact that the environment of the Vietnam War made it very confusing to the soldiers exactly who the enemy was, as well as providing a pent up frustration due to the inability to even engage in real combat with the enemy. If this is the case though, why did some soldiers with the same frustrations refuse the orders and sit out on the action, why did some cry while firing, and why then did one man go so far as to place himself between the Vietnamese and the firing soldiers? If these men who did not see the sense in killing innocents were right with their actions, then how come the ones who did partake were all found not guilty in court? The questions can keep going back and forth on this issue, but first what happened that day must be examined.
Without a doubt, the men of this battalion greatly contributed to the final solution. The first action the 101st Battalion was order to do took place in Józefów. They went into the town and were ordered to "shoot anyone trying to escape" and "those that were too sick or frail to walk to the marketplace, as well as infants and anyone offering resistance or attempting to hid, were to be shot on the spot". (Browning, 57) They then trucked or marched the Jews they found into the woods just outside the village. "When the first truckload of thirty-five to forty Jews arrived, an equal number of policemen cam forward and, face to face, were paired off with their victims." (Browning, 61) The shear atrocity of this was too much for many of the policemen, so alcohol was provided to calm the men?s nerves. Only a dozen men stepped out and refused to shoot at all. As the day went on, however, many could not continue. They even had a "special technique" dubbed the "neck shot". "The men wer...
Women are often victims in war in several circumstances. One of the victimizations The more extreme victimization of women occurs through gender violence while in service as a soldier. In the United States, the film The Invisible War recognizes that over one fifth of serving women experienced sexual assault and there is nearly no justice system to combat this. One man had raped several women in the service, but still was able to receive congressional medal of honors for his actions and bravery (The Invisible War).
middle of paper ... ... Victims get the impression that because they lack rank, they won’t be heard. As stated before, a soldier’s job is to follow orders and their opinions, beliefs and feelings have a far lower precedence over their work performance and ability to do their job. With no confidence in the system that is supposed to protect the victim and prosecute the accused, the cycle will continue.
...d to the government officials, and was also one event that did not support the national government. This media exposure helped provide information that the Johnson and Nixon administrations helped cover up. By 1968, the My Lai Massacre was detriment to the government because of the negative attention the media was feeding to the American people.
It happened on a rainy night on February 17, 1970 at the base of Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Military police were responding to a call from Green Beret surgeon Dr. Jeffrey MacDonald, which they thought was a routine call. When the military police arrived they discovered the slaughtered bodies of MacDonald’s wife, Colette, who was twenty six, and his two daughters Kimberley, five, and Kristen, two.
...nd innocent villagers of My Lai, it was a time when American’s questioned their own as being “bad guys” or “good guys”. Were America’s tortuous and cruel acts to be considered patriotic or dishonorable? Some Americans, with bitter feelings for all the American lives lost in the Vietnam War, gave credit to Lieutenant Calley for leading troops in participating in such an atrocious event. History shows that there is still much debate on some facts of the massacre and many stories and opinions, although we will never know the facts exactly, what we do know is that America will never forget this tragic event, it will be talked about in American History for many years to come, and the Vietminh hearts will always fill with sadness when they think of the many lives that were lost on that tragic day in history, their minds will always have unspeakable memories of that day.
The political and societal ramifications of Vietnam's Tet Offensive indubitably illustrate the historical oddity of 1968. 1967 had not been a bad year for most Americans. Four years after the profound panic evoked by the assassination of John Kennedy, the general public seemed to be gaining a restored optimism, and even the regularly protested Vietnam War still possessed the semblance of success (Farber and Bailey 34-54). However, three short weeks following the eve of 68, Americans abruptly obtained a radically different outlook. The Tet Offensive, beginning on January 30, 1968, consisted of a series of military incursions during the Vietnam War, coordinated between the National Liberation Front's People's Liberation Armed Forces (PLAF), or "Viet Cong," and the ...
Regardless of the guiltless people, the US troops continued to investigate and demolish (American Atrocity: Remembering My Lai). House after house, family after family, the soldiers burned down buildings, beat and raped young girls and women, and murdered basically anyone in sight. Varnado Simpson, a squaddie who was sent to My Lai, indicated in December 1969: “Everyone who went into the village had in mind to kill. We lost a lot of buddies and it was a VC stronghold. We considered them either VC or helping the VC.” Though exact quantities remain hearsay, it is alleged that as many as 500 people comprising of women, children and the elderly were murdered in the My Lai Massacre (American Experience: TV 's Most-watched History Series).
The paranoia and fear of death never left them. The My Lai Massacre occurred in 1968, when the village of My Lai was completely destroyed, although it did not contain a single enemy troop. Over a hundred villagers were slaughtered. It became clearer to Americans how soldiers were losing control, and how there was no easy way to win this war.