Archive Dive Final Draft
Nathan Porter
September 22, 2015
Professor Stacey Anderson
English 330
The War Lost at Home
The Vietnam War is the only time that the US has gone into an extended conflict without a declaration of war. What started as a promise to keep Communism at bay in South Vietnam resulted in a nearly 20-year war which cost America over 58,000 young men’s lives. Not only had America decided to remain in an undeclared war, but with an increase of modern technology, especially that of television, it was the first time the people were exposed to many of the unseen horrors of the war. The final straw was when the draft began to be instituted and an unwilling country sent unwilling soldiers to a foreign land, and often to their death. All of this resulted in one of the most defining times of political and social unrest, not bound by any age gap. Although many factors contributed to the unrest, the defining factor was the draft, and it may have been the greatest factor in causing the US to lose the war at home before it lost it overseas.
In 1969 when the national draft lottery was established it brought in a whole new characteristic to public opinion on the Vietnam War. Previously there had already been huge increases in draft calls from 100,000 in 1964 up to 400,000 in 1979, drastically increasing the number of US troops in Vietnam. When the draft lottery was established, all men born within drafting ages were assigned numbers based on their birthday. Then the numbers were drawn randomly, effectively calling all men with the same birthday to serve at once. Although only 25% of the men serving in the armed forces were draftees, most of that number was over-represented in “the army’s fighting forces and thus had the highest casualty rates” (Vietnam Experiences). It is estimated that approximately 47% of the army overseas were draftees. Again, as the draftees were often those in combat, it resulted in draftees composing nearly 28% of the battle deaths in 1965. However, this number dramatically increased to nearly 57% in 1967. Ultimately, by 1968 draftees were approximately 88% of the army’s riflemen in Vietnam.
Not only was the draft present in the hearts and minds of America, but the lottery itself was put on live television for all of the country to watch. The film industry may have been one of the greatest contributing factors to the loss of the Vietnam war, with everything from live footage of combat, to exposing the country to a lengthy exposition of the young men being selected to enter combat unwillingly. For those not alive during this time, it may be difficult to understand the full experience of the draft calls. However the movie Animal House does an excellent job of recreating the moments. The movie allows us to get a glimpse into the time and experience with those who were the most affected by the draft. These draft calls may have been the beginnig of the end for the Vietnam war.
One area that the draft had a massive effect was on those young men available for the draft, especially for those who number had been assigned. As stated by the article Caught in the Draft, the draft number that a man received not only “affected their degree of support of the war,” but often dramatically affected “their basic partisan and ideological values” as well (American Political Science Review). The students with low draft numbers were facing a nearly imminent threat of getting sent overseas into combat and often caused a dramatic shift in perspective. What is even more compelling is that those with higher numbers often remained complacent in their situation. For those graduating high school students with low draft numbers, college suddenly became a much more enticing option and those who were graduating college underwent waves of fear at the possibility of their future forever changing. The film Animal House captures this sentiment perfectly as it delves into the reactions of college students as they receive their draft numbers. Not only that but brings into light when the dean of the school threatens students nearing college dropout that upon returning home that the draft was again a possibility. The kind of widespread fear and panic caused in our young men by the draft is something that definitely altered our country’s opinion on the war.
A strong element of the objection to the draft were those known as “draft dodgers.” As shown in the image below many young men would rally against the war and often burn their draft cards in protest. This again alludes to those put in the place of possibility in being sent overseas. Many men also sought to escape to Canada to avoid being drafted. This attributes to the idea that the war itself was lost at home before it was even lost overseas. The draft, as well as the war altogether, was beginning to pull the country apart.
Another impactful source for opinion on the Vietnam are those parents that lived in fear of their sons being drafted into the armed forces. As stated by a Mr. and Mrs. Elliot in a letter to President Johnson in 1967 “we believe that we are fast approaching the point of no return where all of our hopes and dreams will die.” The Elliots had 2 draft age sons currently in University and one that would soon be graduating high school. The possibility of these young men being drafted upon completion of school was tremendous, the result terrifying. Another similar letter is from a man named Ford Taplin who had two draft age sons wrote another letter to Del Clauson in the House of Representatives. Taplin’s frustration was not necessarily with the war itself but the manner in which it appeared to be fought. His questions revolve around the fact that we had not won the war and it still did not seem to be coming any closer to ending. Ford agreed with much of the public opinion that perhaps the war was more political, or that the government itself was gaining from the fighting. If Taplin was going to send his sons to die, he wanted to know why.
The opinions expressed in these letters is little more than a glimpse into the mind of America by the time it was nearing its end. Already so many had been sent overseas and little result could be seen, the success stories were few and the horror stories continued to grow. Also, as more and more young men reached draft age, the fear of the country at the prospect of losing even more of its young increased as well. However, what highlights the elements of the draft is the fact that most remained indifferent to the draft until it directly impacted their life. Whether it was draft age college students or parents who wanted to protect their children, these were the ones fighting the war at home.
Overall, the Vietnam War was a very trying time in US history. When so many young men died valiantly but yet, in the end, did die seemingly in vain. As the draft called more and more young men to fight, the country’s moral continued to plummet.. The public no longer saw the war as brave soldiers taking up arms to fight for freedom around the world, rather a government forcing its citizens to die for those that were a few too many steps removed from the heart of America. In the end, as a result of the draft, the Vietnam War truly was a war lost at home.
Works Cited
“Caught in the Draft: The Effects of Vietnam Draft Lottery Status on Political Attitudes.” American Political Science Review May 2011: pag. Print.
Elliot, Mr. and Mrs. Letter to President Lyndon B. Johnson. 3 Mar. 1967. MS.
“James M. Beck Collection.” : Veterans History Project (American Folklife Center, Library of Congress).Web. 15 Sept. 2015.
Man Burning Draft Card at Vietnam War Protest. 1967. AP Images, New York City.
Taplin, Ford. Letter to Del Clauson. 20 Feb. 1967. MS.
“When The Vietnam War Came To ‘Animal House’.” Here Now RSS. Web. 15 Sept. 2015.
