Protests against the Vietnam War did not start when America declared her open involvement in the war in 1964. America rallied to the call of the
commander-in-chief and after the Gulf of Tonkinincident it became
very apparent that few would raise protests against the decision to militarily
support South Vietnam. America had been through nearly twenty years of the Cold War and they were told by the government that what was happening in South
Vietnam would happen elsewhere (the Domino Theory) unless America used her
military might to stop it. Involvement in the Vietnam War was very much sold as
a patriotic venture so few were prepared to protest. If there was to be a
political protest, it never became apparent in Congress where the entire House
voted to support Johnson and only two Senators voted against US involvement.
A further effect of the opposition was that many college campuses were
completely shut down due to protests. These protests led to wear on the
government who tried to mitigate the tumultuous behavior and return the
colleges back to normal. The colleges involved in the anti-war movement
included ones such as, Brown University, Kent State University, and the
University of Massachusetts. Even
at The College of William and Mary unrest occurred with protests by the
students and even some faculty members that resulted in "multiple
informants" hired to report to the CIA on the activities of students and
faculty members. At the
University of Massachusetts, "The 100th Commencement of the University of
Massachusetts yesterday was a protest, a call for peace", "Red fists
of protest, white peace symbols, and blue doves were stenciled on black
academic gowns, and nearly every other senior wore an armband representing a
plea for peace." Additionally,
"At Boston College, a Catholic institution, six thousand people gathered
that evening in the gymnasium to denounce the war." At Kent State University,
"on May 4, when students gathered to demonstrate against the war, National
Guardsmen fired into the crowd. Four students were killed." [71] Finally, "At the Brown University
commencement in 1969, two-thirds of the graduating class turned their backs
when Henry Kissinger stood up to address them." Basically, from all of the
evidence here provided by the historians, Zinn and McCarthy, the second effect
was very prevalent and it was the uproar at many colleges and universities as
an effect of the opposition to the United States' involvement in Vietnam.
