Is it true the idea of Vietnam War veterans being spat on and treated ba
treated badly is just a myth/urban legend?
shareIt's completely true.
It is bad to drink Jobus rum. Very bad.share
Sadly true.
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MovieChat Forums > First Blood (1982) Discussion > Is it true the idea of Vietnam War veter...
You obviously do not know your history, as this happened a LOT. Did every single protestor show up and do this to every single returning soldier - well no. But it DID happen to many of them, and this is even documented in many historical Vietnam history documentaries and by countless interviews by soldiers and even some of their family members who were there with them.
Many of these fiascos were organized by the likes of Jane Fonda, and I quote her "spit in the faces of those baby-killers". Was she being literal when she said that - who knows. But people sure took her that way. She has since "kinda sorta" apologized for all the crap she pulled back in the early 70's, but the facts still remain she was a traitor, bordered on committing treason, and only skated everything because of her celebrity status.
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You obviously do not know your history, as this happened a LOT. Did every single protestor show up and do this to every single returning soldier - well no. But it DID happen to many of them, and this is even documented in many historical Vietnam history documentaries and by countless interviews by soldiers and even some of their family members who were there with them.
Many of these fiascos were organized by the likes of Jane Fonda, and I quote her "spit in the faces of those baby-killers". Was she being literal when she said that - who knows. But people sure took her that way. She has since "kinda sorta" apologized for all the crap she pulled back in the early 70's, but the facts still remain she was a traitor, bordered on committing treason, and only skated everything because of her celebrity status.
Exactly. Anyone who denies this happened is probably some ex-hippie who participated in this disgusting behavior and wants to revise history.
Mother is the name for God on the lips & hearts of all children -Eric D. Raven share
This is definitely NOT legend. This is my reply to another poster, who obviously has his facts wrong:
You obviously do not know your history, as this happened a LOT. Did every single protestor show up and do this to every single returning soldier - well no. But it DID happen to many of them, and this is even documented in many historical Vietnam history documentaries and by countless interviews by soldiers and even some of their family members who were there with them.
Many of these fiascos were organized by the likes of Jane Fonda, and I quote her "spit in the faces of those baby-killers". Was she being literal when she said that - who knows. But people sure took her that way. She has since "kinda sorta" apologized for all the crap she pulled back in the early 70's, but the facts still remain she was a traitor, bordered on committing treason, and only skated everything because of her celebrity status.
Two points need to be understood here.
1) There's little to no evidence that any American, anti-war protestors LITERALLY spit on returning American soldiers. That part is indeed likely an urban legend.
2) However, it IS true that returning soldiers were often treated unfairly (in a variety of ways in society) after returning home from the Vietnam conflict. There were indeed a minority of protestors who had personally animosity towards Vietnam veterans themselves and expressed it verbally. (Though not with their saliva) But many anti-war protestors simply wanted the war itself to end, and in some cases, had friends/family members who were drafted.
Bump
shareTwo points need to be understood here.
1) There's little to no evidence that any American, anti-war protestors LITERALLY spit on returning American soldiers. That part is indeed likely an urban legend.
That isn't true. There have been lots of folks who try to spin the fact that there isn't video evidence of people being spat upon, but read this article to see the real story:
http://www.startribune.com/disrespect-for-vietnam-vets-is-fact-not-fiction/160444095/
... And David Sirota is wrong about the history and policies of that war and about the treatment of returning military men and women ("The myth of the spat-upon war veteran," June 8)....
... I am not aware of many Vietnam vets who were not subjected to some disrespect, either personal or from the culture that called us "baby killers." We were shamed and embarrassed. My car (with a military base sticker) was "egged." I bought a wig to hide my military haircut.
The spitting on veterans was just a small part of the overall feeling of lost honor, but it was real, contrary to Sirota's article, which appears to borrow heavily from a review of a book written by socialist and war protester Jerry Lembcke....
... But Lembcke is refuted by many other sources, including Jim Lindgren, a Northwestern University law professor who cited news accounts that documented many spitting incidents. One example: A 1967 Bucks County Courier Times article reporting that two sailors were spat on outside a high school football game by a gang of about 10 young men. One of the sailors was stabbed.
Others:
• In October 1967, Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter James Reston's front page article in the New York Times described his eyewitness account of protest behavior so vulgar that spitting was the least of the transgressions.
• Even Medal of Honor recipients were abused and "spat upon as 'monsters'," according to the head of the Congressional Medal of Honor Society, WWII medalist Thomas J. Kelly. Kelly recounted how about 200 anti-war protesters showed up one year to harass the Medal of Honor recipients at their annual dinner. WWII Medalist James Conners was unable to avoid a particularly obnoxious man yelling, "Killer, killer, killer." Conners decked him.
• Other spitting incidents were reported by Pulitzer Prize winners Max Frankel in the New York Times (November 1969) and Carl Bernstein in the Washington Post (May 1970). share
And should. so I doubt it happened very often. Otherwise there'd be a whole lot of contemporaneous reports of hospitals having to surgically remove freshly hacked long hair from far up the asses of thoroughly beaten hippies.
So I'm thinking that such incidents would have been rare.
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I studied the Vietnam war in-depth, and yes it is absolutely true!
The Almighty says "don't change the subject, just answer the fuggin question."
It is true but not everyone felt like that. It's like today, you still get people who shout and spit on people who go to get an abortion. Back then a lot of people felt thankful for soldiers but a lot of other people felt like they had been fighting an unjust war.
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