Vietnam Era

Beginning with advisors in the 1950's, the United States began its involvement with war in Vietnam, during the next 25 years the war in Vietnam would create some of the strongest tensions between Americans in U.S. history.  Almost 3 million U.S. men and women were sent to fight a war thousands of miles away for what was considered by many to be a questionable cause.  U.S. troops began to enter the country in large numbers in 1964 and peaked in 1968.  Veterans of the Vietnam War were never welcomed back with parades and speeches, their countrymen calling them names and spitting on them met many veterans at airports as they return home from Vietnam.  These young men and women gave all they had to fight a war that was begun to ensure the freedom of the South Vietnamese people.  In total, it is estimated that over 2.5 million people on both sides were killed.