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"The leaders of the world talk 

eloquently about peace. Every 

time we drop bombs on North 

Vietnam, President Johnson 

speaks of peace. What is the 

problem? They are talking of 

peace as a distant goal. 

Destructive means cannot bring 

about constructive ends."

- MArtin Luther King Jr,   "A 

Christmas Sermon" 1967

Dr. King is stating that the so called effort to 

bring peace to Vietnam seems contradictory if 

we are bringing "peace" through the use of 

violence. He believes that if we are truly 

concerned with bringing peace to Vietnam, we 

should do it without acts of violence. 

This statement is antiwar because it would 

appeal to those who believed the war was an 

unjustified use of violence. 

"Some folks inherit star spangled eyes

oh, they send you down to war

and when you ask "them how much should we 

give"

they answer "more, more, more"

It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no senator's son

It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no fortunate 

one"

-Fortunate SOn, Creedence Clearwater 

Revival, 1969

John Fogerty is making a statement about the 

fact that upper class young men, such as 

"senator's sons," or otherwise "fortunate ones" 

were often deferred from the draft unfairly. He 

believes those that are responsible for the war, 

with "star spangled eyes" are continually asking 

for sacrifices from the everyday citizen instead 

of from themselves and their own families. 

This song would have appealed to young men 

who felt that they were unfairly drafted and did 

not agree with their leadership. 

"Each day someone has to give up his life 

so that the United States doesn't have to 

admit something that the entire world 

already know, so that we can't say that 

we have made a mistake. Someone has 

to die so that President Nixon won't be, 

and these are his words, 'the first 

President to lose a war.'"

-John Kerry,testimony to the US Senate 

Committee on Foreign Relations, 1971

Kerry is referring to his experiences in Vietnam. 

He is stating that the whole world knows that 

the war is a lost cause and not winnable, but 

that American leadership does not want to 

admit a mistake was made on their part. In 

doing so, many lives have been lost and will 

continue to be lost. 

This statement is important because it asks our 

nation's leadership to think of the costs of the 

war and if those costs are necessary. 

"It was a very scary time. We had just gotten married and I 

was starting my first job teaching. I wrote letters as often as I 

could. I lived on my own when your uncle was on duty but 

thankfully I lived close to relatives who could help me out with 

things around the house and keep me company. I tried not to 

watch the news. It was too awful. Every day there were 

reports of terrible, confusing things happening and it worried 

me sick to watch it."

-Mary Evans, my aunt

This statement shows the anguish felt many many 

Americans at home, especially those with loved 

ones in the service. Young people were especially 

impacted by the war, as they enlisted or were 

drafted. 

This quote also describes the importance of the 

media during the war as a source of information, 

whether trustworthy or not. 

"Who won and who lost the Tet Offensive? I'm not 

sure. The Vietcong did not win by a knockout, but 

neither did we. The referees of history may make it 

a draw... We have been too often disappointed 

with the optimism of American leaders, both in 

Washington and Vietnam... The only rational way 

out of this war will be to negotiate, as honorable 

people who lived up to their pledge to defend 

democracy, and did the best they could."

-Walter Cronkite Broadcast, February 1968

This news report from Walter Cronkite displays the 

confusion felt in the US following the Tet Offensive 

and the disbelief by many that the war could be 

won. As an influential television broadcaster, 

Cronkite encouraged the nation to reevaluate the 

war and think about the best plan of action in the 

months to come. 

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