November 27, 2013

Kate Mitchell
American Civilizations MWF 10:00 10:50

Theres no forever here: Women in the Vietnam War.

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The Vietnam War was a monumental time for change in America as well as the rest of the world. As the conflict began, Americas manpower and resources began to feel the strain of war. With the men drafted and in battle women had to take on the perils of wartime as well. Commonly women voluntarily entered the war as Nurses in the Army Nurse Corps. Gender roles were also changing in other professions in the United States, and women traveled to the front lines as journalists and correspondents. Regardless of their chosen profession, women who entered the Vietnam War forever changed traditional gender roles1 and were challenged both on and off the battlefield, women saw and reported the tragedy of guerilla warfare, and nursed the sick and wounded together on the front lines, and took on leadership roles within military ranks. However, the American public was resistant at first to the idea of women in the army. Commanders of the unit were influential in dismissing reservations, endorsing the idea that each woman helping would release a man for battle. Women released countless numbers of men from their secretarial assignments, and many executed nontraditional occupations such as radio operator, electrician, and air-traffic controller; WACs aided with distinction during the course of the war.2 Since Vietnam was the most reachable conflict for journalistic coverage in American history for correspondents of either sex, women had very little complications acquiring authorization. The associated press in America had never had such a comprehensive support in reporting and recording any previous martial conflict. Up until 1965, America continually insisted that their part in Vietnam was only consultative. To have constrained the media or compulsory censorship in any way would have gestured that the Army of South Vietnam was getting something far more serious than guidance. The Womens Army Corps (WAC) was established in May 1942 to increase the strength of the Army to fight World War II. A few years after the World War II in 1948, Congress incorporated that
1

Bailey, Margaret E. The Challenge: Autobiography of Colonel Margaret E. Bailey: First Black Nurse Promoted to Colonel in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps, 6-12. Lisle, IL: Tucker Pub, 1999. American Memory from the Library of Congress. "Sharolyn Walcutt: Digital Collection: Veterans History Project (Library of Congress)." Accessed November 16, 2013. http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/vhp-stories/loc.natlib.afc2001001.02856/.

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WAC into the Regular Army of the United States. Womens Army Corps associates and servicemen were submitting volunteer requests to serve their country in Vietnam before the Government released any demands for officers and enlisted women of the Corps. Though women were not allowed to serve in combat roles, their duties in past wars in communications, supply, and administration made them invaluable.3 Like other women who served in Vietnam as nurses, WAC members worked six-and-seven day weeks and many 12 hour shifts without objection. The first WAC officer dispensed to Vietnam in March 1962 was Major Anne Marie Doering. Two WAC consultants to the Vietnam Women's Army Forces Corps were next to arrive in January 1965 - Lt. Col. Kathleen I. Wilkes and Master Sergeant Betty L. Adams. A WAC detachment with a typical strength of 90 enlisted women was positioned at HQ, US Army, Vietnam, Long Binh, roughly 20 miles from Saigon.4 Although they were not in combat of on the front lines in Vietnam, many women faced the dangers of enemy attack. Even when these brave women were traumatized from seeing the gruesome injuries of soldiers or experiencing attacks on their hospitals or villages, no women were killed nor seriously injured in these attacks. Having no battle preparation it was distressing for these young women to be exposed to the adversarys fire. As time passed, they became accustomed to the noise and the commotion caused by the bombardment - there is no record of women asking to be relocated to a nonviolent area. Numerous women would receive decorations for praiseworthy service, and no WAC member deaths were reported during the conflict. Throughout the Vietnam War many Army nurses would also be deployed to South East Asia; staffing all major Army hospitals run by the US or its allies, including: Cam Ranh Bay, Da Nang, and Saigon. The history of the Army Nurse Corps (ANC) in Vietnam originated in April, 1956 when three Army nurses arrived in Saigon. These nurses were on temporary duty obligations attached to the United

Holm, Jeanne. Women in the Military: An Unfinished Revolution, 205-225. Novato, CA: Presidio Press, 1982. Morden, Bettie J., The Women's Army Corps, 1945-1978. Washington, D.C.: Center of Military History, U.S. Army, 1990.

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States Army Medical Training Team, who had sent them to train South Vietnamese nurses and procedures and care practices.5 Vietnam would be the first major positioning of men as nurses into combat, as men could be situated in more dangerous locations than what was measured as safe for females. Regardless, many Army nurses, both male and female, faced enemy fire for the first time due to the progressive nature of the conflict, and numerous male nurses would perish from direct adversary fire.6 On at least one juncture the US Army hospital at Cam Ranh Bay was attacked and brutally damaged, with a forfeiture of both patient and staff life. While incentive varied, there wasnt an archetypal tour for nurses in Vietnam; the proportions of their infirmaries, their whereabouts in country, and the year of their service all collectively to making their proficiencies very diverse. The bulk of the military females who aided in Vietnam were nurses. All were volunteers, and they stretched from fresh college graduates in their early 20s to experienced career nurses in their 40s. As the war in Vietnam expanded, the demand for nurses became much greater. In spite of their status, all nurses learned quickly on the job and proved tremendously malleable and prepared to work in any clinical specialty where they might be necessary. Nurses who entered the Army volunteered for duty in Vietnam for a variety of motives; many felt it was their patriotic duty, others found it as a means to pay for college or to complete their schooling as nurses. One nurse veteran stated: We arent angels; we are simply members of the nursing profession who have seen the need in Vietnam and are here to do our part.7 Nurses usually worked six days per week, twelve hours per day.8 Through emergencies, everybody worked.

Morden, Bettie J., The Women's Army Corps, 1945-1978. Washington, D.C.: Center of Military History, U.S. Army, 1990 American Memory from the Library of Congress. "Interview Transcript: Marcita Ann Martin: Veterans History Project

(Library of Congress." Accessed November 16, 2013. http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/vhp/story/loc.natlib.afc2001001.05583/transcript?ID=sr0001. 7 Norman, Elizabeth M. Women at War: The Story of Fifty Military Nurses Who Served in Vietnam . Pages 7-9, Philadelphia:
8

University of Pennsylvania Press, 1990. American Memory from the Library of Congress. "Interview Transcript: Jeanne A. Urbin Markle: Veterans History Project (Library of Congress." Accessed November 16, 2013. http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/vhp/story/loc.natlib.afc2001001.03442/transcript?ID=sr0001.

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During the TET Offensive of January 1968, nurses would sleep as soon as one may possibly acquire the means to get away from the hospital. Yet Nurses managed to gain veneration not only for their methodical skills, but also for their independent medical and ethical judgments.9 In addition to their assignment given by the military, Army nurses voluntarily provided medical aid to the Vietnamese locals during their non-working days. Clinics initiated and manned by nursing workforces gave elementary care, including immunizations, to the members of the public. Nurses conducted sick calls at countless Vietnamese orphanages and taught classes about child rearing to villagers. In spite of the long hours and sometimes disturbing injuries these women had to face, countless nurses considered their service gratifying. They were able to aid their country as well as protect and comfort the injured men in their hospitals. Throughout the Vietnam War, a majority of the men who were hurt and made it to the hospital lived. Nurses observed some truly phenomenal trials such as men recuperating from their wounds or acts of true generosity that are collective during combat circumstances, and many nurses made close networks with their fellow colleagues some of whom still keep in touch into the present day. One of the most notable actions of American nurses and women in Vietnam was Operation Babylift, which was the title given to the mass withdrawal and evacuation of small children from South Vietnam to the United States and other nations at the end of the Vietnam War from April 326, 1975. Alongside Operation New Life, more than 110,000 refugees were displaced from South Vietnam at the conclusion of the Vietnam War. Thousands of children were airlifted from Vietnam and adopted by new families all over the world.10 Although American involvement in the war was beginning to dwindle by this time in 1975, U.S. President Gerald Ford made special arrangements

American Memory from the Library of Congress. "Interview Transcript: Patricia A. Carroll: Veterans History Project

Library of Congress." Accessed November 16, 2013. http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/vhp/story/loc.natlib.afc2001001.72595/transcript?ID=sr0001. 10 Lifton, Betty Jean. Needed: More Love Than Patience. New York Times 29 Feb. 1976.

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for infants and small children to escape Saigon as the final battle between North and South Vietnam came to a head.11 The mission was provocative because there was query about whether the removal from Vietnam was in the children's best interest12, and since not all the children were orphans. Women also went to Vietnam as war journalists in extraordinary quantities in the 1960s and 70s. A mixture of academic interest, professional desires to be at the midpoint of a big story and an unassuming desire for journey drew women to the wilderness of Southeast Asia, just as those same desires had long drawn men to the exhibition of war. Kate Webb, a reporter for UPI, chose to cover the war because it was simply the biggest story going, it was affecting the lives of everyone around me, and I didnt understand it.13 Nearly of 300 women were endorsed to cover the conflict in the time span between 1965 and 1975. Of those 300, a total of approximately 70 women are distinguishable as reporters by their printed or broadcast news stories about the war.14 Women attained letters from establishments such as CNN, and the press credentials dispensed by the Military Affairs Command, Vietnam (MACV), permitted the carrier admission to the armys ground and air transport system throughout the whole country. This is one factor where it became rather easy for women. Although many military officials tried fruitlessly to have females banned from long stopovers with servicemen in the combat zone, quarreling that women were an intolerable distraction, yet past down the chain of command the opposition dissipated greatly. There was scarcely a young helicopter aviator in Southeast Asia who declined a demand from one of the numerous women ascribed to cover the war. Ground troops commonly welcomed females, too, specifically because their company was very sparse and rare. However, many women observed the harsh reality of war and combat once finally arriving in
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12
13

Allman, TD. "Our Children of the Vietnam War." Chicago Tribune, August 28, 1982. Greene, Bob. "The United States is Still Sure That It Knows Best." Los Angeles Times, April 11, 1975.

Webb, Kate. "Highpockets." In War Torn: Stories of War from the Women Reporters Who Covered Vietnam , 61-64. New York: Random House, 2002. 14 Chapelle, Dickey. What's a Woman Doing Here? A Reporter's Report on Herself. New York: Morrow, 1962.

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theater. One reporter for ABC stated In Vietnam, I tried hard not to dwell or thing too long about the dramatic deaths of friends I expected to know forever. There was no forever here.15 The Womens Army Corps was reformed and disestablished by Congress in October 1978 and, subsequently, instead of being assigned to WAC branch upon entering the Army, women were dispersed to all other subdivisions of the Army except for the combat branches.16 Since then, women have continually served in every military action in which the Army has been involved. Correspondents for the press believed they had a chance to send a message of equal opportunity in a variety of professions. Nursing became a well-respected female occupation, and reignited the fight for equality in pay and workplace regulations. What began as an ugly war resulted in a shift in American culture, especially for women and those who stood up and served their country alongside men. Only recently has a more vivid depiction of the nurses who served become available and have recognized the multidimensional understandings of what it meant to be a woman at a tumultuous time when many Americans would reconsider their characterizations of gender altogether.17

15

Fawcett, Denby. "Walking Point." In War Torn: Stories of War from the Women Reporters Who Covered Vietnam , 3-13. New York: Random House, 2002. 16 Morden, Bettie J., The Women's Army Corps, 1945-1978. Washington, D.C.: Center of Military History, U.S. Army, 1990. 17 Vuic, Kara Dixon. Officer, Nurse, Woman: The Army Nurse Corps in the Vietnam War, 180-192. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2010.

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Holm, Jeanne. Women in the Military: An Unfinished Revolution, 205-225. Novato, CA: Presidio Press, 1982. Morden, Bettie J., The Women's Army Corps, 1945-1978. Washington, D.C.: Center of Military History, U.S. Army, 1990. Bailey, Margaret E. The Challenge: Autobiography of Colonel Margaret E. Bailey: First Black Nurse Promoted to Colonel in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps, 6-12. Lisle, IL: Tucker Pub, 1999. American Memory from the Library of Congress. "Sharolyn Walcutt: Digital Collection: Veterans History Project (Library of Congress)." Accessed November 16, 2013. http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/vhpstories/loc.natlib.afc2001001.02856/. Holm, Jeanne. Women in the Military: An Unfinished Revolution, 205-225. Novato, CA: Presidio Press, 1982. American Memory from the Library of Congress. "Interview Transcript: Marcita Ann Martin: Veterans History Project (Library of Congress." Accessed November 16, 2013. http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/vhp/story/loc.natlib.afc2001001.05583/transcript?ID=sr0001. Norman, Elizabeth M. Women at War: The Story of Fifty Military Nurses Who Served in Vietnam. Pages 7-9, Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1990. American Memory from the Library of Congress. "Interview Transcript: Jeanne A. Urbin Markle: Veterans History Project (Library of Congress." Accessed November 16, 2013. http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/vhp/story/loc.natlib.afc2001001.03442/transcript?ID=sr0001. American Memory from the Library of Congress. "Interview Transcript: Patricia A. Carroll: Veterans History Project (Library of Congress." Accessed November 16, 2013. http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/vhp/story/loc.natlib.afc2001001.72595/transcript?ID=sr0001. Lifton, Betty Jean. Needed: More Love Than Patience. New York Times 29 Feb. 1976. Allman, TD. "Our Children of the Vietnam War." Chicago Tribune, August 28, 1982. Greene, Bob. "The United States is Still Sure That It Knows Best." Los Angeles Times, April 11, 1975. Chapelle, Dickey. What's a Woman Doing Here? A Reporter's Report on Herself. New York: Morrow, 1962. Fawcett, Denby. "Walking Point." In War Torn: Stories of War from the Women Reporters Who Covered Vietnam, 3-13. New York: Random House, 2002. Webb, Kate. "Highpockets." In War Torn: Stories of War from the Women Reporters Who Covered Vietnam, 61-64. New York: Random House, 2002. Vuic, Kara Dixon. Officer, Nurse, Woman: The Army Nurse Corps in the Vietnam War, 180-192. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2010.