What was the purpose of My Lai?
Ernest Medina led his infantry company in an assault on the village of Son My, along the central coast of South Vietnam, as part of a mission to find and destroy a battalion of the National Liberation Front, also known as the Vietcong. One of the hamlets within the village was called My Lai.
Who was responsible for the My Lai massacre?
William Calley
Lt. William Calley was the only American convicted of his role in the massacre of more than 500 innocent Vietnamese civilians in the village of My Lai during the Vietnam War.
What stopped the My Lai massacre?
Hugh Thompson, the helicopter pilot who stopped the My Lai massacre, later told the news program “60 Minutes” that he was ostracized and received death threats upon his return from Vietnam. But in 1998, Thompson attended a memorial service at My Lai on the 30th anniversary of the massacre.
What was one effect of the My Lai Massacre quizlet?
What effect did the massacre have on America? People began to turn against the war because they had previously believed that their country was the good country which was helping but this incident revealed that perhaps their men were not the good people in this war.
How did the My Lai Massacre change Americans view on the Vietnam War quizlet?
– The My Lai Massacre had important consequences. It shocked US public opinion: many number of Americans either refused to believe the massacre had happened or felt it was justified because the villagers were helping the Vietcong. – However, the majority of Americans were horrified.
Why was the My Lai massacre a turning point?
The publicity surrounding the My Lai massacre proved to be an important turning point in American public opinion. It illustrated the deterioration that was taking place in the behaviour of the US troops and undermined the moral argument about the need to save Vietnam from the “evils of communism”.