Degree Type
Honors Capstone Project
Date of Submission
Spring 5-1-2018
Capstone Advisor
Osamah Khalil
Honors Reader
Mark Schmeller
Capstone Major
History
Capstone College
Arts and Science
Audio/Visual Component
no
Capstone Prize Winner
yes
Won Capstone Funding
no
Honors Categories
Social Sciences
Subject Categories
Arts and Humanities | Asian History | History
Abstract
On March 16, 1968, American soldiers murdered over 500 elderly men, women, and children in the small Vietnamese village of My Lai. Although the U.S. military attempted to conceal the massacre, it was eventually revealed by investigative journalist Seymour Hersh. Utilizing a wide range of primary and secondary sources, my thesis examines official and popular reactions to the My Lai massacre and its role in the historical memory of the Vietnam War. I detail the investigation and trial of the soldiers responsible, the conviction of one of the massacre’s chief perpetrators, and the intervention of President Richard Nixon. The passing of the fiftieth anniversary of the massacre has inspired a wave of new works. My thesis analyzes how sentiments have changed over the past fifty years, how My Lai is viewed today, and why it is important that this massacre is remembered.
Recommended Citation
Lechleiter, Dana, ""And babies.": The History, Politics, and Memory of My Lai, 1968-2018" (2018). Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All. 1219.
https://surface.syr.edu/honors_capstone/1219
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
