My Lai Massacre

Photographs of the My Lai massacre provoked world outrage and made it an international scandal.

The My Lai massacre (Vietnamese: tháº£m sÃ¡t Má»¹ Lai) was a massacre committed by U.S. soldiers on hundreds of unarmed Vietnamese civilians, mostly women and children, on March 16, 1968, in the hamlet of My Lai, during the Vietnam War. It prompted widespread outrage around the world and reduced American support at home for the war in Vietnam. The massacre is also known as the Song My massacre (Vietnamese: tháº£m sÃ¡t SÆ¡n Má»¹) or sometimes as the Song My Massacre. My Lai was one of four hamlets associated with the village of "Song My". Americal Division Veterans Association.

Background

During the Vietnam War, the Quang Ngai Province of South Vietnam was a suspected haven for guerrillas of the People's Liberation Armed Forces and other cadres of the National Front for the Liberation of Vietnam (NLF), also called the "Viet Cong" or "VC" by the U.S. forces and their allies and supporters. Informally renamed Pinkville (due to the color printed on maps designating more populous regions of the country and probably also for the residents' presumed support for communist guerrillas) by the U.S. military, the province was frequently bombed and shelled. By 1968, almost all homes in the province had been damaged or destroyed.

It was of primary importance to the U.S. military that VC operatives be eliminated. Accordingly, rather than measuring success by the acquisition of territory or strategic locations (for example), missions were evaluated based on their "body count" - the number of presumed VC operatives killed. Since it was often very difficult for a VC operative to be distinguished from a non-combatant, there was often a wide discrepancy between the declared body count for a particular mission, and the number of enemy weapons recovered. There is no doubt that many civilians were killed in the province, fueling existing sentiment against Americans in the region.

Insurgents were sometimes housed and sheltered by civilians in the area, and American soldiers were frustrated with the complicity of the local people. Together with their inability to close with an elusive enemy and pervasive fear of ambush, this resentment made violent reprisals against civilians more likely.

The massacre

Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 11^th Brigade, Americal Division arrived in Vietnam in December 1967. Their first month in Vietnam passed without any direct enemy contact.

During the Tet Offensive of January 1968, attacks were carried out in Quang Ngai by the 48th Battalion of the NLF. US military intelligence formed the view that the 48th Battalion, having retreated, was taking refuge in the Song My village. A number of specific hamlets within that village - labelled My Lai 1, 2, 3 and 4 - were suspected of harboring the 48th. US forces planned a major offensive on those hamlets.

On the eve of the attack, US military command advised Charlie Company that any genuine civilians at My Lai would have left their homes to go to market by 7 a.m. the following day. They were told they could assume that all who remained behind were either VC or active VC sympathizers. They were instructed to destroy the village. At the briefing, Captain Ernest Medina was asked whether the order included the killing of women and children; those present at the briefing later gave different accounts of Medina's response.

The soldiers found no insurgents in the village on the morning of March 16, 1968. Enraged because fellow platoon soldiers were killed on previous occasions, they gave little thought to the consequences of their actions that day. It is rumored by Vietnamese that the soldiers asked the villagers where the Viet Cong were and that the villagers either didn't know or refused to reveal their location. Many suspected there were VC in the village, hiding underground in the homes of their elderly parents or young wives. Nevertheless, the American soldiers, one platoon of which was led by Lt. William Calley, killed hundreds of civilians – primarily old men, women, children and babies. Some were tortured or raped. Dozens were herded into a ditch and executed with automatic firearms. At one stage, Calley expressed his intent to throw hand grenades into a trench filled with villagers.

The precise number reported killed varies from source to source, with 347 and 504 being the most commonly cited figures. A memorial at the site of the massacre lists 504 names, with ages ranging from one to eighty two years. According to the report of a South Vietnamese army lieutenant to his superiors, it was an "atrocious" incident of bloodletting by an armed force seeking to vent its fury.

The soldiers said they were convinced any and all villagers could be a threat. One general said he even suspected mothers carrying babies of having loaded hand grenades.

A US Army helicopter crew saved some civilians by landing between the American troops and the remaining Vietnamese hiding in a bunker. The 24-year-old pilot, Warrant Officer Hugh Thompson, Jr., confronted the leaders of the troops and told them his gunship would open fire on them if they continued their attack on civilians.
In the spring of 1972, the camp (at My Lai 2) where the survivors of the My Lai massacre had been relocated was largely destroyed by ARVN (South Vietnamese) air and artillery bombardment. The destruction was attributed to "Viet Cong terrorists." However, the truth was revealed by Quaker service workers in the area, in testimony by Martin Teitel at the hearings before the Subcommittee to Investigate Problems Connected with Refugees and Escapees in May 1972. In June that year, Teitel's account of the event appeared in the New York Times.

Cover-up

Initial investigations of the My Lai incident were undertaken by the 11^th Light Infantry Brigade's Commanding Officer, Colonel Oran Henderson, under orders from Americal's Assistant Commanding Officer, Brigadier General Young. Henderson interviewed several soldiers involved in the incident, then issued a written report in late April claiming that approximately 22 civilians were inadvertently killed during the military operation in My Lai. The army at this time was still describing the event as a military victory resulting in the deaths of 128 enemies.

Six months later, a 21-year-old soldier of the 11^th Light Infantry named Tom Glen wrote a letter accusing the Americal Division (and other entire units of the U.S. military, not just individuals) of routine brutality against Vietnamese civilians; the letter was detailed, its allegations horrifying, and its contents echoed complaints received from other soldiers. Colin Powell, then a young US Army Major, was charged with investigating the letter, which did not specifically reference My Lai (Glen had no knowledge of the events there). Powell wrote: "In direct refutation of this portrayal is the fact that relations between American soldiers and the Vietnamese people are excellent." Later, Powell's refutation would be called an act of "white-washing" the news of My Lai, and questions would continue to remain undisclosed to the public. On May 4, 2004, Powell, then United States Secretary of State, said to Larry King, "I mean, I was in a unit that was responsible for My Lai. I got there after My Lai happened. So, in war, these sorts of horrible things happen every now and again, but they are still to be deplored."

The carnage at My Lai might have gone unknown to history if not for another soldier, Ron Ridenhour, who, independent of Glen, sent a letter to President Nixon, the Pentagon, the State Department, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and numerous members of Congress. The copies of this letter were sent in March 1969, a full year after the event. Most recipients of Ridenhour's letter ignored it, with the notable exception of Rep. Morris Udall. Ridenhour learned about the events at My Lai secondhand, by talking to members of Charlie Company while he was still enlisted.

Eventually, Lt. Calley was charged with several counts of premeditated murder in September 1969, and 25 other officers and enlisted men were later charged with related crimes. It was another two months before the American public learned about the massacre and trials.

Independent investigative journalist Seymour Hersh, after extensive conversations with Lt. Calley, broke the My Lai story on November 12, 1969; on November 20, Time, Life and Newsweek magazines all covered the story, and CBS televised an interview with Paul Meadlo. The Cleveland Plain Dealer published explicit photographs of dead villagers killed at My Lai. As is evident from comments made in a 1969 telephone conversation between United States National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger and Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird, revealed recently by the National Security Archive, the photos of the war crime were too shocking for senior officials to stage an effective cover-up. Secretary of Defense Laird is heard to say, "There are so many kids just lying there; these pictures are authentic."

Courts martial

On March 17, 1970, the United States Army charged 14 officers with suppressing information related to the incident. Most of these charges were dropped.

U.S. Army Lt. William Calley was convicted in 1971 of premeditated murder in ordering the shootings and initially sentenced to life in prison; two days later, however, President Richard Nixon ordered him released from prison, pending appeal of his sentence. Calley served 3½ years of house arrest in his quarters at Fort Benning, Georgia, and was then ordered freed by Federal Judge J. Robert Elliot. Calley claimed he was following orders from his captain, Ernest Medina; Medina denied giving the orders and was acquitted at a separate trial. Most of the soldiers involved in the My Lai incident were no longer enlisted. Of the 26 men initially charged, Lt. Calley's was the only conviction. The entire episode inspired what is known today as a Medina standard.

Aftermath

The explosive news of the massacre fueled the outrage of the American peace movement, which demanded the withdrawal of American troops from Vietnam. It also led more potential draftees to file for conscientious objector status. Those who had always argued against the war felt vindicated; those on the fringes of the movement became more vocal.

The more pivotal shift, however, was in the attitude of the general public toward the war. People who previously had not been interested in the peace/war debates began to analyze the issue more closely. The horrific stories of other soldiers began to be taken more seriously, and other abuses came to light.

Some military observers concluded that My Lai showed the need for more and better volunteers to provide stronger leadership among the troops. As the Vietnam combat dragged on, the number of well-educated and experienced career soldiers on the front lines dropped sharply as casualties and combat rotation took their toll. These observers claimed the absence of the many bright young men who did not participate in the draft due to college attendance or homeland service caused the talent pool for new officers to become very shallow.PBS/The American Experience. The My Lai Massacre Many new officers were barely into their 20s, often raw and without experience. They pointed to Calley, a young, unemployed college dropout, as an example of the raw and inexperienced being rushed through officer training.

Those involved

1st Platoon

*William Calley - Lieutenant who led C-Company, the only person convicted
*David Mitchell - Sergeant
*Ronald L. Haeberle - Company Photographer
*Charles Sledge - Radio Operator - testified he saw Calley deliberately kill a young child
*Paul Meadlo - Private First Class - testified he was afraid of being shot if he didn't participate
*Dennis Conti - Private First Class - stated he was originally lost and had to find his company
*James Dursi - Private First Class
*Allen Boyce - Private First Class
*Ronald Grzesik - Private First Class
*Robert Maples - Private First Class, stated to have refused to participate
*Varnado Simpson - Private First Class, committed suicide citing guilt over My Lai
*Harry Stanley - claimed to have refused to participate
*Gary David Roschevitz - unknown
*Elmer Haywood - unknown
*William Lloyd - unknown
*Lenny Lagunuy - unknown
*Sidney Kye - unknown
*Robert Bergthold - unknown
*Robert Mauro - unknown
*Robert Lee - unknown
*Isaiah Cowan - unknown
*Bruce Cox - unknown
*Harry Stanley - unknown
*Charles Hall - unknown
*Roy Wood - unknown
*Herbert Carter - unknown
*Gregory Olsen - unknown
*Daniel Simone - unknown

N.B. "Charlie Company" - the squads deployed in My Lai 4 on the day of the massacre - was overseen by Capt. Ernest Medina. According to the sworn eyewitness testimony of many "Charlie Company" soldiers, Cpt. Medina did not merely exhort his subordinate troops to commit wholesale and indiscriminate slaughter of the civilian inhabitants of My Lai 4 but was directly responsible for an unspecified number of civilian deaths himself. It also should be noted the platoon led by Calley was one of at least four that swept My Lai 4 on March 16 1968. Other platoons are therefore implicated in the massacre at My Lai even if Calley's bears the greatest burden of criminality. The above list then supplies only a partial catalogue of the principal alleged perpetrators. (See Seymour Hersh's journalistic account titled "My Lai 4")

Intervention

*Hugh Thompson, Jr. - Warrant Officer
*Lawrence Colburn - Helicopter Gunner
*Glenn Andreotta - Helicopter Crew Chief
*Dan Millians - Medevac Pilot
*Brian Livingstone - Medevac Pilot
*Reginald Forsythe - Combat Photographer

References

* Vietnamese Wikipedia; Tháº£m sÃ¡t SÆ¡n Má»¹, cited 7 June 2006. (Vietnamese Wikipedia article on the subject)
* Americal Division Veterans Association; Americal Locations in Vietnam, cited 3 June 2006.
* Anderson, David L. (1998) Facing My Lai: Moving Beyond the Massacre University Press of Kansas: Lawrence, Kansas â€" extensive interviews with trial participants and soldiers.
* Becker, Elizabeth. Kissinger Tapes Describe Crises, War and Stark Photos of Abuse., The New York Times, May 27 2004 (mirrored)
* Belknap, Michal R. (2002) The Vietnam War on Trial: The My Lai Massacre and the Court-Martial of Lieutenant Calley. University Press of Kansas. ISBN 0700612114.
* Bilton, Michael and Sim, Kevin. (1992) Four Hours in My Lai New York: Viking, 1992. â€" a recent re-examination, draws extensively on interviews with participants and contains detailed bibliographic references.
* Chomsky, Noam. After Pinkville, Bertrand Russell War Crimes Tribunal on Vietnam, 1971
* Chomsky, Noam and Edward S. Herman. Counter-Revolutionary Violence: Bloodbaths in Fact & Propaganda, 1973 and 2004
* Colburn, Lawrence and Paula Brock. The Choices Made â€" Lessons from My Lai on Drawing the Line, Seattle Times, March 10 2002
* Department of the Army. Report of the Department of the Army Review of the Preliminary Investigations into the My Lai Incident (The Peers Report), Volumes I-III (1970).
* Gershen, Martin. (1971) Destroy or Die: The True Story of My Lai New York: Arlington House.
* Goldstein, Joseph. (1976) The My Lai Massacre and its Cover-Up New York: Free Press.
* Hammer, Richard. (1971) The Court-Martial of Lt. Calley New York: Coward.
* Hersh, Seymour M. (1972). Cover-up: the Army's secret investigation of the massacre at My Lai 4. Random House. ISBN 0394474600.
* Hersh, Seymour M. (1970). My Lai 4: A Report on the Massacre and Its Aftermath. Random House. ISBN 0394437373.
* Hersh, Seymour M. The original, Pulitzer-Prize winning articles about the My Lai massacre for the St. Louis Post Dispatch, 13 November, 20 November and 25 November 1969.
* My Lai and Why It Matters: Review of Ron Ridenhour's Videotaped Lecture
* O'Brien, Tim. (1994) In the Lake of the Woods, McClelland & Stewart. ISBN 1895246318 â€" a haunting work of historical fiction about a Vietnam Vet who can't escape his own experience of My Lai.
* Olson, James S. and Roberts, Randy (eds.) (1998) My Lai: A Brief History with Documents, Palgrave MacMillan. ISBN 0312177674
* 161st Assault Helicopter Company. Unit History of the 161st Assault Helicopter Company (who intervened in the massacre)
* Peers, William. (1979) The My Lai Inquiry New York: Norton.
* Raimondo, Maj. Tony, JA. The My Lai Massacre: A Case Study, Human Rights Program, School of the Americas, Fort Benning, Georgia
* Sack, John. (1971) Lieutenant Calley: His Own Story New York: Viking.
* University of Missouri-Kansas City Law School. The My Lai Courts-Martial, 1970
* Teitel, Martin. Again, the Suffering of Mylai, article preview, New York Times, 7 June 1972, pg. 45.
* Texas Tech University. The Vietnam Oral History Project
* The Toledo Blade; Special Report: Tiger Force (the scalping party) atrocities in My Lai,

My Lai Massacre: Encyclopedia BETA

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