& # 8217 ; s Role In Vietnam Essay, Research Paper
On March 15, 1965, big cargos of military personnels arrived in South Vietnam. These military personnels occupied the state until 1973. During this clip, many work forces fought and died for the United States of America. The legion nurses that operated on 1000s of soldiers are frequently forgotten. The soldiers that the nurses operated on were normally blown apart and crippled for life. The nurses worked diligently to salvage these work forces. Even by working difficult to salvage these work forces they were non recognized as ground forces forces by the populace. The Vietnamese citizens and even the male American soldiers looked down upon the nurses. The United States did non admit the nurses that served in the Vietnam War until 1993. The nurses that served in the Vietnam War, although normally unrecognised, served every bit courageously as their soldier opposite numbers, and some suffered much of the same mental and physical hurt.
The nurses were non considered existent ground forces personal. They were bothered by the Vietnamese street pedlars. In one incident, as a nurse was walking home, two male childs asked for money. The nurses said & # 8220 ; no & # 8221 ; , as was ground forces policy, and kept on walking. The male childs so smeared black shoe gloss on her frock, legs, and places ( Smith 59 ) . These same male childs would non even see hassling a male officer, for fright of being put in prison or even killed. Acts such as these were common because he nurses were non able to support themselves. The nurses were sometimes treated sometimes treated likewise by male soldiers. One illustration took topographic point when a nurse was walking to the infirmary for her
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displacement. & # 8220 ; My uniform was a gag, thanks to the driver who though that it would be amusing to sprinkle me with his landrover & # 8221 ; ( Smith 161 ) . The soldiers would seldom make this to the other work forces in the armed forces for fright of being punished. The work forces did non worry about being punished when making things to the nurses, cognizing that they would ne’er endure any effects. The attitudes of the work forces were wholly different when the adult females went into a saloon. The soldiers and generals would ask for the nurses to parties and handle them nice ; but, their exclusive intent would be to kip with them ( Marshall 252 ) . The officers should hold treated the nurses with regard. The most terrible case in which the male officers showed that they did non acknowledge the nurse as ground forces forces was in two instances in which nurses were murdered ( Marshall 23 ) . This should non hold been tolerated. The two soldiers did non even receive terrible reverberations, one was court-marshaled and the other had nil had nil happen to him. If these soldiers murdered male soldiers they would hold been court-marshaled and perchance received the decease punishment. Aside from the Vietnamese people and the ground forces forces, the ground forces as a whole did non see the nurses of import. The Vietcong pounded the airbase with howitzers most of the dark, and the security at the infirmary was non even tightened ( Smith 171 ) . This is another instance in which the nurses were non considered of import plenty to protect. Besides, there were about no feminine merchandises for adult females to purchase at the Post Exchange, a military bases section shop ( Marshall 42 ) . The male officers could purchase anything from playing cards to apparels, but females had to make with what they had. The nurses were besides absent from absent signifier Hollywood screen. Womans were ne’er shown in films
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because infirmaries were non considered & # 8220 ; action packed & # 8221 ; enough for shooting. This farther made Vietnam seem like a topographic point were merely work forces served. It would stay that manner for the following 19 old ages after the war. The adult females who served went unnoticed until November of 1993. A lady by the name of Diane Evans fought for many old ages to obtain a memorial for adult females at the Vietnam War Memorial. One response to a missive that she wrote was & # 8220 ; the wall contains the names of eight service adult females who were killed in the struggle, so no extra memorial was needed & # 8221 ; ( Evans 90 ) . Finally, after a difficult fought conflict, a memorial was created for the suckled that were in Vietnam. Although the nurses were given small recognition fir salvaging many lives they still served courageously in any crisis.
The courage of the nurses is undisputed. The nurses would keep a adult male & # 8217 ; s manus as he died or smiling at a adult male who was cut beyond acknowledgment. These nurses would stand by a soldier and state him that he would be all right, cognizing that he would ne’er walk once more ( Smith 173 ) . This does demo courage because the nurses ne’er gave into the emphasis of their occupation. Or in another instance, a nurse was cutting through a patch and lifted it off the patient & # 8217 ; s face merely to detect that his orb came out with it. She still worked on the solider and tried to quiet his cryings ( Smith 173 ) . There were soldiers that ran at the first marks of conflict or vomited at the sight of blood, yet these nurses pushed on to the following patient no affair how mutilated he was. There was another clip when a nurse said, & # 8220 ; A casualty was waiting to decease and I must still care for him & # 8221 ; ( Van Devanter 173 ) . The nurses besides has to get down their pride and larn many new life-saving techniques. The nurses were bold plenty to acknowledge to non cognizing everything. The nurses besides had to work without sufficient equipment to mend an injured soldier ( soldier 118 ) . The nurses besides
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had to work through weariness, irrespective of how tired they were. Many times they worked 22 hr displacements, invariably seeing blood and lesions ( Evans 90 ) . There should non be any recognition taken off from the soldiers contending the war because they were definitel
Y brave, but the nurses did non hold any arms to support themselves against the enemy. The nurses had to maintain working on patients even when projectiles were detonating around them. The adult females may non hold lost their lives during conflict on the forepart lines, but they gave everything they had to each soldier they cared for. The nurses saw every wounded soldier, whereas the work forces on the forepart lines did non hold to see everything. One soldier that was wounded said “I could ne’er make this occupation because I must look everyone in the Face” ( Evans 91 ) . Along with the nurses bravery they endured physical and emotional hurt.
The nurses paid a monetary value for functioning in the infirmaries. Many nurses felt that they were non making a good occupation. One nurse said, & # 8220 ; The nurses were piecing up the work forces and directing them back to the slaughter & # 8221 ; ( Evans 91 ) . The nurses felt as though they were non assisting anyone. Another nurse said, & # 8220 ; The full infirmary staff worked every bit difficult as we could to salvage this soldier and we did for awhile, but we subsequently received word that the adult male had died & # 8221 ; ( Evans 92 ) . These types of events were taking a toll on the heads of the nurses. The nurses besides began to oppugn themselves, ever inquiring if another nurse could hold done a better occupation in salvaging a individual & # 8217 ; s life. One nurse was so overwhelmed by work that she forgot to alter IV & # 8217 ; s in a patient. She by chance killed him on her first twenty-four hours ( Evans 95 ) . The nurses besides began to experience as though they would ne’er go forth Vietnam. They thought this because they watched their friends who had been discharged
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in public and drive into a ditch merely to detect that the sound passing by was merely a constabulary auto ( Van Devanter 297 ) . There were some nurses that searched for consolation among their households merely to happen out that they did non believe the narratives. One female parent recalled stating her girl that she was & # 8220 ; doing this up for attending & # 8221 ; ( Smith 327 ) . Some nurses enrolled in clinics old ages after the war so that they could get by with long-suppressed emotions ( Evans 90 ) . These clinics helped most nurses and now the nurses on occasion have bad dreams, but those are few and far between ( Smith 352 ) . After all of this, there were still a few nurses who came out alright. They began to populate with to populate with what they saw, and used the experiences to assist other veterans who are still upset about the war ( Marshall 252 ) .
The nurses who went to Vietnam Grew up fast and their lives were changed everlastingly. They all suffered much hurting emotionally and physically. The nurses were given small recognition for their engagement in Vietnam, but now they will populate on forever in the Women & # 8217 ; s Vietnam War Memorial.
Plants Cited
Devanter, Lynda Van. Home Before Morning, The Story of an Army Nurse in Vietnam.
New York: Beaufort Books, Inc. , 1983.
Evans, Diane. & # 8220 ; They Besides Served & # 8221 ; Peoples 31 May 1993 P90.
Marshall, Kathryn. In The Combat Zone, An Oral history of American Women in
Vietnam. Boston: Little, Brown, and Company, 1987.
Smith, Winnie. American Daughter Gone to War, On the Front Lines withan Army Nurse in Vietnam. New York: William, Morrow, and Company, Inc. , 1992.
Devanter, Lynda Van. Home Before Morning, The Story of an Army Nurse in Vietnam.
New York: Beaufort Books, Inc. , 1983.
Evans, Diane. & # 8220 ; They Besides Served & # 8221 ; Peoples 31 May 1993 P90.
Marshall, Kathryn. In The Combat Zone, An Oral history of American Women in
Vietnam. Boston: Little, Brown, and Company, 1987.
Smith, Winnie. American Daughter Gone to War, On the Front Lines withan Army Nurse in Vietnam. New York: William, Morrow, and Company, Inc. , 1992.
