Vietnam War Protests: Analysis of a Primary Source

Sourcing

What

This photo is a protest against the Vietnam War at Louisiana State University. Various protests were organized across the country by students who were against the Vietnam War. Protests on college campuses broke out more following the deaths of four Kent State University students by the Ohio National Guard.

When

The Louisiana State University digital library says this photo was taken in approximately 1964-1970, because we know it follows the Kent State shooting.

Where

Who

This photo is from the Louisiana State Digital Library.

Contextualization

• 48,700 American Soldiers
  • The Vietnam War was a conflict between North and South Vietnam. The US entered the war to prevent Northern Vietnam communist takeover of South Vietnam. When this photo was taken, 48,700 soldiers were dead. Over 58,000 US Soldiers died the the Vietnam War.
• 4 American Students
  • Many Americans opposed the war because of moral beliefs and violence. Due to a fear of being drafted, college age students led the opposition. Protests broke out across the country, especially on college campuses. The protest at Kent State began because students opposed Nixon’s invasion of Cambodia. After a while, conflicts between students and police broke out. The following day, the Ohio governor sent the Ohio National Guard to stop the protests. The Ohio National Guard opened fire on students, killing four of them.
• Luana Perea
  • Based on the information provided by the source, Luana Perea is a Louisiana State student. In this picture it looks like she’s leading a protest opposing the Vietnam War.

Corroboration

There are several resources historians can reference to clearly understand what is happening in this image. Because there is not much information given about Luana Perea, other than her name, historians can find other sources from this protest from Louisiana State University to see if they could find more about her. Additionally, historians can look for background information on the Vietnam War and counter culture movements. Historians can also look for information on the shooting from Kent State. Using sources like these, historians can contextualize and confirm the historical thinking regarding the image.

Additional Sources

Historians can use the following resources to corroborate the moment in this image

• Student Government Association Records, RG #A5500, Louisiana State University Archives, LSU Libraries, Baton Rouge, LA.
• Bowers, Mike, et al. “Resolution #10 Involvement in Cambodia.” 8 May 1970.
  • This document was created by the Louisiana State University student government. This outlines their reasoning for protesting Nixon’s invasion of Cambodia.
• Hunter, Patrick J. “Resolution #13 Kent State University Deaths,” May 11, 1970.
  • This document was also a resolution written by the Louisiana State University  student government. This resolutions states their support for Kent State following the shooting.