Dear Friends,

Thank you for visiting the website of the National Vietnam Veterans Committee. Because you are here, it is likely that you share my feelings toward America’s most misunderstood war. As a Naval veteran of Vietnam, I witnessed firsthand the heroism and sacrifices of our men and women in uniform. They, like the generation before them, served with honor, but were instead treated with contempt by many upon their return home.

Intelligent people can disagree on the necessity of America’s involvement in Vietnam. Some, like Stanley Karnow in his Pulitzer Prize winning history of Vietnam, believe that while America’s intentions were noble, Vietnam proved too complex to be a successful venture.

Others share the view of President Reagan, who in 1981 said that soldiers in Vietnam “who obeyed their country’s call and fought as bravely and well as any Americans (were) denied permission to win” by Washington politicians and bureaucrats.

Still others take a view somewhere in the middle, that mistakes were made on the ground, especially in General Westmoreland’s strategy of “search and destroy” missions in a war of attrition, but that the war was all-but-won once the focus was shifted toward emphasizing the control of territory in South Vietnam. It was when Congress eliminated all support for the South Vietnamese military that Vietnam fell to the Communist North, and led to the deaths of millions in Southeast Asia.

What cannot be questioned is the honor with which the vast majority of Americans who served in Vietnam discharged their duties. War is always hell, but the depictions of American soldiers engaging in widespread raping, torturing, and killing of Vietnamese civilians by some is disgusting, and false. These soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines rose to the challenge, served honorably and never lost an engagement, then returned home to live their lives. Of course, like soldiers throughout history, some were scarred by what they lived through, but for too long we have lived with the stereotype that the typical returning veteran from Vietnam was a drugged-out loser, who could not cope with life. These veterans, like those that came before them, should be treated as what they are: heroes.

For the past decade, I have served as the President of the World War II Veterans Committee, an educational foundation dedicated toward preserving the legacy of World War II history, and its veterans, and passing it on to succeeding generations. I have watched as the public’s interest in World War II history has grown immensely over the last 15 years. As the veterans of World War II have passed from the scene, it seems that Americans of all ages have rediscovered the importance of World War II, and of its veterans.

Now, it seems we are on the cusp of a renewed interest in the history of Vietnam. More and more books and documentaries are being produced on the subject, and the National Vietnam Veterans Committee strives to be a part of this effort to educate the public on the true legacy of Vietnam Veterans.

My own view of the war echoes that of journalist Fred Barnes: “It was a just cause and we had it won.”

The Vietnam War was not lost in Vietnam: it was lost in Washington, DC.

Despite this loss and the human tragedy that ensued for millions of people in Southeast Asia, the American presence in Vietnam held the line against communist expansion for long enough to permit many fragile regimes in the region to strengthen and resist the communist tide.

In his book, Vietnam: The Necessary War, Michael Lind makes the case that, “Vietnam was a battle in the seven-decade-long war against communism. It was, he writes, a battle that had to be fought and it was a war that we won."

Dr. Lewis Sorley, in his masterwork A Better War, states: ’There came a time when the war was won. The fighting wasn’t over, but the war was won. This achievement can probably be dated in late 1970, after the Cambodian incursion in the spring of that year. By then the South Vietnamese countryside had been widely pacified, so much so that the term “pacification” was no longer even used. ’

The Vietnam veterans, like the World War II Generation before them, created a legacy of honor, sacrifice, and heroism. It is a legacy that must be reclaimed for our generation and passed on to future generations.

Reclaiming, preserving, and passing on that legacy is the mission of the National Vietnam Veterans Committee.

I invite you to be an active partner with us in this important work.
Sincerely,

James C. Roberts
President

Planning is well underway for the American Veterans Center’s 11th Annual Conference, to be held in Washington, DC from November 6-8, 2008. Once again, some of America’s most distinguished veterans from World War II, Korea, and Vietnam through today will gather together to share the experiences that have made them legends.

The conference will feature three days of speaker panels, wreath laying ceremonies at the World War II, Korea, and Vietnam memorials, and the annual gala awards banquet, at which heroes from the Greatest Generation and the latest generation will be honored. The conference will also feature receptions saluting the recipients of America’s highest military award—the Medal of Honor, and our brave young service members who have been wounded while serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The conference schedule will be available in the coming weeks. To request a registration form or to receive more information, call
703-302-1012 ext. 203 or e-mail us at this address

To see last year's events, please download the 2007 conference program.

Our new magazine is available online in PDF format. Download a sample copy.
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1. Spring 2008
2. Winter 2007/2008