The impact of the Vietnam War on American culture, politics, and individuals is ongoing even today. I think you could easily make a claim that the war was a turning point for Americans as a people, and we are still processing its effects on the psyche, politics, and culture of the country—not to mention on the thousands of Vietnam War veterans, many of whom struggle to find meaning in their experience of the war.

Coming on the heels of a righteous and successful war effort during World War II, the Vietnam War could not have been more different. Young men, whether volunteer military or draftees, went abroad to fight in a kind of warfare they had not experienced before. The enemy was often unclear, the style of fighting was more guerilla battles than army-to-army conflicts, and the reasons for the war were fuzzy and unclear. In all, it made a less than compelling reason for many American GIs, who were reluctant to fight. Then, when they came home, these young men experienced the opposite of a joyful welcome. Many Vietnam War veterans are victims of PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), a condition that affects a person’s entire life.

Many American civilians also became disgusted with a perceived lack of honesty or transparency about the war. They felt deceived by the government. People no longer trusted that the government was truly looking out for their best interests—a legacy which continues to this day. The government now has to convince people of their goodwill, rather than it being assumed.

On the other hand, during this war, many Americans, especially youth, truly mobilized for a shared purpose. There were marches and protests in the streets against either the war or the government itself. This tradition, too, continues to be a strategy used by civilian groups in the United States today. The act of gathering in protest really came to maturity during the Vietnam War years.

How did the debate over the Vietnam War affect the political culture of the United States?

The growing debate over the Vietnam War affected the politics of the US in short and long term ways. For example, because of his association with escalating a mismanaged and unpopular war, President Johnson decided not to run for reelection. This threw the 1968 presidential ticket wide open, leading to Robert Kennedy becoming the front runner for the nomination and resulting in his assassination. It also gave Nixon a wedge to promise both a rapid and honorable end to the war (a task that proved much more difficult than he anticipated) and law and order in the country. It was these dual promises that appealed to a population tired of both the war and of the unrest over it that helped propel Nixon to power.

The debate over the war, entered into by such trusted figures such as Walter Cronkite, who spoke out against it in January 1968, also started a process of long term political polarization in this country that has never been overcome. The US seemed to divide sharply into those who supported the war and those who did not, and this issue became associated with a host of other issues, including civil rights and women's rights, that offered two different political visions of what the country might look like going forward. Today, we see the effects of the polarization in the very strained relationship between the two major political parties.