Vietnam – Fact or Fiction?
Recently I read some commentary that said poor, teenage draftees, mostly black, served as cannon fodder in the Vietnam War. Having researched this subject and previously written a blog dispelling eleven common Vietnam War myths, this allegation struct me as off- base propaganda to serve a political bias or agenda.
So, I checked out the facts* in hopes to set the record straight. Here are the stats from that war that took place over fifty years ago.
Vietnam War: Race and Ethnic Background:
- Caucasian – 88.4%
- Black- 10.6%
- Asian/Hispanic – 1%
Mortality:
- Caucasian-86.3%
- Black-12.5%
- Other races- 1.2%
Note: The death rate for Black soldiers was not disproportional to their 13.5% representation of military age population of that ethnic group at that time.
The overall mortality rate was higher among pilots and platoon leaders in all groups.
Economic Background:
- 76% of men sent to Vietnam came from middle/ working class backgrounds.
- 50% from middle income family/ 75% above poverty level.
- 23% had fathers with professional, managerial, or tech occupations.
Educational level:
In general, the most educated military at that time compared to prior wars.
- 79 % had a high school education.
- Most field officers had a college or university degree.
Age:
- 20% were under age 20
- Average age serving in Vietnam – 23.1 years old.
- Of those drafted, only 38% were sent to Vietnam.
Other Interesting Stats:
- Overall, the military force consisted mostly of volunteers (two-thirds.) It could be argued some volunteered to avoid being drafted into a riskier combat role.
- Roughly only one out of five served in a combat role in Vietnam
- Honorable Discharge- 97%
- Post-War Employment – Higher percentage of employment and earnings compared to those who did not serve.
Interested in facts? Read RECALL, my recently published historical narrative and other blogs posted on my website.
* References for this post from: http://www.usna63.org/tradition/history/SoberingVietnamVets.pdf
Thank you !
I think Hispanics are under counted on here , Maybe They were counted as white when then they enlisted , I served with a lot of Hispanics , at one time over half My unit was Hispanic
David- Hispanics were thought to be less than 1% of Vietnam troops, but that is unofficial since the DoD did not keep service and casualty records of this ethnic group. Some studies lumped them in with Caucasians since only 2% considered themselves black.