The Vietnam War was one of the most brutal modern conflicts since WWII. The world was appalled by the bloodshed and the very many atrocities carried out by all sides. Althoughgreat horrors occurred, so too did great moments of kindness. In the midst of the turmoil, damage, and fear, there were shining instances of help from military forces – and perhaps the most memorable is Operation Babylift. As the Vietnam War began to draw to a close in the spring of 1975 after nearly a decade of conflict. The United States knew that Southern Vietnam slipping from its grasp, because of the anti-war movement at home, that drove citizens to protest, to fight the draft, and to combat the government’s policies in every way possible. As the U.S. began to pull its troops out of South Vietnam, leaving the people and the nation to fend for themselves, , one question remained: what would happen to the children of Vietnam? The U.S. believed it had the answer with Operation Babylift. As the Army of North Vietnam rocked Saigon with artillery and endless attacks, and the city of Da Nag lay already destroyed, President Gerald Ford announced that the children of South Vietnam would be evacuated to safety. The plan was to remove infant orphans from the war-torn nation and carry them to safer locales where they could live free of fear – the U.S., Australia, France, Canada, and other countries agreed to welcome the Vietnamese children with open arms. Children came from every corner of South Vietnam.
↧