Recognizing the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War and honoring the United States veterans who served during the conflict.

Recognizing the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War and honoring the United States veterans who served during the conflict.

Whereas, between October 1955 and May 7, 1975, the Armed Forces of the United States supported the cause of freedom in South Vietnam, beginning with the commencement of the Military Assistance Advisory Group, Vietnam;

Whereas, on January 12, 1962, the United States carried out its first combat mission in Vietnam, in support of the Republic of Vietnam against the communist forces of North Vietnam and the Viet Cong;

Whereas, in 1965, ground combat units of the Armed Forces of the United States arrived in the Republic of Vietnam to join approximately 23,000 personnel of the Armed Forces who were already present there;

Whereas, by 1969, the number of such troops reached a peak of approximately 549,500, including members of the Armed Forces in the region who were supporting the combat operations;

Whereas more than 10,000,000 members of the Armed Forces of the United States served worldwide during the Vietnam War era;

Whereas the members of the Armed Forces of the United States stationed in Vietnam included approximately 10,000 women, who served as nurses, physicians, air traffic controllers, in military intelligence, in administrative roles, and in many other capacities;

Whereas 58,281 members of the Armed Forces of the United States lost their lives in the Vietnam War, more than 300,000 were wounded in Vietnam, and 771 endured the hardships of being prisoners of war, with 113 dying while in internment;

Whereas 1,545 members of the Armed Forces of the United States who served in Vietnam remain missing and unaccounted for, and the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) continues its diligent efforts to locate, identify, and repatriate their remains, providing closure to families and honoring the commitment to leave no one behind;

Whereas significant battles, including the Tet Offensive (1968), the Battle of Hue (1968), the Battle of Khe Sanh (1968), the Easter Offensive (1972), and the Battle of Hamburger Hill (1969), exemplify the courage and commitment to duty of members of the Armed Forces of the United States;

Whereas, throughout the Vietnam War, indigenous forces such as the Hmong, Montagnard, and Lao guerrillas provided invaluable support to the Armed Forces of the United States, serving as scouts, fighters, and intelligence operatives, often at great personal risk to themselves and their families, and many of those allies and their families have since sought refuge in the United States;

Whereas, throughout much of the war, American Red Cross volunteers, including 627 young women who were part of the organization’s Supplemental Recreation Activities Overseas (SRAO) program, known affectionately as the “Donut Dollies,” volunteered to be sent to the front lines to support members of the Armed Forces of the United States directly engaged with the enemy, sharing with military personnel the hardships, privation, and dangers of life in a war zone;

Whereas the Donut Dollies, building on the legacies of the American Red Cross volunteers who provided moral support to members of the Armed Forces of the United States during World War II and the Korean War, traveled an average of 27,000 miles every month by jeep, truck, airplane, and helicopter to provide recreation programs for members of the Armed Forces at 28 SRAO unit locations throughout Vietnam;

Whereas, on January 27, 1973, the Paris Peace Accords were signed, officially ending hostilities between the United States and North Vietnam, leading to the withdrawal of United States combat forces and the increased return of American prisoners of war to the United States;

Whereas, from February 12, 1973, to March 29, 1973, Operation Homecoming transported 591 American military and civilian prisoners home to the United States;

Whereas, on April 30, 1975, the fall of Saigon marked the final chapter of the involvement of the United States in the Vietnam War, culminating in the dramatic and heroic evacuation of United States personnel and thousands of South Vietnamese allies, a moment forever etched in history as a testament to the commitment of the United States to those who stood alongside its forces;

Whereas, in the years following the war, hundreds of thousands of refugees from Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos fled persecution and hardship under communist rule in search of freedom and safety, with many finding new homes and opportunities in the United States, enriching the Nation with their resilience and contributions to their new communities;

Whereas many returning Vietnam veterans faced mistreatment, discrimination, and a lack of recognition and appreciation for their service;

Whereas members of the Armed Forces who served bravely and faithfully for the United States during the Vietnam War were repeatedly targeted with criticism and disparagement as the result of decisions that were beyond their control;

Whereas Vietnam Veterans of America, the only congressionally chartered national organization exclusively dedicated to Vietnam veterans and their families, was founded in 1978 by Vietnam veterans seeking recognition and advocacy for their unique needs, growing from modest beginnings into a respected national institution with more than 600 chapters worldwide, providing steadfast service, legal assistance, and legislative leadership to advance the welfare, rights, and dignity of Vietnam veterans and their communities;

Whereas many thousands of veterans of the Vietnam War were exposed to Agent Orange and other harmful herbicides during the course of their service, carrying home delayed wounds of toxic exposure such that Congress passed the Agent Orange Act of 1991 (Public Law 102–4), leading to the recognition of Agent Orange as a presumptive hazard and paving the way for benefits for affected veterans;

Whereas the Agent Orange Act of 1991, and research conducted pursuant to that law, yielded new presumptions of service connection related to herbicide exposure and provided a blueprint for Congress and the Department of Veterans Affairs to address military toxic exposures encountered by succeeding generations of veterans, culminating in the passage of the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act of 2022 (Public Law 117–168) (commonly known as the “PACT Act”);

Whereas the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC, completed in 1982, stands as a lasting tribute to those who lost their lives in the conflict, with its black granite walls inscribed with the names of the fallen, offering a place of reflection and remembrance for their loved ones and fellow citizens;

Whereas the Vietnam Women’s Memorial in Washington, DC, dedicated in 1993 as the first national memorial to female veterans, honors the heroic service and sacrifices made by the many women who served in Vietnam, often as medical personnel rendering the final care and comfort to their dying comrades;

Whereas the thousands of Gold Star families that remember loved ones lost continue to maintain the legacy of Vietnam veterans who answered the Nation’s call to defend freedom and made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty; and

Whereas The Wall That Heals, a traveling replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, and other community-based replica Walls across the country provide veterans and their families with opportunities to pay tribute and find solace: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved,