The Fire Sparked by the Buddhist Crisis - 3351 Words

The Fire Sparked by the Buddhist Crisis On June 11, 1963, Malcolm Browne took a photograph. His image would become the symbol for a period in the Vietnam conflict known as the Buddhist Crisis. Browne’s photo was of a monk sitting in the middle of the street, moments after dousing himself in fuel and lighting a match. The monk’s name was Thich Quang Duc, and his suicide would have repercussions not just in Vietnam but overseas in the United States as well. His action stimulated major growth in the Buddhist Crisis, inspiring leaders of the movement to increase militant actions against President Ngo Dinh Diem’s regime. Duc’s self-immolation was symbolic of something much larger than a single political act, representing a movement that would completely alter United States policy in Vietnam and eventually lead to the assassination of President Diem. Revered reporter David Halberstam wrote of Thich Quang Duc’s self-immolation in his book The Making of a Quagmire of, †¦a young Buddhist priest with a microphone saying calmly over and over again in Vietnamese and English, A Buddhist priest burns himself to death. A Buddhist priest becomes a martyr.† The fact that the priest was speaking in English showed that he wanted American reporters to get the story, he wanted Americans to understand what was occurring. The photograph captured a dramatic moment in time, but shared only a glimpse of the magnitude with which the Buddhist Crisis would affect the future of the VietnamShow MoreRelatedThe Era Of The Cold War Essay2000 Words   |  8 Pagesthe United States having a hand in supporting the government which held their ideals. John f. Kennedy had early involvement in the Vietnam war, supporting an unpopular government whose policy was the persecution Buddhists and many followers. Images of Buddhist monks setting themselves on fire turned public opinion against John f. Kennedy to leading support for this unpopular governm ent was withdrawn (Schaller 1095-1097). As a consequence of supporting and funding these questionable groups, AmericanRead More The Impact of Revolutions on the Cold War Essay2473 Words   |  10 Pagesof her Fire in the Lake that Ngo was very unpopular among the people he ruled over. Ngo faced opposition primarily from the NLF, which was an organization (which at first included communists and anti-communists) dedicated to the liberation of Vietnam from the domination of foreign government and the general amelioration of the conditions of the Vietnamese. The United States, however, condemned the NLF as a communist organization. Ngo came to be unaccepted by all after the Buddhist Crisis of 1963Read MoreEssay on Vietnam6962 Words   |  28 PagesII sparked violent confrontations with the French, culminating in the French military defeat at Dien Bien Phu in 1954. The Geneva Accords of 1954 temporarily divided Vietnam into two zones (the Communist north and the anti-Communist, US-supported south). Political and ideological opposition quickly turned to armed struggle, prompting the USA and other countries to commit combat troops in 1965. The Paris Peace Agreements, signed in 1973, provided an immediate cease-fire andRead MoreThe War Of The Vietnam War3899 Words   |  16 Pagesthe installment of military advisors in Vietnam, â€Å"Seeger composed ‘The Big Muddy’, a song about a dangerous river crossing during the Second World War, but one obviously aimed at the Johnson administration’s increasing involvement.† The song also sparked anger from television companies. An example of this was when Seeger was â€Å"banned†¦from performing his anti-war allegory, the song’s reference to the ‘big fool’ (i.e. Lyndon Johnson) was disrespectful.† Between 1963 and 1964, there was a significant