IV 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 401 

Supporting the goals and ideals of ‘‘Vietnam Veterans Day’’. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 29, 2015 

Mr. PERRY submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 

Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Supporting the goals and ideals of ‘‘Vietnam Veterans Day’’. 

Whereas the Vietnam War was fought in the Republic of 

South Vietnam from 1961 to 1975, and involved North 

Vietnamese regular forces and Viet Cong guerrilla forces 

in armed conflict with the Armed Forces of the United 

States, allies of the United States, and the armed forces 

of the Republic of Vietnam; 

Whereas the Armed Forces of the United States became involved in Vietnam because the Government of the United 

States wanted to provide direct military support to the 

Government of South Vietnam to defend itself against 

the growing communist threat from North Vietnam; 

Whereas members of the Armed Forces of the United States 

began serving in an advisory role to the Government of 

the Republic of South Vietnam in 1950; 


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Whereas, as a result of the Gulf of Tonkin incidents on August 2 and 4, 1964, Congress overwhelmingly passed the 

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution (Public Law 88–408) on August 7, 1964, which provided the authority to the President of the United States to prosecute the war against 

North Vietnam; 

Whereas, in 1965, ground combat units of the Armed Forces 

of the United States arrived in Vietnam; 

Whereas, by September 1965, there were more than 129,000 

United States troops in Vietnam, and, by 1969, a peak 

of approximately 543,000 troops was reached; 

Whereas, on January 27, 1973, the Agreement Ending the 

War and Restoring Peace in Viet-Nam (commonly known 

as the ‘‘Paris Peace Accords’’) was signed by the United 

States, the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, the Republic 

of Vietnam, and the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam, which required 

the release of all United States prisoners of war held in 

North Vietnam and the withdrawal of the Armed Forces 

of the United States from South Vietnam; 

Whereas, on March 29, 1973, the Armed Forces of the 

United States completed the withdrawal of combat units 

and combat support units from South Vietnam; 

Whereas, on April 30, 1975, North Vietnamese regular forces 

captured Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, effectively 

placing South Vietnam under communist control; 

Whereas more than 58,000 members of the Armed Forces of 

the United States lost their lives in Vietnam and more 

than 300,000 members suffered injuries; 

Whereas, in 1982, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was dedicated in the District of Columbia to commemorate those 


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members of the Armed Forces of the United States who 

died or were declared missing in action in Vietnam; 

Whereas the Vietnam War was an extremely divisive issue 

among the people of the United States and a conflict that 

caused a generation of veterans to wait too long for the 

United States public to acknowledge and honor the efforts and services of such veterans; 

Whereas members of the Armed Forces of the United States 

who served bravely and faithfully for the United States 

during the Vietnam War were often wrongly criticized for 

the policy decisions made by four Presidential administrations of the United States; and 

Whereas designating March 29 as ‘‘Vietnam Veterans Day’’ 

would be an appropriate way to honor those members of 

the United States Armed Forces who served in South 

Vietnam and throughout Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) honors and recognizes the contributions of 

3 veterans who served in the Armed Forces of the 

4 United States in Vietnam; 

5 (2) encourages States and local governments to 

6 designate a ‘‘Vietnam Veterans Day’’; and 

7 (3) encourages the people of the United States 

8 to observe Vietnam Veterans Day with appropriate 

9 ceremonies and activities that— 


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1 (A) provide the appreciation veterans of 

2 the Vietnam War deserve, but did not receive 

3 upon returning home from the war; 

4 (B) demonstrate the resolve that never 

5 again shall the people of the United States dis6 regard or denigrate a generation of veterans; 

7 (C) promote awareness of the faithful serv8 ice and contributions of the veterans of the 

9 Vietnam War during military service as well as 

10 to the communities of the veterans since return11 ing home; 

12 (D) promote awareness of the importance 

13 of entire communities empowering veterans and 

14 the families of veterans in helping the veterans 

15 readjust to civilian life after military service; 

16 and 

17 (E) promote opportunities for veterans of 

18 the Vietnam War to assist younger veterans re19 turning from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq 

20 in rehabilitation from wounds, both seen and 

21 unseen, and to support the reintegration of 

22 younger veterans into civilian life. 

Æ 


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