TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE COURAGE AND SACRIFICE OF VETERANS OF THE VIETNAM WAR AND FORMALLY APOLOGIZE FOR THE TREATMENT THEY RECEIVED UPON RETURNING HOME.

To acknowledge the courage and sacrifice of veterans of the Vietnam war and formally apologize for the treatment they received upon returning home. Whereas members of the Armed Forces of the United States began serving in an advisory role to the Government of South Vietnam in 1955; 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, on January 27, 1973, the Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Viet-Nam (commonly known as the Paris Peace Accords 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 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 the Vietnam war, and more than 300,000 members of the Armed Forces of the United States were wounded in Vietnam; 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 at the highest rate of any generation of veterans before; Whereas the Vietnam war was an extremely divisive issue back home in the United States, as a result of biased and shameful attacks from the media, academia, politicians, and many others; Whereas some opponents of the war did not limit their opposition to normal political discourse, but engaged in violent protests, including the targeting of Reserve Officers’ Training Corps facilities and recruiting stations and the bombing of the Army Mathematics Research Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison; Whereas members of the Armed Forces who served bravely and faithfully for the United States during the Vietnam war were repeatedly targeted with shameful attacks as the result of decisions that were beyond their control; and Whereas Vietnam Veterans Day will be observed on March 29, 2023, which marks the 50th anniversary of the withdrawal of combat troops from Vietnam: Now, therefore, be it 1. Resolution of apology to veterans of the Vietnam war The United States, acting through Congress— (1) recognizes the extraordinary sacrifice of veterans of the Vietnam war and commends them for their unwavering and courageous sacrifice to the United States; (2) urges the President to formally acknowledge the widespread mistreatment of veterans of the Vietnam war as part of the ongoing Vietnam War Commemoration; (3) on behalf of the people of the United States, issues the long overdue formal apology to veterans of the Vietnam war and their families for the mistreatment they endured during and after the war; and (4) expresses urgent support for increased education in the schools of the United States to better reflect the courage and sacrifice of veterans of the Vietnam war and the lack of support back home

Summary: This joint resolution recognizes the sacrifice of veterans of the Vietnam War and commends them for their sacrifice to the United States. The joint resolution also urges the President to formally acknowledge the widespread mistreatment of such veterans as part of the ongoing Vietnam War Commemoration and issue a formal apology to the veterans and their families. Additionally, the joint resolution expresses urgent support for increased education to better reflect the sacrifice and treatment of Vietnam veterans.