IA 
119TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. J. RES. 19 
To acknowledge the courage and sacrifice of veterans of the Vietnam war 
and formally apologize for the treatment they received upon returning home. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 15, 2025 
Mr. CRENSHAW (for himself, Mr. ZINKE, Mr. FITZPATRICK, Mr. VALADAO, 
Mrs. CAMMACK, Mr. NEWHOUSE, Mr. MOOLENAAR, Mr. CISCOMANI, Ms. 
DE LA CRUZ, Mr. CAREY, and Mr. BABIN) submitted the following joint 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, and 
in addition to the Committee on Education and Workforce, for a period 
to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consider-
ation of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
concerned 
JOINT RESOLUTION 
To acknowledge the courage and sacrifice of veterans of 
the Vietnam war and formally apologize for the treat-
ment 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; 
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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’’) was signed, which 
required the release of all prisoners of war of the United 
States held in North Vietnam and the withdrawal of all 
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 forces cap-
tured 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 herbi-
cides 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 oppo-
sition to normal political discourse, but engaged in violent 
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protests, including the targeting of Reserve Officers’ 
Training Corps facilities, recruiting stations, and the 
bombing of the Army Math Research Center at the Uni-
versity 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, 2025, which marks the 52d anniversary of the with-
drawal of combat troops from Vietnam: Now, therefore, 
be it 
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives
of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
That the United States, acting through Congress— 
(1) recognizes the extraordinary sacrifice of vet-
erans of the Vietnam war and commends them for 
their unwavering and courageous sacrifice to our 
Nation; 
(2) urges the President of the United States to 
formally acknowledge the widespread mistreatment 
of veterans of the Vietnam war as part of the ongo-
ing Vietnam War Commemoration; 
(3) on behalf of the American people, issues the 
long-overdue formal apology to veterans of the Viet-
nam war and their families for the mistreatment 
they endured during and after the war; and 
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(4) expresses urgent support for increased edu-
cation in our Nation’s schools to better reflect the 
courage and sacrifice of veterans of the Vietnam war 
and the lack of support back home. 
Æ 
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