Spitting on the soldiers - Fact or fiction

I was speaking to a friend's father who served in Vietnam in 1966-67 and he got on a roll about "hippies spitting on soldiers".

At first, I thought about, "What an awful thing for somebody to do". Then I thought, "That doesn't sound right, as hippies seemed upset that our good soldiers were forced into the situation at their expenses"

Then I asked him, "Did you see it happen? Like, the hippies spitting on soliders?"

He goes, "Oh yeah. Lots of times"

"Where?", I asked.

"Oh, here and there", he replied.

"Yes, but something that awful sort of makes one remember where they are when they saw such a dick head move", I replied.

"I just know!", he replied, angrily, clearly detecting I was prodding as it sounded like one of those tales that last forever and once it's repeated enough, it becomes gospel.

So, I looked up some information on it. Couldn't find anything other than a writer who was part of a protest in San Fransisco said that a couple guys there spit on two soldiers and it turned out they were provocateurs trying to discredit the anti-war movement.

Other than that, the information pointed toward folklore, used by many who were upset where they feel "we lost" in Vietnam. Also served as a side ingredient to the run-up to the Iraq invasion to juxtapose, "If you question the invasion, then you hate the soldiers".

In short, the provocateurs, if there were any according to the protester in San Fransisco, had completed the job.

 

Yea I remember my grandfather telling me that soldiers were spit on when they came back from Vietnam. He also walked two miles, up hill, both ways to school in the snow, in the middle of July.

 

I hate to be listed in the same age group with your grandfathers, but I was stationed in SF (Treasure Island) for a period during the Viet Nam war (1969), and yes the people treated us really bad. It was not just in CA, I was also in VA for a few weeks prior to shipping out and found them to be just as bad as CA. I would not say it was actually hippies who were so hateful as it was a much larger segment of the population. I found it bad enough where I still to this day don’t like to go to CA. Some memories just don’t go away.

 

This was heavily debated in a previous thread http://www.hipforums.com/newforums/showthread.php?t=86798&highlight=Vietnam&f=10

Yes it happened, but not as often as the media portrayed it. When it did happen it was sensationalized. The majority of us in the anti-war movement protested the government and not the soldiers, but in any movement there are always those who go too far.

 

I've heard members here talking about it happening to them.

 

It did happen often during the period I was there, and I never saw any press. The poster on the above post by “newo” reflects the attitude many of them had. I was offended enough where I still remember it 40 years later.

 

Then, that is an absolute shame and whoever engaged in those sorts of antics are total bastards. For Christ sake, the soldiers were just doing their jobs. It's either that or Big Chicken Dinner or worse.

Never mind. What's done can't be undone. Just seems really dumb for people to do that.

 

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the spiting is in a different form now.. more like a huge slap in the face..