
Podcast episode about the Vietnam war with Noam Chomsky, and Mrs Van, a member of the Vietnamese Women’s Union. We look at the geopolitics of the conflict and its human cost.
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E14: The Vietnam war with Noam Chomsky – Working Class History
A comprehensive collection of Chomsky’s writings and speeches on the former Yugoslavia is available in our online store. We also have some merchandise commemorating the anti-war movement amongst the troops:


More information
- This is a short history of Vietnam from 1945-57 by Howard Zinn: libcom.org/history/articles/vietnam-1945-57
- This is Zinn’s short account of US involvement in the war: libcom.org/history/articles/vietnam-war
- The Vietnam War documentary series by Ken Burns can be viewed here: amzn.to/2Ekx6Iv
- This is our podcast episode about the strike wave in the US during the war
- This is our double episode about the GI resistance to the war
- This is our podcast miniseries about the Columbia Eagle mutiny of two anti-war sailors who hijacked their ship carrying napalm for US forces
Acknowledgements
– Thanks to Vivian Rothstein for providing the recording of Mrs Van’s testimony.
– The music in this episode was also from the recording by Vivian Rothstein taken of Mrs Van and the Vietnamese Women’s Union from 1967.
– This episode was edited by Emma Courtland (www.emmacourtland.com/) and Stephanie Hydal (stephaniehydal.com/portfolio)
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More about Trần Thị Lý, after her hospitalization she joined the militia, participated heroically in a lot of battles against US air forces, and became highly regarded in VN as a military director and politician.
https://www-vwu-vn.translate.goog/tin-chi-tiet/-/chi-tiet/hai-nu-anh-hung-luc-luong-vu-trang-nhan-dan-mang-ten-tran-thi-ly-26626-4529.html?_x_tr_sch=http&_x_tr_sl=vi&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp
Mrs Van said Trần Thị Lý, the activist and torture victim, would never be able to find love and get married. But actually, “While convalescing in Hanoi, Tran Thi Ly fell in love with a fellow wounded soldier. The couple had a simple wedding and did not register their marriage until 1978. Due to a legacy of torture in the past, she lost the ability to bear children, so the two adopted a daughter.”
https://vi-m-wikipedia-org.translate.goog/wiki/Tr%E1%BA%A7n_Th%E1%BB%8B_L%C3%BD?_x_tr_sl=vi&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp