Agent Orange

            Beginning in 1962, in the middle of the Vietnam War, the United States starting dropping an herbicide called Agent Orange in South Vietnam in an operation called Operation Ranch Hand.  The purpose of this poison was to destroy enemy crops so they would not have food and it would be harder for them to hide.  Approximately 6 million acres of South Vietnam were covered by this deadly toxin.  The United States had no clue that this plant killer would also turn into a human killer, killing and harming many of their own soldiers.

            Agent Orange contains one of the mostly deadly poisons: dioxin.  It is half 2,4 Dicholorophenoxyacetic acid and half 2,4,5 Tricholorophenoxyacetic acid.  It can enter the human body through contact with skin, inhalation, or most commonly ingestion through contaminated food or water.  It received its name from the barrels they were kept in, which had an orange stripe around it.

            Veterans of the Vietnam War have shown a higher chance of developing many diseases.  Doctors have determined that this is from exposure to Agent Orange in the war.  Some diseases that are common with veterans are: Al Amyloidosis, Chronic B-Cell Leukemia, Chloracne, Diabetes Mellitus Type 2, Hodgkin’s Disease, Ischemic Heart Disease, Multiple Myeloma, Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, Parkinson’s Disease, Peripheral Neuropathy (Acute and Subacute), Porphyria Cutanea Tarda, Prostate Cancer, Respiratory Cancers, and Soft Tissue Sarcomas.  There is also an increase rate of birth defects in children of Vietnam Veterans.  Most American soldiers have been able to receive some form of compensation but Vietnamese people who are suffering have received nothing.  Not only are they suffering from diseases, but they lost homes, crops, livestock, etc.

            In 1991, the Agent Orange Act was established.  The Act stated that all of the above diseases could be caused by exposure.  However, veterans had to prove that serving their country was how they got those diseases.  More recently since President Obama has been in office, a new law was passed so that veterans don’t have to prove that is how they got those illnesses.  The government assumes that any veteran that served in Vietnam from January 9, 1962 to May 7, 1975, then they were definitely exposed and can receive compensation.

            There are still many hot spots of Agent Orange in Vietnam today.  Hot spots are areas where it is still highly concentrated and deadly.  Many children in Vietnam are still being born with awful birth defects ranging from mental diseases to being born with deformities or without limbs.  Also, a lot of the land has been permanently ruined.  Tough grass that is useless to farmers has taken the place of what was once useful, nice grass.

            One issue currently is that the government does not have a way to dispose of Agent Orange because it is so toxic.  Currently it is being stored in a warehouse, but the cost to keep it in this warehouse is tremendous because the dioxin destroys the barrels that it is kept in, so it has to be placed in new barrels frequently.  It cannot be buried or dumped anywhere without either seeping into waterlines, destroying plants, or ruining something else that could affect humans.

            I decided to research this topic because it is close to me personally.  My grandfather, Phil Williams, passed away on April 12, 2013 at the age of 73 after having several health complications due to exposure to the Dioxin in Agent Orange.  These complications included Type 2 Diabetes, kidney failure, and liver cancer.  He was first exposed to this deadly toxin after consuming water that had been contaminated by Agent Orange while serving in Vietnam.  The war has been over for 40 years and this is proof that veterans are still suffering from illnesses caused by Agent Orange.  Just today, my grandmother found out she will not receive any form of money from the Veterans’ Affair for my grandfather’s death for another year.

Barrels containing Agent Orange

Area in Vietnam that was sprayed with Agent Orange

Airplanes spraying the deadly herbicide

Soldiers today are still trying to clean up the dioxin in Vietnam

Even later generations are being affected by Agent Orange.  This boy's grandfather served in Vietnam and was exposed to Agent Orange.  Because of this, he now suffers from the birth defect, Spina Bifida.

Sources:

Public Health

The National Academies Press

Nieman Reports - Harvard

Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia

Columbia student's Undergraduate Thesis - Anatomy of a Tragedy: Agent Orange during the Vietnam War

Yale Scientific Magazine

Vietnam Timeline

The Library of Congress

The White House
Agent Orange Record

American Conscientious Objectors During WWI

          During World War I, the United States started something that they had never done before.  They started a draft where all men had to apply for the war.  This draft became extremely controversial after many people claimed that it was against their religious views.  These people were called "conscientious objectors."  What exactly is a conscientious objector?  Well, it is a person whose conscience finds it morally wrong to fight, and objects and goes against the war.  Nowadays, it is easier to say you are a conscientious objector, but during the early 1900s, particularly during World War I, someone who refused to fight could be sent to prison.    
          Unofficially, nearly 4,000 men claimed to be Conscientious Objectors during this time.  Most of them were sent to prison, because it was against the law to object to the war.  Can you imagine being sent to prison because of your religious beliefs?!  Two popular sites that people were sent to were Alcatraz Island and Ft. Leavenworth U.S. Disciplinary Barracks.  Some of the men who refused to fight while at army barracks and camps were just considered crazy or mentally unstable so they could be sent home and people wouldn't have to deal with them anymore.
          One man during this time was named Henry H. Miller.  Miller was a Mennonite and believed that when the Bible says "Thou shall not kill," then he cannot kill anyone no matter what the circumstances are.  While at the court hearing, the judge asked him if he had any family, and he said he had several sisters.  The judge then began to question if someone would try to attack and rape your sisters, would you use violence to protect them?  He of course said because the Bible says that that is wrong.  The judge continued to question his love for his sisters because he refused to use violence to save his sisters lives.  How could someone in their right mind question the love of someone else's family based off of religious beliefs?!  Personally, I would hope my brother would try to save me, but if we disagreed with violence and war, then I would want him to stand up for what we believe.  I don't think the judge was in the position to ask that question.
          Why did so many Americans hate Conscientious Objectors?  If Americans have the freedom to believe what they want to, then how come they are being sent to prison?  So many people found it unpatriotic to be against this war.  This was the first time the government had actually made a draft for the war.  There was a law stating that you could not show hatred towards the government and the war, which is what the objectors were doing.  However, these men stood behind their beliefs and were not afraid of what the government was going to do to them.  They believed that life was too valuable to just throw away with violence and war.  They were going to stand up for what they believed in no matter what.  This was also partially because if it was because of their religion that they could not fight, then they thought that they would go to hell for killing men in battle.  However, not all of these people were Conscientious Objectors because of religion, some were Socialists and members of the IWW, which is the International Workers of the World.  One famous Objector was Howard W. Moore, who was agnostic and not a part of any type of party.  He wrote a book about his struggles as being a Objector in WWI called "Plowing My Own Furrow."
          Personally, I am for war, but I also believe that these men were not treated the way they should have been treated.  They were discriminated against because of personal opinion and religion.  No, I do not agree with those opinions, but they deserve to have a say in what they do.  Being sentenced to prison was not necessary.  I'm very glad though that these people did not let the government tell them they had to kill people and fight in the war.  They took the unfair punishment that they were given and stood behind what they believed.
         

Mennonite Harry Sommers' Parole Pass

Book by Howard W. Moore, a Conscientious Objector during WWI, about his struggles. 

Conscientious Objectors during WWI

These men were Objectors at Camp Pike in Arkansas

This is a group of Mennonite Conscientious Objectors.

Sources:

·         Swarthmore College Library - This website described conscientious objectors during WWI, like Mennonites

      Plowing My Own Furrow - This book is written by a conscientious objector named Howard W. Moore who lived during WWI and refused to fight in the war

      Seattle Community Network - This website just explains what a conscientious objector is in general

      Testimony of Henry H. Miller - This file has a copy of the testimony of Henry H. Miller after he was arrested for refusing to fight in the war

      Conscientious Objectors - The Northwest Worker - This article is from the newspaper archive and states what exactly a conscientious objector is and what they believe

      EBSCO Plowing My Own Furrow - AVL source that first showed me the book "Plowing My Own Furrow"

      Conscientious Objectors - The Sun  - Article from a newspaper that talks about some cases of conscientious objectors

Great White Fleet Sources

Great White Fleet Archive - On the website, I found all of my locations where the Fleet stopped.

Itinerary of the Great White Fleet - This website showed me an itinerary as to when and where the ships were at all times.

The Eagle and the Kangaroo: The Great White Fleet's Visit to Australia. - At AVL, I found information about the Fleet's trip to Australia.

U.S. Navy Recruiting Poster, circa 1908 - This website had a naval recruiting poster that gave reasons why a soldier would join the navy.

Evening bulletin., July 18, 1908, 3:30 EDITION, Page 10, Image 10 - On this website, I found a newspaper article about The Great White Fleet coming to Honolulu, Hawaii

Researching the Great White Fleet

Today, the fourteenth of January, I researched The Great White Fleet. I searched all through the World Wide Web for Navy recruiting posters from around 1906. I found a website that Mrs. Lawson thought it said "city o fart." It however, did not say that. I also explored the hyperlinks from the syllabus and acquired information regarding my stopping sites.