Saturday marked the 45th anniversary of the My Lai massacre. LIFE Magazine published online their original coverage of US soldiers murdering 350 old men, women and children in cold blood. This remains a truly horrific atrocity and deep scar on the US Army in Vietnam.
The surprise for many today was the ability of the military to kept this horrific event a secret for over a year. Former Army photographer Ron Haeberle assigned to “Charlie” Company of 1st Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 11th Brigade sold photos he took with a non-US Army issued camera. LIFE published the photos and the damage further changed the American view on the war in Vietnam.
Amazingly three US servicemen tried to halt the massacre and protect the wounded were initially denounced by several US Congressmen as traitors. They received hate mail and death threats and found mutilated animals on their doorsteps. The three were later widely praised and decorated by the Army for heroic actions.
One reply on “My Lai massacre 45th anniversary”
Give people the facts so they can decide themselves. I was 12 miles away on the day it happened and have collected many facts. http://www.buffgrunt.com/history/mylai.html