The US Congress debate on Vietnam War: the African American Congresswomen position

BENUSSI, SILVIA

2015-01-01

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Abstract

The paper aims to give an account of the positions expressed on Vietnam War by the three African American women that were, at the time, member of Congress: Shirley Chisholm, Yvonne Burke and Barbara Jordan. The focus is mainly on Chisholm stance against the war, because Burke and Jordan joined her only in January 1973, just few days before Paris Peace Accords were signed. The paper fulfills its goal through three steps, in order to: 1) analyse the reasons against the war expressed by African American congresswomen; 2) identify the link between the war and the evolving condition of African Americans in U.S., as it comes to light form their discourses; 3) verify the influence of the Civil Rights Movement on African American congresswomen stances; 4) verify the existence of a gendered perspective in their speeches. The paper shows that the stance against the Vietnam War became a huge part of Chisholm’s congressional politics when she realised the adverse impact that the war had on crucial social programs, and that Chisholm had a “traditional” gendered approach to the protest against the war.