Since 1945 the United States has been involved in more overseas conflicts then anytime since the first settlers arrived in the 1600’s. This paper will look at how and why the United States went from staying out of world affairs to being in the middle of all the major conflicts of the twentieth and twenty- first centuries.
Since the Revolutionary War, America had elected to remain isolated from overseas conflicts. This was mostly because Americans wanted to see themselves as better than the Europeans (Independence Hall Association in Philadelphia). There was also the issue of choosing sides in any European war, as the United States had citizens who had come or had relatives from various countries. So when Arch-Duke Ferdinand was assassinated, it was not surprising that America chose to stay neutral.
However, this would not last long, Germany made a number of attacks on American submarines which then prompted America to enter into the War on the side of the Allies. Afterwards America went back to being isolated. Even after World War II started, America refused to get involved with the fighting as they were still dealing with The Great Depression. In Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms speech to Congress is 1941 he expressed understanding and acceptance of the fact that America would no longer be able to remain separated from the rest of the world when it came to international conflicts (Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum). This was because allowing dictators to rise to power would ultimately have a detrimental effect on both the country in which they had arisen but also the international community. (Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum). It was not until the Germans and the Axis forces took over much of Europe leaving only England and The Soviet Union unconquered that America chose to get involved (Independence Hall Association in Philadelphia). Even then it was only to provide supplies and weapons. The country would not enter the war until after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor.
After World War II was over the United States realized that the country would no longer be able to return to being neutral. The reason for this was because the political leaders at the time decided that it was necessary to spread the Democracy throughout the world. This was first established in the Truman Doctrine. The Doctrine stated that the United States would provide assistance to all democratic countries that were under attack from oppositional forces (US Department of State- Truman Doctrine. This put the United States in direct conflict with the Soviet Union who the United States though were supporting the Communist takeovers in Greece and Germany (US Department of State, -Truman Doctrine).
The Soviet Union was as powerful as the United States and they supported a Communist government, which was seen as an affront to the Democratic government that America was trying to endorse throughout the world. On top of the United States and The Soviet Union having differing views on what type of government was best for a country. The Soviet Union was getting involved in conflicts in many Asian countries as they supported the spread of Communism. These types of conflicts were known as the Cold War and would lasted until 2014, when President Obama lifted that trade embargo that had been on Cuba since the 1950’s. Beyond the United States trying to prevent the Soviet Union from spreading Communism and promoting Democracy throughout the world, they put together a plan to rebuild Europe. This was the Marshall Plan, which essentially said that by providing funds to Europe and helping them to rebuild (US Department of State). America was both preventing the growth of Communism and benefitting themselves because many American businesses invested in overseas companies. This helped to stimulate both European and American economies (US Department of State)
One problem that was caused by America’s decision to “police” the world has been the fact that many Americans have not supported it during various times. One such time was the “Vietnam War” which was actually never declared a war and was more of a 10-year military action that resulted in 60,000 American soldiers dying (Independence Hall Association of Philadelphia- Vietnam). The purpose of the Vietnam War was to keep the North Vietnamese forces from taking over South Vietnam and establishing Communism. This was an initiative that had been going on since Truman was in office and was eventually ended by Nixon (Independence Hall Association of Philadelphia-Vietnam). Despite being involved with the conflict in Vietnam for ten years. The United States failed to obtain its objectives.
Many citizens were in support of the initiatives taken by Presidents Truman, Eisenhower and Kennedy to bring about a resolution to the conflict in Vietnam (Independence Hall Association of Philadelphia-Vietnam). Public opinion went against the War after Johnson began to send troops into battle. The biggest reason for this was because there was no way to tell who was the enemy. The Viet Cong hid in plain sight and would oftentimes ambush soldiers. The promises to the soldiers regarding the ending of the conflict was continually broken.
There was also the issue of the draft, as numerous soldiers were being sent back in body bags and new ones were being sent into the conflict by way of the draft. There was a contingent of the population who were dodging the draft by going to Canada or using college deferments (Independence Hall Association of Philadelphia-Vietnam). Others such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr argued that America had prevented Vietnam from obtaining independence from France in 1945 because we decided that they were not permitted to seek their freedom (King).
Then beyond this we supported a dictator named Diem, who was responsible for the deaths of thousands. Even when he was finally over thrown America supported the numerous military dictators that followed resulting in more conflicts as well as mass starvation (King). Another problem that many American’s had was the fact that while the United States was fighting for the freedoms of other countries women, gays and African Americans could not enjoy the rights and freedoms that belonged to them (Belmonte). This worsened when Communists put forth propaganda criticizing the racism that was occurring in the United States (Belmonte). This puts forth one of the United States biggest problems in that the country’s politicians spend far too much time infringing our will on other countries, instead of focusing on issues at home.
The Wars of the twentieth century not only enforced America’s status as a superpower but also strengthened the role of women both at home and internationally. This is because women not only worked in factories making much or the materials and artillery used in World War I and II, some were even involved in foreign service (Wood). Foreign service workers are diplomats who work to create and establish the policies of the United States in various regions (Wood).
References
The Avalon Project. (1947). Our Documents - Transcript of Truman Doctrine (1947).
Belmonte, L. A. (2008). "A Lynching Should Be Reported Without Comment": Images of Race Relations. In Selling the American way: U.S. propaganda and the Cold War. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.
Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum. (1941). Our Documents - Transcript of President Franklin Roosevelt's Annual Message (Four Freedoms) to Congress (1941).
The George C. Marshall Foundation. (n.d.). The Marshall Plan Speech - George C. Marshall.
Independence Hall Association in Philadelphia. (n.d.). America in the First World War [ushistory.org].
Independence Hall Association of Philadelphia. (n.d.). The Vietnam War [ushistory.org].
King Jr, M. L. (1967, April 4). American Rhetoric: Martin Luther King, Jr: A Time to Break Silence (Declaration Against the Vietnam War).
US Department of State. (n.d.). Milestones: 1945-1952 - Office of the Historian.
US Department of State. (n.d.). Milestones: 1945-1952 - Office of the Historian.
Wood, M. M. (2007). Diplomatic Wives: The Politics of Domesticity and the “Social Game” in the U.S. Foreign Service, 1905–1941. The Best American History Essays 2007, 155-174. doi:10.1007/978-1-137-06439-4_8
