The Mai Lai Massacre 1968 Village of Mai
- Slides: 21
The Mai Lai Massacre 1968 Village of Mai Lai, Southern Vietnam
US Troops arrive in Mai Lai March 16 th, 1968.
Civilians who had bowed to greet the Americans were beaten with fists and tortured, clubbed with rifle butts and stabbed with bayonets The Platoon was led by Lt William Calley
Soldiers are told that the civilians have left the village to go to church
They searched Mai Lai for a resistance group called Viet Cong
But the Viet Cong weren’t there……
…and the civilians hadn’t gone to church
They were in the village….
…. and they bowed to greet the soldiers.
Soldiers respond by rounding up Villagers …and slaughtering them.
“Soldiers went berserk, gunning down unarmed men, women, children and babies. Families which huddled together for safety in huts or bunkers were shown no mercy. Those who emerged with hands held high were murdered. . . ”
US army forces murder approximately 500 unarmed citizens in South Vietnam,
Some of the victims were sexually abused, beaten, tortured, or maimed, and some of the bodies were found mutilated
Most of the victims were women and children
They were all unarmed and innocent of any crime
One Soldier Said…. "I would say that most people in our company didn't consider the Vietnamese human"
Lt. Calley claimed “I was just following orders…. ”
March 1971 Calley is charged with premeditated murder for ordering the shootings.
He serves 4 and a half months in jail.
504 INNOCENT CIVILIANS DIED
BUT THE SOLDIERS WERE JUST FOLLOWING ORDERS