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Hindsight: Fighting conscription, 1966

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Anti-war protestors hold signs against conscription during protest
Hindsight: Fighting conscription, 1966

SUBJECTS:  Civics and Citizenship, History

YEARS:  9–10


What would you do If your government tried to force you to fight in what you believed to be an unjust war?

Conscription (compulsory military service) was instated in Australia in 1964. From 1965 to 1972, Australian troops, including conscripts, were sent to the Vietnam War.

Listen to US President Johnson encouraging Australians to fight. See why Bill White, a schoolteacher, refused to fight and how his stand influenced public opinion.


Things to think about

  1. 1.In what circumstances, if any, do you think conscription might be justified? In 1964 the Australian government introduced conscription by lottery so that 20-year-old men whose birthdays fell on selected dates had to join the armed services. At first, most Australians supported the government's policies but others objected to conscription and to the Vietnam War. Do you think it is fair for supporters of a war to force others to fight in it?
  2. 2.During his 1966 Australian visit, how was US president Lyndon Baines Johnson ('LBJ') trying to encourage Australians to keep fighting alongside US forces in Vietnam? What evidence does the footage of Johnson's motorcade provide of Australian support for the war? What stand did Bill White take in 1966? What penalties did he suffer and how did he justify his stand 20 years later? What evidence does the video provide of growing opposition to the war and conscription?
  3. 3.Why do you think most Australians at first believed their government's claim that the Vietnam War and conscription were justified? Opposition to conscription and to the war grew, reaching a peak in 1970 and 1971, when hundreds of thousands of Australians protested in the streets. Develop at least four questions that you could use to investigate how such a change in public opinion could happen.
  4. 4.Do some research to find out how opposition to the Vietnam War and conscription grew from a small movement in 1966 to such an extent that in 1972 Australians voted overwhelmingly for the Australian Labor Party, which was committed to ending conscription and Australian involvement in the war? If you developed four questions in 'After viewing', use these to help you.



Date of broadcast: 6 May 1990


Copyright

Metadata © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia Ltd 2012 (except where otherwise indicated). Digital content © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). Video © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). All images copyright their respective owners. Text © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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