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Description
The 1954 Geneva Accords called for a temporary partition of Vietnam at the 17th Parallel — creating a Communist state in the North and a French-backed non-Communist state in the South. There was a 300-day period of free travel between North and South Vietnam before the border closed. The U.S. ran a propaganda campaign to encourage Northerners to "Go South to avoid Communism," where they would be "welcomed with open arms," as seen on this 1954 poster.
Source-Dependent Questions
- Describe how the U.S. characterized Communist North Vietnam. How does this imagery align with ideas about communism from the Big Picture Television Series video?
- What ideas would have influenced the U.S. to undertake a propaganda campaign in Vietnam? How would this support or undermine the response to Ho Chi Minh asking for U.S. support for self-determination?
Citation Information
"Come South," U.S. Information Agency, 5 August 1954. Courtesy of National Archives