Carnales: A History of Chicano Vietnam Veterans

During the Cold War the United States became involved in one of the deadliest and most expensive wars in its history. The Vietnam War became a complex situation for the United States who was attempting to institute democracy, and avoid the nation of Vietnam from becoming a communist state. It was an ideological war between communist North Vietnamese soldiers, the Viet Cong and Viet Minh against pro-capitalist and democratic forces composed of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) and U.S. military forces. The forces of the United States were as diverse as the nation of the United States and included soldiers who were from various racial and ethnic backgrounds. Large segments of the US Army, US Navy, US Marines, and US Air-Force were Mexican-American (Chicano), African-American, Native-American, and Asian-American. This literary review aims to focus on discussing the literary works on Chicano soldiers who served in the Vietnam War. (Front cover picture: Ia Drang Valley, US Military photograph, Public Domain.)