Tour of Duty

The Founders' Gallery

September 27, 2018 – January 13, 2019

Canadians and the Vietnam War

This personality based exhibit will relate a range of soldiers’ perspectives on the Vietnam War. Artifacts and oral histories from Canadians who were there will be presented. The central narrative will cover the estimated 40,000 Canadian citizens who enlisted in the U.S. military and fought overseas in the war. Other stories will be presented, including U.S. and South Vietnamese veterans who later moved to Canada.

Importantly, Canada’s official connection with the war will also be presented – the story of the International Commission of Control and Supervision. This little-known peacekeeping mission was responsible for overseeing the American withdrawal, and enabling the repatriation of hundreds of American POWs. The veterans associated with the Vietnam War have received very little recognition in Canada, and we hope to help correct this oversight.

An exhibition of 20 posters from the Whitney Museum of American Art selected from the recently acquired Daniel Wolf Collection of Protest Posters will give shape to social forces and cultural history in the United States from the early 1960’s through 1972.  As well, a sample of Vietnamese block prints from the village of Dong Ho exemplify a traditional New Year artform that declined during the war and is now being revived.

Tour of Duty: Joint Conference on the Vietnam War: Texas Tech 2019