In response to PROMPT 1

The Vietnam War was one of the bloodiest war our country has ever seen. It has been called the least productive war the U.S. has ever fought because as soon as our troops were pulled out, South Vietnam fell into Communism (the whole purpose we were trying to defeat).


At the time of the war, as we inched closer to defeat, both President Johnson and Nixon took drastic measures that resulted in violations to Americans and Vietnamese alike. Such violations included the draft, the violent acts in Vietnam, the spread of the war to other countries, and most importantly the increasing number of American casualties. Eventually, Americans began to oppose the war and protests irrupted in all over the nation, resulting in violence, as one lady put it, "in our own backyard".



I think once Valdez saw these acts, he related it much to the 1940's. During this decade, two of the most important events in history occurred: World War II and the zoot suit riots. At this time, there was both war outside the country and chaos inside the country, similar to what occurred during the Vietnam War.



During World War II, the nation saw their children being drafted into war, not knowing if they'd come back alive or in a coffin. Families were being torn apart as sons were drafted to serve in the Vietnam War. This also was taking place at the time Valdez wrote "Zoot Suit", like when George was drafted into war.



Valdez could have related the protests to the zoot suit riots because at some point these protests were like "riots". The police began fighting with the people, shooting them, beating them, just trying to get them to cooperate with the war. Their freedom of speech, like the freedom of speech the pachucos used through their suits, wasn't sitting well with the authority so they fought to "fix" it.



Finally, I think through Henry's attempt to serve in the war and Rudy's actual service, Valdez managed to get recognition for the infinite numbers of Latinos serving in the Vietnam War, and the infinite numbers brainwashed/pushed to serve. Through the play, he gets us to acknowledge that Latinos also fought for this nation, even though they were discriminated harshly. Americans treated Latinos like dogs, yet they used their sweat, blood, and tears to win several wars.



I think Luiz Valdez used "Zoot Suit" to express his feelings about the Vietnam War occurring during his time. The opposition of the Vietnam War shows throughout the play as many zoot suiters (El Pachuco, Joey, Smiley, etc.) express their negative sentiments towards the war during their era.



The war simply hit too close to home for Valdez.