The Fiery Moment That Seared Vietnam Into America’s Consciousness
On June 10th, 1963, correspondents were tipped that “something important” would happen the next day near the Cambodian embassy in Saigon. On the 11th, Associated Press photographer Malcolm Browne captured two Buddhist monks as they doused an elderly comrade seated lotus style with gasoline. The elderly monk, Thich Quang Duc, then struck a match and dropped it on himself, and maintained his serenity while flames engulfed him. Browne’s iconic photo of the event captivated the world. Vietnam entered America’s national conversation after the Burning Buddhist’s photo appeared on newspaper front pages across the US.
As president Kennedy put it: “No news picture in history has generated so much emotion around the world as that one“. People questioned America’s support for Diem’s government, and Kennedy did not oppose a coup that overthrew it a few months later. On the night of November 1-2, South Vietnamese army units attacked the presidential palace, and captured it after a bloody siege. Diem and his advisor and younger brother, Ngo Dinh Nhu, surrendered after they were promised a safe exile. They were placed in the back of an armored personnel carrier that was to take them to a military airbase. Instead, they were assassinated by South Vietnamese officers en route.