Viet

Turning Point admirably points to the pejorative nature of the term “Viet Cong” to refer to the National Liberation Front, but it is less successful in clarifying for viewers that the NLF was comprised of southern Vietnamese.

There is nothing about the Japanese occupation of Vietnam during World War II, which led to U.S. intelligence collaboration with the Viet Minh.

But, while the series did not mention it, the reason the NLF insurgency began is because Diem’s regime, having refused to abide by the Geneva accords’ call for a nationwide election, engaged in widespread repression against Viet Minh supporters and other political opponents in the south.

Another, as interviewee and Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Sympathizer Viet Thanh Nguyen notes, has been the inability of the opposing Vietnamese sides to meaningfully reconcile and heal.

“I’m gonna go to Vietnam/I’m gonna kill some Viet Cong,” he half sings.