The Spitting Image

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The Spitting Image is a 1998 book by Vietnam veteran and sociology professor Jerry Lembcke. It argues that the widely believed story of anti-war protesters spitting on returning American soldiers after the Vietnam War is a myth.

The book asks where the spitting legend came from and how it became so famous. Lembcke shows that Hollywood films and other media helped spread the image, while news coverage repeatedly reinforced it. He points out that there is a real lack of credible evidence that large numbers of protesters spat on veterans.

Lembcke contrasts the myth with what he says actually happened. He notes a strong current of empathy and support from many anti-war activists toward soldiers, and he highlights how veterans often found common ground with protesters. He also explains how the Nixon administration worked to drive a wedge between military members and dissenters by portraying democratic opposition as betrayal of the troops.

The author argues that the spitting image grew after the war and was used to silence dissent in later political moments, including the Gulf War. He shows how the “spat-upon veteran” idea helped link support for the troops with support for the war itself, even though many people at peace rallies actually called for bringing the troops home.

Lembcke discusses several prominent claims and critics. For example, after the war, journalist Bob Greene collected letters about spitting, but Lembcke says many of these accounts are unverified and appeared years later. He acknowledges he cannot prove that no veteran was ever spat upon, but he contends the widespread, organized spitting did not happen as people remember it. He argues that a combination of media portrayals and political rhetoric created a powerful memory that many find hard to question.

The book received praise for challenging a familiar story and for its careful research. Some reviewers and later scholars have disputed parts of its case or debated how memory and evidence should be weighed, but The Spitting Image is widely seen as an important critique of how popular memory about Vietnam was formed.

In short, The Spitting Image asks readers to rethink a long-standing symbol of anti-war protest and to consider how media, politics, and memory can shape what a nation believes about its own history.