Taking on what one former U.S. ambassador called “the last ghost of the Vietnam War,” this book examines the far-reaching impact of Agent Orange, the most infamous of the dioxin-contaminated herbicides used by American forces in Southeast Asia. Edwin A. Martini’s aim is not simply to reconstruct the history of the “chemical war” but to investigate the ongoing controversy over the short- and long-term effects of weaponised defoliants on the environment of Vietnam, on the civilian population, and on the troops who fought on both sides.
Beginning in the early 1960s, when Agent Orange was first deployed in Vietnam, Martini follows the story across geographical and disciplinary boundaries, looking for answers to a host of still unresolved questions. What did chemical manufacturers and American policymakers know about the effects of dioxin on human beings, and when did they know it? How much do scientists and doctors know even today? Should the use of Agent Orange be considered a form of chemical warfare? What can, and should, be done for U.S. veterans, Vietnamese victims, and others around the world who believe they have medical problems caused by Agent Orange?
Martini draws on military records, government reports, scientific research, visits to contaminated sites, and interviews to disentangle conflicting claims and evaluate often ambiguous evidence. He shows that the impact of Agent Orange has been global in its reach affecting individuals and communities in New Zealand, Australia, Korea, and Canada as well as Vietnam and the United States. Yet for all the answers it provides, this book also reveals how much uncertainty—scientific, medical, legal, and political—continues to surround the legacy of Agent Orange.
About the Author :
Edwin A. Martini is associate professor of history at Western Michigan University and author of Invisible Enemies: The American War on Vietnam, 1975–2000 (University of Massachusetts Press, 2007).
Review :
"Agent Orange is a clear example of history at its best. It is a well-researched book, written by a committed scholar not afraid to ruffle a few feathers. Based on extensive archival research and interviews conducted by the author, Martini challenges many of the basic assumptions about Agent Orange. . . . For those interested in the history of toxicity and chemical warfare, or on the impact of scientific uncertainty, this is a must-read book."--Journal of American History
"Martini has written the most complete history of Agent Orange to date. It is excellent. His book fills an important gap in the historical literature on the Vietnam War and contributes to a larger literature on the consequences and legacies of modern warfare. It should be at the top of the reading list for people of all persuasions engaged with the Agent Orange issue today. It will be of use to students and policy makers and, one hopes, a caution to military planners."--Pacific Affairs
"A powerful and compelling indictment of U.S. efforts to export modern policing, based on impressive research and demonstrating persuasively why many countries do not welcome U.S. intervention, even for modernization or development projects. In so doing, it reveals the coercion that accompanies all exercise of power, whether hard or soft."--Pacific Historical Review
"Martini not only illuminates the tragic tale of Agent Orange but also leads readers to look down into the dark well where most supposed absolutes in human affairs--not just scientific uncertainty, but also truth, justice, economic efficiency, and historical relevance--are revealed to be largely subjective and politically determined. His well-researched book is sometimes shocking, sometimes amusing, sometimes frustrating, but always illuminating, and makes important contribution to the history of the Vietnam War, the Cold War, the environmental movement, and the chemical industry, as well as to the history of science, technology, and medicine."--American Historical Review
"A nuanced and thorough presentation of the 'politics of uncertainty, ' with comprehensive bibliographies and an intelligent, usable index. Highly recommended."--CHOICE
"Martini provides a thoughtful, well-written narrative, with interdisciplinary and archival sources. . . Agent Orange makes a significant contribution to the histories of the Vietnam War, twentieth-century America, and transnational history."--Environmental History
"Showing an impressive range and creativity . . . Agent Orange is a welcome addition to a relatively new area of scholarship that merges approaches from environmental, legal, and diplomatic history."--H-Diplo
"Martini contributes to our understanding of Agent Orange/Dioxin as both a chemical and a cultural phenomenon."--Journal of Vietnamese Studies
"Readers looking for insight into the scientific debates of the 1980s will find a lucid discussion of these issues. Martini traces in fascinating detail a chronology of the mix of politics and science that fueled those debates and the related public outcry, focusing on the role uncertainty played in shaping early reactions to claims of Agent Orange-related illnesses."--Register of the Kentucky Historical Society
"Martini's persuasiveness in offering an alternative for actors in Agent Orange dramas should impress most readers."--American Studies
"Impressively detailed research."--Environment and History
"Martini mines an impressive number of archives across the globe. . . . He demonstrates how truly complex the legacy of Operation Ranch Hand is by centering his narrative around several central themes."--Technology and Culture
"One of the boldest and most impressive books on the Vietnam War that I have read in the last few years. It is deeply researched, innovative in scope, and fundamentally challenging to many points of conventional wisdom on the conflict. Beyond that, Edwin Martini's study interrogates basic questions about science, causality, and certainty that few other works of history--on any subject--address."--Jeremi Suri, author of Liberty's Surest Guardian: American Nation-Building from the Founders to Obama
"Martini's considerable talents as a storyteller only serve to illuminate his comprehensive research. This is such a powerful combination of narrative skill and bibliographic evidence that not only does Agent Orange make a significant contribution to its field, it is hard to imagine why anyone would attempt to add to this body of literature."--David Zierler, author of The Invention of Ecocide: Agent Orange and the Scientists Who Changed the Way We Think about the Environment
