Moss Roberts Vietnam War Research Files

The Moss Roberts Vietnam War Research Files includes a variety of materials presenting the communist perspective of the Vietnam War created roughly between 1849 and 1979, with a bulk created between 1960 and 1975. These materials were compiled by Roberts, presumably during the course of research.

Materials are sorted into five series: four are based on themes that Roberts appears to have focused on in his research surrounding the Vietnam War, and one series contains documents related to research or work that was not related to the Vietnam War. Most of the types of materials are spread across the series and include correspondence, press statements, newspaper and magazine pages, newspaper and magazine articles, photographs, postcards, index cards, booklets, pamphlets, leaflets, underground journal articles, newsletters, and maps. Most materials are in English, although some are in French, Vietnamese, Khmer, and Lao.

The bulk of Series I is made up of press statements, communique, and documentation of news on the ground from communist forces in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. Many of these are documentary packets compiled by the Democratic Republic of Viet Nam (DRVN) Committee on Cultural Relations which consists of reports on recent happenings in the war, excerpts from government media and Western media that sympathize with the Vietnamese plight, and war anecdotes. These statements all generally cover and valorize important communist military actions (i.e. the Battle of Khe Sanh and the Tet Offensive), decry Western hypocrisy in their proclaimed desires for peace, and speak about efforts to rebuild in the areas they occupy. Most statements are published in English, although there are some copies of documents in French and Vietnamese.

The correspondences in Series I are largely communications between leftist antiwar groups, such as the Indochina Solidarity Committee, the Indochina Peace Campaign, and the United States Committee to Aid the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam. Photographs in Series I depict topics from education and agriculture in the "liberated zones" of Indochina as well as leaders of the Provisional Revolutionary Government of South Vietnam as well as photographs of members of the Lao People's Liberation Army and the Lao Patriotic Front.

Series II includes correspondence between diasporic communities and communist governments. Topics discussed in these letters include public perception of the Vietnam War in America, the facilitation of informational materials between correspondents, political prisoners in South Vietnam, and federal attempts to deport Vietnamese-American antiwar protestors. This series also includes booklets, pamphlets, leaflets, flyers, and underground journal publications in the collection consist of antiwar materials created by organizations like the Indochina Solidarity Committee, the Indochina Peace Campaign, the Union of Vietnamese in Canada, and the Lao Student Union in France. Flyers and leaflets often advertise antiwar demonstrations, film screenings, or meetings or decry specific American military actions in Indochina. Booklets, pamphlets, and underground journals often cover topics like South Vietnamese political prisoners or American military strategy in Vietnam from a pro-Vietnamese, anti-capitalist perspective.

Series III mostly contains news and magazine clippings and papers culled from a variety of sources such as the North Vietnamese publication Vietnam to excerpts from Newsweek, Time, and the New York Times, to other lesser-known papers like the American Report. These are often excerpts from articles and sometimes include underlined sentences that were likely relevant to Roberts' research. Roberts also collected multiple newsletters from leftist and diasporic antiwar groups, underground journals, and bulletins published by antiwar groups and scholars. Series III contains also images documenting the damage caused by American bombing campaigns. All photographs are black and white. Some of these photographs include graphic pictures of injured and dead people.

Series IV consists of maps of Southeast Asia; folders of general information on Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia containing newspaper and magazines clippings, booklets, pamphlets, press statements, and so on; and an economic report on Vietnam published during the 1970s by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

The collection also contains a small amount of material related to other leftist groups and activism including the International Socialist Club and Welfare Action Coalition. These materials are located in Series V.