Hugo Keesing collection on music and the Gulf Wars

[See finding aid for the Hugo Keesing collection on popular music and culture for information on Hugo Keesing]

In the summer of 1990, Saddam Hussein led the Iraqi army in an invasion of Kuwait, the small neighboring country that contains six percent of the world’s oil reserves. U.S. President George H. W. Bush saw the invasion as a threat not only to the international economy, but also to post-Cold-War international diplomacy. With support from the United Nations Security Council, Bush organized a coalition that included the United States, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, and Egypt among others, to send military forces into Kuwait, hoping to both expel Hussein’s army, and demonstrate the power of international cooperation.

The resultant Gulf War (also known as the Persian Gulf War or the First Gulf War) lasted from August 2, 1990 to February 28, 1991. It was fought in two stages. The first, codenamed “Operation Desert Shield,” involved the installation of allied troops in Saudi Arabia to secure the border. The second stage, initiated on January 17, 1991 and codenamed “Operation Desert Storm,” was the combat phase. The allied forces attacked first with air strikes, then on foot, culminating in a 100-hour land war that lasted from February 24 to February 28.

The majority of American civilians reacted to the Gulf War with enthusiasm. This confidence was due in part to a rise in patriotism following the 1979 Iran Hostage Crisis, in which 52 American diplomats were held hostage for 444 days by a group of Iranian students who seized the U.S. Embassy. In addition to exacerbating diplomatic tensions, the Crisis inspired both a surge of American nationalism and general wariness of the Middle-Eastern region. Twelve years later at the onset of the Gulf War, these attitudes resurfaced; support for American troops was expressed through public service announcements, display of yellow ribbons, and production of memorabilia such as Desert Storm trading cards, T shirts, and pins. Some popular musicians, most notably country artists, recorded songs in support of Bush’s cause. Other musicians used their music as a medium for protest. Songs such as the Rolling Stones’ “Highwire” and Jello Biafra’s spoken word piece “Die for Oil, Suckers” critique the United States’ involvement in Middle-Eastern affairs, and question Bush’s motivations for invading Kuwait.

After four days of combat Hussein’s forces were subdued, and the Coalition withdrew troops, earning Bush criticism for failing to remove Hussein from power. After the September 11 attacks in 2003, President George W. Bush led the United States in a second initiative against Iraq that resulted in the overthrow of Saddam Hussein. This invasion was the beginning of the Iraq War (also known as the Second Gulf War), in which the United States fought until 2011.