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COMMENTARY

COMMEMORATING MEMORIAL DAY 2020: REFLECTIONS

BY ANH LĘ:

Today, we commemorate Memorial Day.

We honor those who have served in the military, and who have died during their military service.

We also honor all the children, women, and men, who have died during war, casualties of wars which they did not ask for nor created.

We honor the soldiers who died in World War I and World War II.

We honor the soldiers who died in the Viet Nam War, the war which ended on April 15, 1975.

We honor the soldiers who died in the Iraq War.

We honor the soldiers who died in the War in Afghanistan, a war which continues and is the longest war for the U.S.

In the Viet Nam War, almost 4 million Vietnamese were killed.  58,220 American soldiers died.

In the War in Iraq, more than 1 million Iraqis were killed.  Over 4,500 American soldiers died.

In the War in Afghanistan, over hundreds of thousands of Afghans have been killed and injured.  The numbers are probably much higher.  Over 2,500 American soldiers have died.

In both the Iraqi War and the Afghan War, the United States president ordered the invasions of both sovereign nations.

In the Viet Nam War, I commemorate not only the deaths of all the Vietnamese who were killed, I also commemorate and honor the memory of Dr. Pham Van Can, my mother's youngest brother, whom I called "Cau Can," my dearly beloved "Uncle Can."

"Cau Can" was the top graduate of the School of Dentistry at the University of Saigon.  He never got to practice dentistry, as he was drafted into the Army of South Viet Nam.

The last photo of my "Cau Can" that I remember seeing, showed his handsome, kind, and bright face, just the way I remember him when I was a child and he took me to play at the Saigon Zoo and we walked together along the large tree lined boulevards of Saigon and he bought me ice cream treats.

"Cau Can" was killed at a restaurant in Saigon when a bomb there detonated during the war.  His beautiful young wife, "Co Nhung" ("Aunt Nhung") was seriously injured, and she became widowed.

Their young son, "Dung," sobbed over his father's coffin when he saw it.  "Dung" grew up without a father.

Yesterday, on May 24, on the full front page of The New York Times, is printed the names of 1% of the nearly 100,000 Americans who have died from the COVID-19 corona virus during this pandemic.  Next to many of the names is printed a special fact about the person who died.

The New York Times' unique and special tribute to those who have died from COVID-19 in the U.S. reminds us of the humanity of each of the deceased.

Can we, for a moment of reflection, imagine and fathom how many full front pages of The New York Times would be required to print just 1% of all the children, women, and men who have been killed in the War in Viet Nam, the War in Iraq, and the War in Afghanistan?  Just 1%.

Furthermore, in our moment of reflection, we must also ask these questions:

• The presidents who order the wars and the invasions of sovereign nations, and our elected Senators and Congresspeople who vote to fund such wars with our hard earned tax monies, do you see any of their daughters, sons, or family members sent overseas to carry out the killing of our fellow human beings or put in harm's way to be killed?

No, it's always somebody else's daughter or son.

• We often hear our fellow Americans say to those who have been in the military, "Thank you for your service."

While it is true that veterans do deserve our thanks, the phrase, "Thank you for your service," has, unfortunately, become a trite expression which is hypocritical.

The person who utters this now too familiar expression might have a good feeling in saying it. But has she or he ever served in the military?  Or does she or he just leave it to somebody else to bear that burden?

• Are we honoring our veterans by demanding our government treat our veterans with the full dignity that they deserve - - whether it is in health care, employment, and housing?

When we see veterans begging and homeless on the streets of our communities, towns and cities throughout the United States, what is our response?

Do we turn the other way and regard these persons - - these veterans - - as invisible?

How do we say, "Thank you for your service," to the homeless and hungry veterans who beg on the streets of our nation?

• And ultimately, to just say, "Thank you for your service," is not enough and is hypocritical, because it makes us shirk our individual and collective responsibility to uphold the value of living with our fellow human beings in peace rather than waging war and bloodshed.

On this Memorial Day, and each day, let us reclaim our belief in the sanctity and preciousness of human life.

Let us turn swords into plowshares.

This is how we can truly honor our veterans.

Each of us as Americans, and our fellow human beings worldwide, deserve to live in peace, free from war, killing, and bloodshed.

Anh Lę is an independent journalist.

COPYRIGHT Anh Lę, MAY 25, 2020