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Week Seventeen, Day One

Memorial Day

In the United States, the last Monday of May is designated as Memorial Day. To 99 percent of the population it is simply a paid holiday at the start of the summer. There are those, however, who will pause today and remember those who died in wars. Some may even visit the graves of loved ones who are gone but still remembered.

Every person will die, and all of us must deal with the death of people we love. At best, it comes at the end of a long and well-lived life, but there are those who are taken from us by accidents, violence or, more likely, premature disease. We all know grief and all someday will be the source of grief. War is a different matter, though.

In war we deliberately recruit, train and employ people who will, if needed, kill and/or die. Today we remember those who were killed in the military. In World Wars I and II, it was clear that those who died gave their lives for others, fighting an enemy who would oppress human freedom. So, too, the Korean War seemed to be a call to stand against an encroaching enemy who would take away our freedom and way of life. Vietnam was cast in the same light, but that soon became less clear for us.

Today, American armed forces fight in Afghanistan. We were told that we needed to defeat those who planned and supported the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. A similar argument was made for the war in Iraq, and, though we now know the truth, few are willing to speak it because that would mean that those who died did so for a lie.

That is the great tragedy. Certainly the life and memories of those who have died should be cherished. What we cannot allow is that honoring them silences our voices in criticizing wars of vengeance such as Afghanistan and Iraq. These brave women and men did what their country asked of them and paid the ultimate price. Shame on us for asking. Shame on us for not being brave enough to admit that this nation was wrong to ask so much from those young citizens. Our inability to resist the military industrial complex and our own blood-lust leaves us having caused the death of more Americans than the terrorists of 9/11.

The greatest tragedy of all is that, even on this Memorial Day, we still can’t honor them by telling the truth.

Blessings,

Michael Piazza
President, Hope for Peace & Justice

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