Vietnam Veterans Day on March 29 honors those who served, died in the Vietnam War
When General of the Army Douglas MacArthur retired after 52 years in the military, he was invited by the U.S. Congress to address its members. He concluded his address with a quote that quickly became wildly popular — “Old soldiers never die; they just fade away.” During the 1950s, the quote was so popular that it was even lyricized and became a musical bestseller.
A decade later, at the height of the Vietnam War in the late 1960s, popular African American comedian Nipsey Russell took a little poetic license with the general’s quote asserting that “Old soldiers never die because it’s the young ones who do all the fighting”.
Although General MacArthur may have produced a little head scratching from a public trying to understand how soldiers “fade away,” there is no ambivalence about Nipsy Russell’s assertion that “young soldiers do all the fighting in war” and, therefore, the most dying as well. The data from the Vietnam War supports Russell’s contention that the average age of those killed was only approximately 22-23, a data point very close to WWII and the Korean War data as well.
The Vietnam War devastated the young men and women of that generation. In addition to the 58,000 plus killed, over 75,000 were severely disabled, meaning that they had been incapacitated, facing their future from a wheelchair, without limbs, or perhaps blind, deaf or badly disfigured. These totals do not include those returning home who turned to alcohol, drugs and even suicide to resolve the torment from post-traumatic stress (PTS), which had yet to be recognized.
The legacy of the Vietnam War is complicated, and it is unfortunate that the sacrifice of Vietnam veterans has been obscured by an unpopular war.
To recognize the unsung sacrifice of Vietnam veterans, several states, including Massachusetts, began designating March 29 as Vietnam Veteran Recognition Day. As the number of states recognizing this date expanded, it eventually led to the enactment of the Vietnam War Veterans Recognition Act in 2017, federally mandating March 29 as the day that belongs to the nation’s Vietnam veterans. However, it is not a national holiday and I doubt many Americans know what Vietnam Veteran Recognition Day is about, although at least the idea has been around for 50 years.
It started in 1974 when President Nixon expressed concern about the poor reception many veterans received when they returned home from Vietnam duty. Nixon saw a link between 2 significant events that occurred on March 29 the previous year: In 1973, the last American combat troops left Vietnam, and American POWs came home. In March 1974, he declared that March 29 should be recognized as Vietnam Veterans Day, eventually leading to federal recognition in 2017.
Cape Cod has a large veteran population. In fact, Barnstable County has the largest veteran population of all 14 Massachusetts counties. Of this total, there are almost 7,000 Vietnam veterans living on Cape Cod. Please let me extend a special salute to all of you and recognize you for your “Service, Sacrifice, and Valor,” the words inscribed on the Vietnam Veteran 50th anniversary commemorative pin. The words fittingly describe the character of the brave men and women who fought there.
And, of course, I would also like to extend a special recognition in memory of the 58,000 plus men and women who returned home in a flag-draped casket or who remain missing. Their names etched on the Vietnam Memorial Wall provide a constant reminder of their sacrifice. Although not here, we will never forget them.
Ralph Negron, a resident of Sandwich, is a Marine Vietnam Veteran and an adjunct history professor at Cape Cod Community College.
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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Vietnam Veterans Day on March 29 a day to remember those who served
