From Bunker Hill to Baghdad, more than 1 million U.S. military members have been killed in war.
As we pause today to acknowledge that sacrifice, it is essential to remember that most of them were volunteers. Even during times of a military draft, a majority of those who have fought for this nation have chosen to put on a uniform and willingly defend our ideals and interests.
Yes, the United States is worth fighting for, and many people who have embraced that ethos have paid the ultimate price. We recognize them today with Memorial Day, honoring those who have died in military service to the United States.
It is a solemn occasion, and one not to be confused with Veterans Day. That November holiday honors all who have served in the U.S. military, while Memorial Day is a remembrance for those who did not come home.
Although Memorial Day did not become a national holiday until 1971, its origins date back to the end of the Civil War. In addition to Americans killed in that conflict, an estimated 290,000 soldiers for the Confederate States of America also died, and many communities on both sides soon began decorating the graves of the fallen.
The tradition endured through World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam and various other conflicts. While some wars are more ingrained than others in the national conscience, the grief of losing a loved one is a constant that remains unchanged through the generations.
So, too, is the need to honor those who risked and lost their lives for their nation. As an old saying goes, freedom isn’t free, and American soldiers helped create this nation and have spent our history defending it from despots and tyrants. As Franklin Delano Roosevelt is credited with saying: “Those who have long enjoyed such privileges as we enjoy forget in time that men have died to win them.”
Remembering should be a part of Memorial Day. Our privileges include the freedom to hold a cookout or take advantage of a Memorial Day sale or enjoy what is expected to be sunny weather. But it also should include time to remember the reason for the holiday and to teach younger generations about the sacrifice of others.
At a time when the nation is particularly polarized along political lines, Memorial Day takes on added meaning. Many have died defending our right to embrace the freedoms afforded by the United States, our right to squabble among ourselves and our right to disagree about beliefs important and trivial.
While we can argue at times about the morality of war, such disagreements should not reflect upon military members themselves, men and women who have answered the call from a nation in which they believe. As another old saying goes, we are the home of the free because of the brave.
Throughout the history of the United States, most of the brave have been volunteers. Even during the Vietnam War, an unpopular conflict that led many to dodge the draft, some sources claim that two-thirds of military members were volunteers.
The U.S. draft was instituted during the Revolutionary War, and it was halted and revived intermittently as necessary. The most recent draft was ended in 1973, and the United States has had an all-volunteer military since then. There are about 1.3 million active personnel, carrying on a tradition that predates even the founding of the nation.
That tradition includes the risks that come with defending something larger than any individual. Today we honor those who have died in that effort.
