New Memorials to Veterans of Modern Era Wars

Two new national memorials to veterans of modern conflicts have been authorized to be built on federal land in Washington, D.C.,  one of which will be a few hundred yards west of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

Combat patrols decades apart – Vietnam and Iraq

National Desert Storm and Desert Shield War Memorial

After Iraq invaded and occupied Kuwait on August 2, 1991, President George H. W. Bush ordered the organization of Operation Desert Shield, which included a dramatic increase in troops and resources in the Persian Gulf.¹ The operation was to protect – shield – Saudi Arabia from Iraqi invasion and  assemble a coalition force that eventually totaled over 600,000 for the liberation of Kuwait. Operation Desert Storm began in January 1991 with five weeks of ferocious air and naval bombardments, clearing the the way for a ground campaign that drove the Iraqis from Iraq in 100 hours.²

The National Desert Storm and Desert Shield Memorial Act authorizes the National Desert Storm War Memorial Association to establish a commemorative work on federal land in the District of Columbia to commemorate and honor those who, as members of the Armed Forces, served on active duty in support of Operation Desert Storm or Operation Desert Shield. The memorial will be built at the SW corner of Constitution Avenue and 23rd Street NW in Washington D.C.³

The memorial is expected to be completed in 2021.

Global War on Terrorism Memorial

The September 11, 2001 attacks killed 2,977 men, women, and children.  In response, American embarked on what became the longest, most difficult and possibly never-ending campaign: the Global War on Terror (GWOT).

Consisting of several “wars” and “operations,” and called by different names,  the subsequent military campaigns combating terrorism worldwide have resulted in nearly 7,000 additional lives lost and more than 52,000 wounded from among the more than 2.5 million Americans deployed to support these wars and operations.⁴

Establishing a memorial for the veterans of the Global War on Terror faced a significant obstacle in one requirement of  the 1986 Commemorative Works Act, which governs the development of new memorials.  The act imposes a 10 year waiting period after the official end of a conflict before a memorial in the nation’s capital can even be considered.

This would require waiting until 2021 for considering a memorial for  Operation Iraqi Freedom⁵ (Iraq War) and 2024 for Operation Enduring Freedom,⁶ which, while primarily referring to the War in Afghanistan, was the official name used by the U.S. for the Global War on Terrorism.  Operation Enduring Freedom was succeeded by Operation Freedom’s Sentinel⁷ in continuation of the Global War on Terror.⁸

The Global War on Terror has developed into a multi-generational conflict that could last for decades – or longer.⁹  Establishing a memorial for veterans of a fight with an almost unlimited geographical reach and no obvious endpoint¹⁰ would require a waiver of the mandatory 10-year wait.¹¹

A multiyear memorial campaign led to a bill waiving the 10-year wait.  President Trump signed the bill into law on August 18, 2017, authorizing the construction of a national memorial honoring those who fought and died in the Global War on Terror – and those doing so now and in the future. Expected to be completed in 2024, the project must go through a detailed process that includes fund-raising, site selection, design and construction.¹²

The bill had been introduced in the House on February 6, passed in the House on July 28 and the Senate August 3.¹³

Back in 2004

I think the first time I ever considered the possibility of some future memorial to the warriors fighting in Iraq and/or Afghanistan was about three years after the September 11 attacks.  The conflicts were in the news daily and, with the presidential election campaign in full swing, were in politics as well, along with election year controversies over the Vietnam era service of both candidates.

The following 2004 blog post captures some of my thoughts from almost 15 years ago – thoughts on that time, on the Vietnam war, and on whether a memorial would be needed to bring home the terrible reality of a war that already was being questioned.

An Iraq Conflict Memorial?

September 21, 2004 – The news today has many parallels to a war that was fought when I was young: The daily toll of lives taken, the rehashing of the war records of two candidates,¹⁴ the images on the television.

To be sure, Iraq is not Vietnam.

It’s not the same for our soldiers. Today they have the support of the public.

It’s not the same for me.

In 1967, I was a sophomore in high school, a somewhat introverted kid from Nebraska transplanted to the steamy heat of Houston, Texas. I was moving from a comfortable lower middle class life into poverty as a 15 year old. Vietnam was a far distant place and not a true reality for me.

I graduated in 1970, still in the Houston area, from the same high school I had been in for two and a half years, even though we had moved five times. Still poor; I drew a high lottery number. Vietnam was still unreal and far away, something in the papers every day and on the evening news. It was just a part of life.

I joined the Navy and got married. Our first daughter was born at Travis Air Force Base early in 1972. At that time, POWs were returning home, many of them for treatment in the same hospital my wife and baby daughter were in. But it was time for us to move on to our next duty station. Vietnam was a closer reality, but I was in the Navy, not likely to have to go there, and, besides, it was just part of life.

Time passed and so did the Vietnam conflict. It never was a war, they said. Just a conflict. It never was close to me.

I don’t remember when I first saw the memorial.

What I do remember is how striking it was. It fascinated me. It stunned me. It was emotionally painful. It brought tears to my eyes.

With all of the names on the wall and the little mementos left by family, friends, and comrades, the wall brought home to me some of the horrible reality and waste. The loss of all those young lives; the impact on families; the sons, husbands, and fathers who were lost; the terrible toll that it took on our country.

Iraq is not the same as Vietnam… and it’s surely not for me.

Iraq is far away, but it is very, very real to me. It’s not just because my son-in-law is in the service and could be sent there. It’s the wall. It brought the reality of that long ago conflict and helps, for me, with the reality of today.

I fully endorsed the attack on Iraq. I thought it was a just cause. I was wrong. My belief is that it’s taken us off track in the war on terror. We’ve lost ground because of it and it’ll take much, much longer to get past it. I don’t know that it will ever be won. I expect it will eventually just fade away.

Vietnam was just a part of life for me. The wall, with its simple stark beauty, showed me some of the terrible reality of a war we didn’t fight to win.

I just hope a memorial to the fallen in Iraq is not needed to teach anyone else that lesson for this conflict.

______

Blog post update:  January 1, 2007 – Around the time that I wrote this, I got back in touch, for the first time since 1971, with a friend from high school. She said she had wondered about me over the years and that, on a trip to D.C., she had searched for my name on that wall.

1. Bush orders Operation Desert Shield – This Day in History|August 7, History(.com), (accessed June 17, 2019)
2. National Memorial to Gulf War Veterans Moves Forward with Site Dedication – Richard Sisk, February 26, 2019, Military.com (accessed June 17, 2019)
3. National Desert Storm and Desert Shield Memorial – The National Desert Storm Memorial Association (accessed June 17, 2019)
4. A National Global War on Terrorism Memorial – Dorian de Wind,  September 11, 2017, HuffPost (accessed June 18, 2019)
5. Iraq War – Wikipedia (accessed June 18, 2019)
6. Operation Enduring Freedom – Wikipedia (accessed June 18, 2019)
7. Operation Freedom’s Sentinel – Wikipedia (accessed June 18, 2019)
8. War on Terror – Wikipedia (accessed June 18, 2019)
9. Legislative History – Global War on Terrorism Memorial Foundation (accessed June 18, 2019)
10. The Time Has Come for a Global War on Terrorism Memorial – Paul J. Springer, September 10, 2018, Foreign Policy Research Institute (accessed June 18, 2019)
11. Advocates start work on what — and where — the Global War on Terror Memorial will be – Leo Shane III, September 24, 2018, MilitaryTimes (accessed June 16, 2019)
12. Trump signs off on Global War on Terror Memorial – Dianna Cahn, August 21, 2017, Stars and Stripes (accessed June 18, 2019)
13. H.R.873 – Global War on Terrorism War Memorial Act – Congress.gov (accessed June 18, 2019)
14. George Bush and John Kerry