Jan. 27 marked the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Paris Peace Accords. Though proud of their fellow veterans’ commitment to their mission, they came home to many mixed emotions by the American people bearing a memory that would not be forgotten.
The signing of the Paris Peace Accords formally outlined the end of the Vietnam War for the United States. The document stated that all U.S. combat troops would be evacuated within 60 days. By March 29, 1973, all U.S. ground troops had left the country.
This month’s VFW Magazine 2023 edition salutes the nation’s Vietnam War veterans. It is a tremendous issue filled with interviews of the young men with their thoughts on the Paris Peace Accords signings and President Biden’s awarding Medals of Honor to three surviving Army veterans.
One of the medals was awarded to the family of the soldier who had passed away. Every year on March 29, the VFW honors these heroes with National Vietnam Veterans Day.
In February 1965, after standing firm on “no troops to Vietnam,” President Lyndon Johnson changed his mind when the Viet Cong attacked U.S. military advisors in South Vietnam. In retaliation, he launched Operation Rolling Thunder, an air war on North Vietnam that would last until 1968. 1965 saw many young men from our area being deployed to fight in this war.
By the end of 1965, 185,000 U.S. troops were in Vietnam. The number would peak in 1968 at nearly 550,000. On March 8, 1965 (the arrival of the first American combat troops in Vietnam), 3,500 Marines of the 9th Marine Expeditionary Brigade arrived in Da Nang to protect the U.S. airbase from Viet Cong attacks. More than 2.6 million service men and women eventually served in Vietnam. More than 58,000 of them died there. More died of Agent Orange in the following years. The names of all these brave heroes can be found on the Wall of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
The Memorial consists of three parts: The Three Soldiers Statue, the Vietnam Women’s Memorial and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, also known as “The Wall that Heals.” Many veterans go there every year to reflect, remember and pay tribute to their fellow soldiers.
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial on the National Mall pays tribute to the brave members of the Armed Forces who fought in the Vietnam War and were killed or missing in action. Today all the faces of the more than 58,000 young men and women can be seen online at the virtual Wall of Faces display at www.vvmf.org/wall-of-faces. The wall was established on November 13, 1982.
The Three Soldiers Statue, also known as The Three Servicemen, is another moving reminder of the disparate groups that had to come together during the Vietnam War. This statue was unveiled on Veterans Day, Nov. 11, 1984, on the National Mall. It was the first representation of an African American person on the National Mall.
The Vietnam Women’s Memorial depicts three women attending to a wounded soldier reflecting the unity required during the conflict. This memorial is also located in the National Mall in Washington, D.C., and was established in 1993.
There are so many memories for the Vietnam veterans and their families. Today, the VFW wants to recognize them and give them the glory they deserve. True heroes who gave so much for this country.
Thank Vietnam veterans for their service on March 29. Americans live in a great nation because of men and women like these who served the country in wartime. God bless them all.
