“Yesterday, December 7th, 1941—a date which will live in infamy—the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.” Franklin D. Roosevelt, President of the United States at the time, said in his famous address to a joint session of congress asking for them to declare war on Japan in response to the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor.
The Empire of Japan’s attack was meant to be a quick knock out of the American naval presence in the Pacific. However, due to the absence of America’s aircraft carriers and the shallowness of the harbor, the Imperial Japanese Navy failed to deal the harsh blow they intended.
Quickly, this brought the might of the American military into the entirety of WWII, wherein America came to lead the allied militaries under Five Star General Dwight D. Eisenhower.
As the young soldiers of America embarked to take the fight to the enemies of freedom, Eisenhower said, “You are about to embark upon a great crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty loving people everywhere march with you.”
Today marks the 76th anniversary of the attack on America that propelled us into World War II. According to statistics from the U.S. Depart of Veteran Affairs, 16 million American soldiers served, and 291,557 gave their lives in defense of freedom.
Now, only 1.7 million WWII veterans survive, and according to the VA, 362 of them die every day. If this trend stays constant, all WWII veterans will be dead within 13 years.
During the recent Veteran’s Day reading of those who have died since the war on terror, Marty Martinez, Senior Project Coordinator for the Veterans Service, said there was an instance were a student walking by had to be reminded by a fellow student that it was Veteran’s Day and that was why they were reading off the names.
“For us veterans, it is such an easy remembrance, that you would never forget that,” Martinez said. “But I think so many Americans take it for granted. They don’t realize the importance of it and really why we need to remember our veterans.”
On why Americans should always remember the attack on Pearl Harbor, Martinez said, “As it was said, the day will live in infamy, and it always will. It represents the good of our country. It represents what our country has chosen to always be in the world, as a protector of the innocent, and protector of freedom across the world.”
Martinez also said how important these veterans were in securing veteran rights for future generations.
“It is very important for us, as veterans, to remember many of the rights, the GI bill, were really brought about from that veteran experience of WWII, WWI, the Korean War and the Vietnam War.”
