Is it too late to apologize to Vietnam Veterans?

Is it too late to apologize to Vietnam Veterans?
Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
March 5, 2014

When we read about Afghanistan and Iraq veterans, we get upset. They have to wait too long to have their claims approved. They have a hard time finding jobs. We read about them committing suicide. We read about them facing off with police officers. We read about Combat Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. What we don't read about is how long all of this has been going on and that is the saddest thing of all.

If you Google Department of Veterans Affairs PTSD 1970 113,000 results pop up. The first page is about VA claims decisions being granted to Vietnam Veterans.

There is a case among them from a Sailor out of Alaska.

At a hearing before the Board in September 2011, the Veteran testified that he was stationed in Adak, Alaska for six months while serving in the Navy. He reported that he worked in shipping and receiving and was in charge of storing and sorting office supplies. The Veteran testified that he was raped during that time by an E-4 in the Navy. The Veteran reported that the assault consisted of his perpetrator hitting him in the face and stomach and then taking off his pants and raping him. He stated that he did not report the assault because he was devastated and shocked and did not want to be labeled a "homo" by other soldiers. He indicated that he began to have problems with his rectal area after the assault but never sought treatment. He sought a release from service six months after entering service. The Veteran testified that he waited twenty-one years before he reported that assault until September 11, 2001, when he was watching people jump from windows and had a breakdown.

Bad things happen now but as you just read, they were happening way back then too.

Sgt. Santiago J. Erevia earned the Medal of Honor in Vietnam in 1969. He is finally getting the Medal of Honor this month.

“We were delegated to go get the bodies from the helicopter,” Erevia continued. “I can remember one that they took out. He had no legs, just the upper body. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen a body or like when you’re barbequing hamburgers or chicken and all that blood is coming out? That made me the sickest man in the world.”

It seemed as though he couldn’t escape the violence. In fact, the events of that day were so traumatic and disturbing that Erevia’s commander sent him on a weeklong rest-and-relaxation trip to Da Nang, not only as a small reward for his bravery, but to help him recover. Like many troops in Vietnam, Erevia then spent the remainder of his yearlong deployment performing administrative tasks in the rear at Landing Zone Sally, delivering meals or replacing Soldiers’ used uniforms with clean ones.

After Vietnam, Erevia finished his tour at Fort Riley, Kan., and went back to San Antonio, where he joined the Texas National Guard and served for another 17 years. He received the nation’s second highest award for valor, the Distinguished Service Cross, in 1970, and he thought that was the end of it. It was an honor, one that he was proud of, one that helped him get a good job as a mail carrier for the U.S. Postal Service (a job he held for the next 32 years), but he was never one to brag about his accomplishments. He didn’t want to talk about Vietnam. He just wanted to move past what had happened: “I didn’t give it too much thought. You know, you go from day-to-day, do what you’re told.”

MOH Sammy Davis also went on to serve in the National Guard after his actions in Vietnam saved lives and he earned the Medal of Honor. He was attacked in an airport after being treated for his wounds.

As bad as things are for veterans of today, we cannot forget that had it not been for Vietnam Veterans not giving up on the rest of us, there would be nothing available for PTSD treatment today. All these years later, they remain the majority of the VA claims at 36% and the among the backlog of claims they represent 36% of the claims taking longer than 125 days. They are the majority of homeless veterans and suicides tied to military service. The American public does not know any of this but Vietnam veterans and families know the truth all too well.

Do they want to hear "I'm sorry" from you or anyone else? Not really. How would a few words take away 50 years of what was done to them? What is meaningful to them is what is happening to the adult kids and grandchildren suffering from the same mistreatment after all these years. They wonder what all their suffering meant if it is all still happening.

If this country really wants to honor Vietnam veterans then we better hurry up and get to the point where this is all taken seriously enough for us to do something about it.

Members of Congress continue to play political games pretending outrage as if all of this is new but we know it isn't. The press, lovers of the pushing what divides Americans, ignore what history has already proven so they can cause the public to look the other way. The truth is none of the politicians have actually done anything to fix any of this for the good of all.

What can you do for them? The next time you read an article check the facts. Look back at other reports available online from other news outlets, not blogs or Facebook rants. Know what was reported before and then leave a comment since most sites allow comments. Help to educated the public at the same time you give reporters a history lesson. Contact members of Congress and remind them of how long they have already have to fix all of these problems veterans face.

If not, then what comes 30 years from now will be a repeat of what happened to Vietnam veterans and being a grateful nation will be nothing more than a slogan on a poster.