Thanking America’s Veterans
from The Water's Edge

Thanking America’s Veterans

U.S. service members hold the U.S. flag at ceremony honoring the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. Armed Forces.
U.S. service members hold the U.S. flag at ceremony honoring the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. Armed Forces. (Reuters/Eduardo Munoz)

Today is Veterans Day. Americans first celebrated it on November 11, 1919, one year to the day after the end of the conflict they knew as the Great War and we (regrettably) know today as World War I. President Woodrow Wilson issued a message proclaiming the first celebration of “Armistice Day.” The holiday was meant to show “gratitude for victory” in World War I and solemn pride “for those that died in our country’s service.” On that day, all business was suspended for two minutes starting at 11 a.m. and parades and public gatherings commemorated the war’s end. The choice of time was deliberate. The agreement ending World War I went into effect on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918. (This year is the centennial of that armistice).

Over the years, the practice of celebrating Armistice Day spread and states began making it a legal holiday. Congress followed suit in 1938, declaring that the November 11 holiday was “dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be hereafter celebrated and known as ‘Armistice Day.’” In 1954, with World War II and the Korean War having greatly expanded the number of Americans who had fought overseas, Congress renamed Armistice Day “Veterans Day.” In a proclamation marking the renamed holiday, President Dwight D. Eisenhower said the change “expanded the significance of the commemoration” by “paying homage to the veterans of all wars.”

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You might be wondering why the holiday is spelled “Veterans Day” and not “Veteran’s Day.” The choice is deliberate. The Department of Veteran Affairs states that the apostrophe is unnecessary "because it is not a day that 'belongs' to veterans, it is a day for honoring all veterans."

You might also wonder how Veterans Day differs from Memorial Day other than coming after summer’s end rather than near its start. Veterans Day honors everyone who has served in the U.S. military. Memorial Day pays tribute to those men and women who died in military service.

Roughly 18.2 million Americans are veterans. Women account for roughly 9 percent of all veterans, and the percentage is growing. Slightly more than 17 percent of all post-September 11 veterans are women. In comparison, 4.4 percent of World War II veterans are women and 2.3 percent of Korean War veterans are women.

The price of service in the U.S. military can be high. More than 1.1 million American service members have died during wartime. The Civil War remains the deadliest of America’s wars, with estimates of the death toll ranging from 500,000 to 750,000. World War II is the second deadliest conflict, with 405,000 Americans killed. Nearly 5 million veterans today have a service-connected disability. In 2015, 18 percent of veterans were enrolled in disability programs. That was up from 9 percent in 2001. The Department of Housing and Urban Development estimates that roughly 38,000 veterans are homeless. That number is down from some 73,000 in 2009, but it is still too high.

So to all of America’s veterans, thank you for your service.

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Corey Cooper assisted in the preparation of this post.

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