Celebrating Veterans Day 2021

Last month, a professional organization to which I belong was scheduling its November meeting. At one point, November 11th was suggested, and it was quickly pointed out that date was Veterans Day, a Federal holiday. An offhand comment (made completely without malice, I would add) was made that it would be ok because Veterans Day was really just a “secondary” holiday. After some debate, it was decided our monthly meeting would be held on another date. Several people contacted me after the scheduling and offered their support and to ask if I was slighted by the comment and ensuing debate. On the contrary, it highlighted the need for me (or anybody) to call attention to the holiday’s importance and relevance to our society.

Unlike their peers that work for the Federal government, fewer and fewer students and employees in the public and private sector are taking the opportunity to celebrate the holiday and reflect on its meaning. This diminishes its importance and flies in the face of the continued popularity of platitudes and acts that thank veterans for their service. As a veteran and somebody that worked in the bond markets, I was given the opportunity to celebrate the holiday when operationally feasible (Fedwire is closed on all Federal holidays). Later in my career, when I left the bond maket, I was often perplexed when my children would go to school and more and more of my neighbors would work like it was any other day. On Veterans Day 2021 (this Thursday), millions of students and workers will dutifully attend classes and go to work giving little but a passing thought to the holiday.

Veterans Day, originally known as Armistice Day, was proclaimed on November 11, 1919 by President Woodrow Wilson in 1919 to commemorate the end of World War I and the sacrifices made by those who served:

To us in America the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country's service, and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of nations.??????????????????????????????????????????????????????

—Woodrow Wilson

In 1938, a Congressional Act made Armistice Day a Federal holiday. It was World War II veteran Raymond Weeks that later rallied the cause, starting in 1945, to use the day to honor all veterans, not just those who died in World War I. In 1982, President Ronald Reagan awarded Weeks the Presidential Citizenship Medal and dubbed him the "Father of Veterans Day.”?

“Thank you for your Service”

The phrase, “thank you for your service,” as it pertains to military service seems to have come en vogue in the late 1990s. It is a phrase that can be said with sincerity and with the best of intentions to honor the sacrifices made by those who serve. For some veterans, it has become a mere platitude, hollow in meaning and intent.

In Sebastian Junger’s Tribe, On Homecoming and Belonging, a comparison between service in the United States and Israel (where about half of the population serves) highlights how store discounts, flight boarding privileges and formulaic phrases may frustrate veterans:?

If anything, these token acts only deepen the chasm between the military and civilian populations by highlighting the fact that some people serve their country but the vast majority don’t.? In Israel, where around half of the population serves in the military, reflexively thanking someone for their service makes as little sense as thanking them for paying their taxes. It doesn’t cross anyone’s mind.

?It is understandable why military service has less shared public meaning in the United States. In 2018, according to the US Census Bureau, about 7% of U.S. adults were veterans compared to 18% in 1980. For veterans, this could lead to a further sense of isolation as their civilian peers have no context or understanding of their sacrifice.?

Unfortunately, this comes at a time when more and more veterans could benefit from the empathy (not sympathy) that shared public meaning brings. According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, about 41% of those that served post-9/11 in Afghanistan, Iraq, and other war zones have some form of disability rating, compared to 25% of veterans of other eras.

Making a Difference on Veterans Day 2021

This Veterans Day, companies and people can most effectively honor veterans by observing the Veterans Day holiday. CEOs and Administrators, reinstitute the Veterans Day holiday. Teachers, if you are working on Veterans Day, take the time to reflect on the sacrifices that veterans have made through the years. If you work with veterans, take the time to really listen to their story and to reflect on their contributions to our society. We should all use the holiday for its intended purpose—to recognize and honor our peers who have made a difference through their military service. This small gesture and investment in our veterans is integral to understanding their sacrifices and giving more meaning to,”Thank you for your service.”

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