For many, fire engines, marching bands and the unofficial start of summer are the first things that come to mind when thinking about Memorial Day.
But the holiday, which honors those in the armed services who have died defending their country, is so much more than that. And it should take on even greater significance this year given how the country has changed since September.
Before this year, more than 1.1 million Americans in the armed forces had died in war during the nation’s history. Unfortunately, that number is likely to grow over the coming months and years.
The day has traditionally been one to honor members of the armed services. But this year we also should take time to honor those who died on Sept. 11, the first casualties in the first American war of the century.
Memorial Day became a national holiday by an act of Congress in 1971, but it has been celebrated since 1863 when it was known as Decoration Day, a day to honor the sacrifices of Civil War soldiers.
To celebrate this year, Cranbury will hold its annual parade, set to begin 1 p.m. Monday. The event will begin on South Main Street and will feature veterans, marching bands, floats and other fun stuff. The parade will wrap itself back around Main Street and finish up at Veterans Park, next to the firehouse, for a service.
In Monroe, veterans will have a wreath-laying at 8:30 a.m., with services being held at the Veterans Monument at the Triangle Memorial on Spotswood-Englishtown and Monmouth roads. At 9:15 a.m., the same services will be held at the Veterans Monument at the Monroe Township Municipal Complex.
In Jamesburg, services will begin at 7 a.m. at Borough Hall. A parade is schedule to start at 10 a.m. at Veterans Memorial Park.
The right thing to do this year is to also remember the more than 3,000 people who died on Sept. 11, the day religious fanatics decided that there were no noncombatants in their war against America, the day everyone in America became as legitimate a target as anyone who ever put on an armed forces uniform.
We can split hairs all we want. We can say our war against terror isn’t officially a war and that we’re merely routing out the people responsible for flying airplanes into three landmarks, and trying to hit a fourth.
And for this reason, Sept. 11 victims shouldn’t get the same honor as members of the armed services.
That is a perfectly legitimate thing to say.
But ask the people we’re after and they will tell you something different. They will tell you that the war they are waging against America is very real, and that buildings filled with innocent people are strategically important targets. They’ll also tell you that hitting similar strategically important targets will be key if they want to win.
For more than 130 years, we have recognized the sacrifices made by men and women who died in the line of duty, not to glorify their efforts or the battles in which they fought, but to pay homage and to remember.
For the past eight months, we have honored nearly every single person who died on Sept. 11. We’ve remembered them as fathers and mothers, as neighbors and friends and as husbands and wives. And for the most part, we’ve honored them as victims.
It is time to start honoring them as heroes who, whether they meant it or not, made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.
