Outside the Beltway

Canada’s Forgotten Veterans

Kate McMillan · Friday, November 11, 2005 · 2 comments

As Canadians observe Remembrance Day, some veterans aren’t invited:

Doug Carey won’t be at the national War Memorial this morning. If he’d been made to feel welcomed, made to feel honoured, made to feel remembered, he might have decided to go, but the Canadian government doesn’t have any such sentiments for Doug Carey, veteran, Doug Carey, Canadian, or the 20,000 of his fellow countrymen who fought, or the 103 who died.

There’ll be words spoken in the cold November air about our brave soldiers who fought and died in World War I and World War II and the Korean War, but there’ll be no words spoken about the long and terrible and bloody conflict known as the Vietnam War. There’ll be invited ambassadors with wreaths for the laying from countries that are our military allies, and from countries that were once our military enemies. There’ll be invited military personnel from countries that are our allies, and from countries that were once our enemies.

It will not be mentioned that among those whose sacrifice is being commemorated, who fought and who died in Canada’s 20th century wars, were Americans; Americans who chose to fight in the uniform of another country, our country. They, too, are being honoured this morning by Canada, but Canada is not honouring, and has not respected, the thousands of young Canadians who crossed the border to sign up for the Vietnam War wearing the uniform of the United States of America.

103 of the names on the Vietnam Memorial are Canadian.