More than one million soldiers have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan over the last eight years. Close to 4,500 have died in Iraq and nearly 20 percent of those who return come home with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Well over 100,000 Iraqis have been killed. As Memorial Day approaches how will soldiers, families of soldiers, and the rest of American society reflect on the dead and those still living with the trauma of war?
Today on GRITtv Darren Subarton a veteran who served in the Army’s 101st Air Borne Division, Joshua Kors who has written extensively on the experience of veterans returning from war, Dan Lohaus director of When I Came Home, and Nada Michael a student in Social Work at Smith College discuss the challenges veterans face.
Then, Carol Graham and her husband Major General Mark Graham lost their sons, both of whom were soldiers—one was killed by a roadside bomb in Iraq and the other committed suicide. In 2008 alone, the Pentagon confirmed that 140 soldiers committed suicide, the highest number in decades. The Graham's have made it their mission in life to not let either of their sons’ lives be forgotten. They speak out at the local, state and national level to address the stigma of seeking treatment for psychological illnesses. Carol Graham joins us by phone from Fort Carson, Colorado.
Finally, Marshall Ganz a lecturer in Public Policy at Harvard’s Kennedy School on the peace movement. Where is it? After campaigning to elect Barack Obama who billed himself in part as an anti-war candidate, have they lost their momentum?
For additional information on organizations and websites that support veterans you can visit Wounded Warriors Family Support, Community of Veterans, Iraq Veterans Against the War, and Support Your Vet.
Thanks to Dan Lohaus for video in tonight’s show.