Seventy-five years ago, more than 2,400 Americans were killed on a U.S. Naval base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
Japanese fighters attacked in the early hours of December 7, 1941. The USS Arizona, a massive battleship, was destroyed by a bomb, which sunk the ship and killed the 1,177 people on board. The Navy decided to leave the ship and the men who had perished on board. They would be considered buried at sea because it would be too difficult to remove them in a respectful manner. The ship still leaks 2 to 9 quarts of oil each day.
The United States entered World War II the next day and President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivered this speech, "Yesterday, December 7, 1941-- a date which will live in infamy-- the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan..." The United States was at war with Japan.
There are very few survivors left. As Americans, we need to remember this date, as this was a turning point in our American history. Tom Brokaw's book "The Greatest Generation" talked about these men and women who survived the Great Depression and then went and fought in World War II and survived. He stated that these men and women fought not for fame and recognition, but because it was the "right thing to do".
May we continue to share this history with the next generations so that they will know what previous generations have done to give us the freedom that we have!
1 comment:
Yes this is something that should be remembered and shared history is important and things like this are events that shaped history
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