The faded meaning of Memorial Day

No holiday fights for respect more than Memorial Day the official day of observance commemorating men and women killed on the battlefield or in service to this nations existence. Past ceremonial functions it has nothing to do with living veterans or veterans who died peacefully in their homes. It is meant to be one of the most reverend dates on the American calendar to honor the fallen. A day when protocol dictates the U.S. flag be flown at half-mast in the morning then raised to full staff at noon, but ceremonies over the year have gotten smaller, parades in small towns are dwindling away or outright cancelled, and the holiday gets overcapitalized by other causes detracting from its original pristine purpose.

The holiday is fighting for survival due to costs, lack of attendance, and a general lack of interest. Controversy erupted last March when East Hartford, Connecticut organizers cited those reasons for cancelling their parade a 30-year tradition in the city. There was an initial outcry of protest, but volunteers couldnt raise the money or infrastructure necessary in the short amount of time left to save it. The truth is the observance is fading as an American holiday. A sad fact when you remember the history of Memorial Days placement on the U.S. calendar.

Memorial Day began in 1868 when U.S. Major General John A. Logan issued his General Order Number 11 establishing May 30th as the fixed date of Decoration Day at national cemeteries to honor Union soldiers who died in service. President William McKinleys order 30 years later to re-inter scattered Confederate remains in the Washington, DC area to a special section of Arlington National Cemetery and President William Tafts later authorization of a Confederate Memorial to be placed there brought about a national reconciliation that evolved May 30th into a reverend America holiday honoring all who have died in service to the U.S.

General Logans order only applied to national cemeteries, but Americans marked the day without congressional or government decree for decades at their own cemeteries. It wasnt until 1968 that Congress made Decoration Day an official U.S. holiday called Memorial Day and moved its observance to the last Monday in the month to create a three-day holiday weekend. The move toppled the U.S. holiday from its pedestal. When the new federal calendar went into effect in 1971, the holiday began to decline. The Memorial Day weekend was soon touted by the media as the unofficial start of summer, a time to hold sporting events, or retailers to host special sales. Official ceremonies are now found in the fine print of holiday event calendars.

Since the 1970s, there have been several grassroots movements to restore the holiday to its original May 30th designation. In 1999, the late U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye , MOH (D - Hawaii) introduced a bill to restore Memorial Day to its traditional date. That bill was followed by introduction of one in the House two months later. Both bills were referred to the Committee on the Judiciary and the Committee on Government Reform and havent been seen since their introduction. Inouye reintroduced the legislation as late as 2007 to see it once again get kicked into the abyss of committees.

The holidays stature did regain ground after the 2001 terrorist attacks. In 2004, a National Memorial Day Parade was organized in Washington, D.C. to coincide with the dedication of the World War II Memorial. The American Veterans Center and Music Celebrations International have since organized it into an annual event. Its become a great program over time, but few service members who died on the battlefield are buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

The majority rest in the small cemeteries of their hometowns across America. In many cases, only a headstone represents the life they gave to their country. They died in old wars, big wars, small ones, and some without names. It was their families in these cities and towns who remembered them nurturing Memorial Day into a national holiday in the first place. The same places now fighting to sustain the annual observances. The responsibility of keeping the holidays traditions seem to be coming full circle to rest once again on American families who made the ultimate sacrifice upon the altars of freedom. Lets hope there are enough volunteers among them, who can organize the parades, the tributes, and the proper ceremonies. Volunteers who havent forgotten it isnt a time we set aside to mourn people who died in service to this country; its a time set aside to thank God that such people lived.