Armistice Day, the annual holiday held on Nov. 11, was a day to celebrate the end of a bloody war and promote world peace. But since it became Veterans Day, it often seems to be more of a celebration and display of militarism. This year, the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I, is a time to reclaim the day for peace.
It is not incompatible to honor veterans while promoting an end to war. Veterans for Peace and a coalition of peace and justice organizations will observe Armistice Day in the Downtown Milwaukee City Hall rotunda at 7 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 11, with a public program of speakers and music.
The original Armistice Day in 1918 marked the end of World War I, which claimed 38 million dead and wounded, roughly half of them civilians. The world was horrified by the carnage. It was to be “the war to end all wars.” But, a century later, our country is involved in wars around the globe that never end. In 1954, Armistice Day officially became Veterans Day. It since has morphed into a flag-waving display of patriotism that often seems to honor the military and war as much as it does those who served. We were spared, this year, from Donald Trump’s idea for a huge parade of troops, weaponry and a display of military might. But, on a smaller scale, we see parades that not only salute those who served but that also glorify war.
Ironically, the organizers of Milwaukee’s Veterans Day parade have refused to allow the local Veterans for Peace chapter to take part in the parade. They say the organization’s name itself is “political.” Yet, they invite politicians who have never served in the military to join the parade.
When he signed the Veterans Day resolution, then-President Dwight D. Eisenhower asked Americans to “remember the sacrifices of all those who fought so valiantly… and let us reconsecrate ourselves to the task of promoting an enduring peace so that their efforts shall not have been in vain.” The last part of that message seems to have been lost.
‘Promoting an Enduring Peace’
On Nov. 11, 1918, Wisconsin citizens joined in the jubilation at the war’s end, probably with relief and mixed emotions. Wisconsin had been a voice for peace as the war began. Our state’s members of Congress opposed entering the war, with nine of its 11 House members voting against it, and Sen. Robert M. (“Fighting Bob”) LaFollette the highest-profile supporter of neutrality. Because of his stance, LaFollette was reviled, hanged in effigy on the UW-Madison campus and denounced as a traitor.
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With its high percentage of citizens with German heritage and a socialist city government, Milwaukee was torn apart by the conflict and resulting anti-German hysteria. German Americans were suspect, issued ID cards and barred from some industrial parts of the city. A German name was enough to provoke harassment. The Germania building was renamed, and sauerkraut became “liberty cabbage.” (Remember “freedom fries”?)
More seriously, citizens who made what sounded like unpatriotic or antiwar comments could be reported and charged with violating the Espionage Act. Victor Berger, a prominent socialist newspaper publisher, was charged for his anti-interventionist views and was twice denied a seat in Congress to which Milwaukee voters had elected him. His conviction eventually was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court, and he served in the House of Representatives after the war finally ended—and it was not a crime to speak for peace.
Join us as we speak for peace a century later.
Bill Christofferson served in the U.S. Marine Corps in Vietnam and is a member of Milwaukee Chapter 102 of Veterans for Peace.
