The National WWII Memorial

In 1993, the United States Congress passed legislation authorizing the American Battle Monuments Commission (AMBC) to design, construct, and raise the funds necessary for a national World War II Memorial in Washington DC. The National World War II Memorial has served as a beacon of remembrance for the World War II generation since its dedication but falls short in recognizing the contributions of individuals, especially minorities.

The site's dedication for the WWII Memorial by former President Bill Clinton and World War II veteran Roger Durbin occurred on November 11, 1995. By the summer of 1998, the AMBC raised more than $195 million for the construction of the monument with the help of a small group of high-profile individuals, including senator Bob Dole, actor Tom Hanks, and the founder and CEO of Federal Express, Fred Smith. Construction for the monument began in September 2001 following the approval of Austrian-American Architect Friedrich St. Florian's design. The monument's construction was completed in April 2004 and was dedicated one month later by President George W. Bush. Since its initial completion, it has not undergone any further construction or renovations.

The large size of the monument's plaza exudes a sense of significance with the off-white stonework similar to the Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, and the framing of the Reflecting Pool. Robert Uth notes that the similarity of the design of the National World War II Memorial with the other monuments at the National Mall contributes to its historical significance by placing it amongst the other "important chapters in the American experience."

In the words of John S. D. Eisenhower, the National World War II Memorial design was to preserve "the broadest significance of the war experience to all Americans." The circular shape of the plaza signifies the eternal memory of the men and women that died during the war. The vertical pillars of the fifty states and territories of the United States provide a sense of victory as they tower over those that are standing in the central plaza. The staggering number of stars in the Commemorative Area (western wall), representing the 405,399 fallen soldiers, brings forth the scale of the American lives lost during the war. The 24 bas reliefs on the eastern end of the memorial grounds depict various moments during the war that contributed to the overall success of the Allied powers. Finally, as noted by Grooms, the monument's grounds contain dirt from the fourteen overseas American World War II burial grounds operated by the AMBC.

World War II veterans commonly mention how there is not a day that passes in which they do not think of their friends and comrades from the war. An opportunity to share in that remembrance is what the monument provides to the collective memory of the war. While this monument is a generally positive contribution to the collective memory of the World War II generation, its overall design fails to differentiate the soldiers and their individual experiences and journeys fully. For example, many minorities joined the American war effort as a means of social progression and to escape racial discrimination. But the contents of the memorial do not address this historical discourse. Instead, the memories of these groups cluster together, to only be remembered by their deaths.

Of the 24 bas-relief panels along either side of the ceremonial entrance, only two panels refer to a specific minority group of soldiers: women. Both the "Women in Military" and "Rosie the Riveter/ Aircraft Construction" panels are on the north side of the ceremonial entrance. The panels are an artistic representation of the contribution of women, both domestically and abroad, without descriptions or explanations. There is no mention of the social restrictions that drove women to join the war effort. In an interview for the "Voices of WWII," Elizabeth McIntosh recalls gratefully accepting a job as an OSS Officer for the Army, stating that "They [U.S. officials] asked me if I would go overseas. That was my idea of heaven because I didn't want to stick around watching [the war]."

According to the official United States Army website, "The selfless sacrifice of these brave women ushered in new economic and social changes that would forever alter the role of women in American society." One of the monument's two bas reliefs depicts Rosie the Riveter but does not expand on how important she was as a cultural figure. There is no explanation for how she was a beacon for women to join the workforce in factories and mills during a time when it was unheard of for women to have such jobs. There is no mention of women's importance in picking up the slack while men were overseas fighting the war.

In addition to institutionalized sexism, the Second World War occurred during racism in American society and policy-making, such as Jim Crow laws. During the war, minority soldiers served in segregated units. Battling racism at home by fighting abroad was a common tactic for those that sought social progression. In African-American communities, for example, this was referred to as the "Double V Campaign." The progress toward racial equality was slow, difficult, and sometimes tragic. When the war ended and the soldiers returned home, most minority soldiers did not receive the same warm welcome from the general public and were often mistreated or worse. In 1946, Army Sergeant Isaac Woodard Jr. was beaten and permanently blinded by a South Carolina Sheriff while exiting a bus. As noted by Waxman, Woodard returned home in his Army uniform from fighting overseas.

In an interview with the Friends of the National World War II Memorial, World War II veteran, Japanese-American Army Technician Terry Shima of the 442nd regiment, a fighting unit composed of American soldiers of Japanese descent, recalled Japanese-American soldiers not "being accepted as Americans" by the American public. Although Shima considered himself lucky to be from Hawai'i, where his family did not experience the Japanese internment camps, he shared that the United States government disowned the 442nd, changing their draft classification from 1A, which meant the unit was fit for military duty to 4C, meaning "Alien, unfit for military duty" even though every member of his regiment was a legal U.S. citizen. "We had a mission," he said, "to go into combat and prove our loyalty."

Friedrich St. Florian designed the National World War II Memorial to "tell the world there was a generation of Americans, who through their gallantry and courage and conviction truly changed the course of world history, and that we must remember them." Stories like Isaac Woodard's, Terry Shima's, Elizabeth McIntosh's, and the thousands of other soldiers looking for social progression are not visible throughout this monument. It eliminates their individuality and marks them in history as soldiers, not as people. And while the memorial does an excellent job of capturing the importance and scale of this moment in American history while creating a positive image of those that served, it fails to recognize the contributions of minority soldiers that expanded beyond the battlefield. While highlighting and celebrating the sacrifices of American World War II veterans, the National World War II Memorial falls short in recognizing the individuality of these soldiers as people. It disregards the history of discrimination that minority servicemen and women faced during and following the Second World War.

(edited by Brad Poss and Laura Bailey)

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