The Significance Of Memorial Day
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Americans will celebrate Memorial Day on May 29, 2023. The federal holiday is observed annually on the last Monday in May. It honors all military personnel who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. This includes the men and women in the Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, and Navy.
The first national Memorial Day celebration is credited to John A. Logan. On May 30, 1868, the former civil war general led a group of 5,000 to Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. They placed American flags and flowers on the graves of the 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers buried there. Some historians believe Logan chose the date because it did not fall on the anniversary of any Civil War battle. Others think it was selected because flowers would be in bloom throughout the country. This would make it easy to decorate the graves.
By 1890, all the Northern States had adopted what was then called Decoration Day. But the Southern States continued to honor their dead soldiers on different days. They only began observing the holiday after it was extended to include the soldiers killed in World War I. Texas, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana still have a separate holiday to commemorate their perished Confederate soldiers.
In 1968, the US Congress declared Memorial Day a federal holiday. The lawmakers also moved the date to the last Monday in May so that Americans could enjoy a three-day weekend. The change has caused the holiday to lose some significance. Kids think of Memorial Day as the start of summer, while adults see it as an opportunity to shop for bargains.
In December 2000, President Bill Clinton signed the National Moment of Remembrance Act to remind Americans of the holiday's real meaning. The law urges citizens to observe a minute of silence at 3:00 pm (local time) to honor the brave men and women who have sacrificed their lives for the safety and freedom of the country. This Memorial Day, take a minute from your busy schedule to pay your respects to the fallen heroes.
Resources: Military.com, Wikipedia.org, History.com
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73 Comments
blake2over 1 yeari want to join the army
hayleigh0409over 1 yearMy mom's prior army and my dad is active duty air force. I want to be in the Navy.
giwucokafaruover 1 yearmy uncles in the milatary and he is alive but he,s at the docter right now.
waltermatteoover 1 yearThanks for your service fellow soilders
cutepinkloverover 1 yearPlz honor those who risked there live protecting American and thank them
flower1212over 1 yearWow
zzyover 1 yearMemorial is such a special day that it takes one day off of school so we can take concern of our fellow family members.- dekucyketatuabout 1 yearreally thats so cool
adroit_avimimusover 1 yearIt's pretty sad how many people tend to forget the real meaning of Memorial Day, and instead, like stated in the article, see it as a chance for shopping sales or the beginning of summer fun time
lee1324over 1 yearAnzac Day and Memorial Day always reminds me of captain Albert Jaka. I'm not related to him but he’s a war hero to the battle of Gallipoli.
tyler_paisley4over 1 yearMy dad was in the Military. He's still alive. Every Memorial Day, my dad will go to my grandpas grave stone and clean it and put flowers on it to make it look nice.- tyler_paisley4over 1 yearMy grandpa died in a motorcycle accident.😭😭😭
imfromkoreaover 1 yearAww I'm so sorry princess1507😞😔
philliesphan287over 1 yearLots of people that I know think of Memorial Day as a day off from school and not anything else. I'm glad it has been getting more attention this year.
