People attend the 76th Commemoration on Pearl Harbor Attack at the Navy Memorial Plaza in Washington D.C., the Unite States, on Dec. 7, 2017. Japan launched a sneak attack on Pearl Harbor naval base on the island of Oahu in Hawaii in 1941, killing more than 2,400 U.S. military personnel and civilians. The next day, then President Franklin Roosevelt asked Congress for a declaration of war against Japan, which launched the American involvement in World War II. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu)
by Xinhua writers Zhu Dongyang, Guo Yina, Yin Bogu
WASHINGTON, Dec. 7 (Xinhua) -- At around 13:00 p.m. (1800 GMT) outside the U.S. Navy Memorial Plaza on Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington D.C., a senior veteran in a camel overcoat began, with the help of a navy officer, to stumble forward and fumble to move a wreath in front of over 100 guests.
Amidst the ensuing grievous music played by a navy band on this sunny yet chilling Thursday afternoon, the man slowly put his hand over the chest, the soldier beside him saluted the wreath, and members of the audience bowed their heads in a minute's silent mourning. It was all quiet except the rustling national flags flying above the crowd at half-staff in the piecing wind.
LAST LIVING WITNESS
It was part of the annual wreath laying ceremony held by the Navy Memorial in remembrance of the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. What was new this year was the attendance of retired Captain Robert K. Kaufman, the last living American to witness the Japanese surrender aboard the USS Missouri that ended World War II (WWII).
On Dec. 7, 1941, the Japanese army attacked the U.S. navy base at Pearl Harbor, causing the death of 2,335 U.S. service members and 68 civilians, and forcing the United States into WWII.
Kaufman, now in his 90th, was assigned to the United States Ship (USS) Wichita CA-45, where he participated in numerous convoy escort duties in the North Atlantic, protecting allied ships from German U-boats and Luftwaffe air attacks. After five war patrols, Kaufman was ordered to serve as the aide and flag lieutenant to Admiral Charles A. Lockwood, Jr.. It was with this assignment that Kaufman would be given the opportunity to witness the end of WWII.
"We went to the Missouri and witnessed the ceremony... In the deck log of the Missouri for the second of September 1945...there is a list of all of the visitors and I am the last one on that list," he recalled.
Rear admiral Frank Thorp IV, president & CEO of U.S. Navy Memorial, told Xinhua that the event was in honor of those who fell on Dec. 7, 1941, and to help the public understand and appreciate the history.
"It is a day in which we will live in infamy, and a day we'll never forget in the United States," he said. "The wreath is our sign of respect for those people who gave their lives at Pearl Harbor. The attack was 76 years ago, and many of the veterans at Pearl Harbor are no longer with us. May they never be forgotten, and we as a nation always honor their legacy of sacrifice for the cause of liberty."
"We want to maintain that peace with many nations around the world, so that we will never experience those horrible days of WWII again," he noted.
NATIONAL REMEMBRANCE DAY
Later in White House, U.S. President Donald Trump proclaimed December 7, 2017 as National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day witnessed by six Pearl Harbor survivors.
"76 years ago today, Japanese air and naval forces carried out an unprovoked surprise attack on American military installations in Oahu, Hawaii," Trump said. "This horrific act of aggression galvanized the Nation and propelled us into World War II. Americans would not awaken to another peaceful dawn for nearly 4 long years."
"Though the decades have passed, we are careful to never forget the lessons of Pearl Harbor," he said in the proclamation, encouraging "all Americans to observe this solemn day of remembrance... with appropriate ceremonies and activities."
He also urged all U.S. federal agencies and interested organizations and individuals to fly the U.S. flag at half-staff in honor of those who died as a result of their service at Pearl Harbor.
"Remember Pearl Harbor," he added.
STORY NEEDED TO BE TOLD
There was another commemoration ceremony that caught eyes, as the daughter of a U.S. navy veteran received a medal on her father's behalf.
Joe George was a young sailor 76 years ago who risked his life in the fiery Japanese ambush to rescue the last six survivors from the sinking USS Arizona, ignoring the order to cast off. But due to a lack of eyewitness account and his failure to follow orders, he was not rewarded while alive.
Thanks to the efforts of the relatives of the men he rescued, his story was taken all the way to the White House and the Congress, which allowed his daughter Ann Taylor to represent her father and receive a Bronze Star Medal for valor from a Navy admiral.
"Whatever medal it is doesn't matter," Taylor was quoted as saying by USA Today. "It was a story that needed to be told. It was a huge part of history, for those men who were true heroes."
U.S. Senator Cory Gardner, who helps introduce a resolution honoring Joe George, said the medal "handed the Navy an opportunity to finally do right by Joe and finally recognize the unquestionable courage and heroism he demonstrated during the attack on Pearl Harbor."
Senator Jeff Flake also said that "this had to be resolved by December 7," since "we're running out of time. We are losing these heroes every day."
