Honoring Our Flag

Notes from the Lampert Library

Just in time for Flag Day, June 14, comes a story that makes one proud to be an American.

No country is perfect. The United States has made its mistakes: slavery, Japanese internment camps, segregation, treatment of the Native Americans, Prohibition. I’m sure you can add to the list.

Medal of HonorBut one of the things that makes the US different from many other countries is that eventually, our country tries to make amends and do the right thing.

On June 2, 2015, almost a hundred years after the end of WWI, President Obama corrected one of these wrongs by awarding the Medal of Honor to two valorous soldiers whose bravery was overlooked in that war. One of the soldiers was an African American; the other was a Jewish American.

Medal of honor ceremony 2015 JuneIt took Congress, prodded by both Shemin’s daughters and the Jewish War Veterans, to make the award possible. An exemption approved by Congress was required as Medal of Honor rules state that heroic actions must have taken place within five years.

Sargeant William SheminSergeant William Shemin received this highest military honor for repeatedly risking his life – and saving more than thirty lives – during a three day battle on the Vesle River in France. Fortunately, Sergeant Shemin survived, though wounded, and went on to a career in landscaping. He died in 1973. His elderly daughters, who advocated strenuously on their father’s behalf, accepted the award.

Shemin was recommended for a Distinguished Service Cross and a Purple Heart during his military service. Both Shemin and others felt that anti-Semitism prevented him from being awarded the Medal of Honor. However, Shemin said, “It was never about medals. It was about service to our country. It is fine with me.”

According to President Obama, “It takes our country too long, sometimes to [express its gratitude] because Sgt. Shemin served at a time when the contributions of Jewish Americans in uniform were too often overlooked. …We have work to do as a nation to make sure that all our heroes’ stories are told.”

Also receiving the Medal of Honor posthumously was Private Henry Johnson, an African American.

 

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