Sixty-two years ago today, five Marines and a Navy corpsman went to the top of Mt. Suribachi on Iwo Jima to raise the second American flag and inadvertently be photographed in one of America's most iconic photos.
Clint Eastwood recently directed "Flags of Our Fathers," a chronicle of the events of the enormous moment for the country - but simply another task to be done for the men involved.
You would do yourself a great service to watch the movie, but an even bigger service to read the book of the same title by James Bradley, the son of one of the flag-raisers.
The book depicts the lives of the flag-raisers from infancy through early training in the Marine Corps, campaigns in the Pacific, the battle for Iwo Jima, the raising of the flag, the tragic deaths of half of the flag-raisers and the effects of the photograph on the surviving men and the country.
Bradley does an excellent job of describing the feeling of living in that era, the rigorous training involved and the tactics for defeating the Japanese on Iwo Jima.
He does an even better job in depicting the camaraderie between the men involved and the idea of fighting for the man on the left and on the right - and not for a nation far away.
He describes the consequences of allowing a dispassionate government and money-grubbing aristocrats to meddle in a tragic but noble occurrence.
The men, as seen from left to right in the photo, are Ira Hayes, Franklin Sousley, John Bradley and Harlon Block in the front, and Michael Strank and Rene Gagnon in the back. These six men - among thousands who fought in World War II - were lucky and unlucky enough to be caught in this moment. Three died on that island and the other three continued to make sacrifices throughout their lives as a consequence of a single moment.
As a nation, we still owe these men an enormous debt of gratitude. This photograph inspired a nation that was beginning to tire of the war to redouble their efforts and sacrifices.
It is a representation of the pride and esprit de corps of the Marine Corps.
It has been an inspiration for movies, books and music, and a comparison was made in a flag raising among the debris of the World Trade center.
I have a framed copy of the photograph as a centerpiece in my living room, and it serves as a personal inspiration every day.
While the elegance and simplicity of the photograph make it special to the American culture, I contend all photographs of American troops are iconic in their own way.
Look closely at a photograph of a soldier patrolling the streets of Baghdad and you will see a strength you can barely fathom.
Look closely at a picture of one Marine carrying another through a rice paddy in Vietnam and you will see the deepest sort of devotion.
Look closely at a sailor fighting a ship fire in the middle of the Pacific and you will see a mastery of fear.
Look closely at an airman tail gunner over Europe and you will see a grim acceptance of duty.
In these iconic photographs you will see troops fighting, laughing, eating, sleeping and surviving one more day intensely, but with a natural skill born out of tradition.
It seems like we rally around the mantra of "support our troops" when it is fashionable. But as the photographs get older, the images overflow and the total number of days committed to the conflict grows, our enthusiasm fades. We gradually forget the warriors we have retired and others we have left in the field.
The story of the flag-raising on Mt. Suribachi reminds us they have never forgotten about us or each other, even while the rest of us continue with our mundane lives.
Write to Jason at jlhodson@bsu.edu
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