May 26

May 26 Vets on Memorial Day

Chicago, Demonstrations, Donald J. Trump, Performance, Protest, Public Declarations

“HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY TO ALL, INCLUDING THE SCUM THAT SPENT THE LAST FOUR YEARS TRYING TO DESTROY OUR COUNTRY THROUGH WARPED RADICAL LEFT MINDS, WHO ALLOWED 21,000,000 MILLION PEOPLE TO ILLEGALLY ENTER OUR COUNTRY, MANY OF THEM BEING CRIMINALS AND THE MENTALLY INSANE, THROUGH AN OPEN BORDER THAT ONLY AN INCOMPETENT PRESIDENT WOULD APPROVE, AND THROUGH JUDGES WHO ARE ON A MISSION TO KEEP MURDERERS, DRUG DEALERS, RAPISTS, GANG MEMBERS, AND RELEASED PRISONERS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD, IN OUR COUNTRY SO THEY CAN ROB, MURDER, AND RAPE AGAIN — ALL PROTECTED BY THESE USA HATING JUDGES WHO SUFFER FROM AN IDEOLOGY THAT IS SICK, AND VERY DANGEROUS FOR OUR COUNTRY”

— President Donald J. Trump, Truth Social Post on Memorial Day 2025

“He’s a war hero because he was captured. I like people that weren’t captured, okay? I hate to tell you.””

— Donald J. Trump, Statement about Senator John McCain, July 18, 2015

According to exit polls conducted by the Washington Post, 34% of veterans voted for Vice President Kamala Harris in 2024, while 65% voted for President Donald J. Trump. Veterans comprised 13% of the electorate. Based on the speeches I heard today, I suspect that those veterans who gathered at Chicago’s Vietnam War Memorial on Chicago’s riverwalk all voted for Harris. The gathering was decidedly anti-war and anti-Trump..

In Trump’s vernacular, those veterans are “scum . . . with warped radical left minds.” He also might throw in “lunatics,” another overused pejorative that Trump tosses around. The veterans who spoke and those who listened differ from Trump in one important respect. Unlike bone-spur Trump, they served the country, some presumably facing combat in Vietnam, Iraq, or Afghanistan. Each veteran fought to protect the First Amendment, so whether Trump agrees with them or not, each has more than earned the right to speak out under the aegis of the First Amendment.

In keeping with the solemn day, those who participated came largely sign-free. I recall only one very brief chant. Appropriately, the 50 or 60 people who gathered were subdued and respectful. By and large, those who assembled were older—some of those who weren’t veterans may have been in the streets of Chicago during the 1968 Democratic Convention, or at protests following President Richard Nixon’s 1970 incursion into Cambodia.

The demonstration—although ‘ceremony’ may be the more apt term—was sponsored by the Chicago chapter of About Face, Veterans Against the War. Before the speeches began, I asked one of the organizers, “So the name ‘About Face’ reflects a turn from warrior to peacenik that occurred after seeing the horrors of war?” I received no pushback. In fact, the organizer pointed me to a book about military commands and protocol, saying the phrase means ‘making a 180º turn in the opposite direction.’

In addition to castigating Trump generally, the speakers focused on the following three issues: (i) ending the “genocide” in Gaza; (ii) reversing the cuts already made by the Trump Administration to the Veterans Administration staff and budget; and (iii) improving mental health treatment for veterans. The speakers included: Nazek Sankari, with U.S. Palestinian Community Network; Joe Miller, with Vietnam Veterans Against the War; Adelena M. Marshall, with National Nurses United; Aimee Potter, with American Federation of Government Employees; Jackson Potter, Vice President of the Chicago Teachers Union; and Aaron Hughes, a veteran who deployed to Iraq in 2003 and 2004. The Master of Ceremonies was Dan (no last name, at least that I heard).

When the speeches ended, Adam Gottlieb, a cantorial soloist for Tzedek, an international anti-Zionist synagogue, led a band of musicians and singers performing as Songs of Liberation.

By and large, the speakers were extremely thoughtful, poised, and articulate. Dan set the tone with his remarks, addressing George Floyd and yesterday’s demonstrations commemorating his murder; noting veteran suicides; reminding everyone that the death toll in Gaza exceeds 50,000 Palestinians; and remembering the over 3,000,000 Vietnamese who died during the Vietnam War. Toward the end of his introductory remarks, Dan tossed out an interesting line, thoughtfully suggesting that “Collective memory is a political act.” It took me a minute to wrap my head around that pithy phrase, but then I thought of Trump at Arlington Cemetery today—how he remembers past wars. Then I thought about how the folks gathered together along the Chicago River remember those same wars. We spin historic milestones to fit our own narratives, which are often political.

Dan also had one interesting tidbit; one that angered him. The organizers had notified all the major media outlets about the event, hoping to garner some Memorial Day coverage. I had assumed several local stations would send television cameras because Trump would be participating in a wreath ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery. The stations would want to add local color to their Memorial Day packages. Unfortunately, for Dan and the other organizers, local media chose instead to cover several parades, as well as an event in Grant Park attended by Mayor Brandon Johnson.

Nazek Sankari spoke second. She was quite measured—even keeled—but not much new ground was covered. After attending well over 50 pro-Palestinian rallies, I’ve heard the arguments countless times before. Not that Sankari was wrong, but at this point, I tend to tune out.

I did like the remarks by Adelena M. Marshall and Aimee Potter. Both focused on veteran health benefits, particularly on the cuts that the Trump Administration has already made to benefits, and on mental health issues. Potter focused on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (“PTSD”), although I don’t remember whether she used that terminology. But see did recall veterans telling her, “You don’t get over it; you just learn to live with it.” Unfortunately, some can’t live with it, choosing suicide instead.

In referring to the Trump budget cuts, Adelena Marshall noted that hotels have at least two people at the front desk, but some VA medical facilities now have just one. She led the group in the day’s only chant, demanding, ”Care not cuts.”

As a veteran of the Iraq War, Aaron Hughes echoed the “. . . learn to live with it” remark, which resonated given his firsthand experience.

As noted, Gottlieb and Songs For Liberation closed the ceremony out with some musical numbers, including Woody Guthrie’s All You Fascists Bound to Lose. Afterwards, I told Gottlieb that as a general proposition, demonstrations need more music. He definitely agreed. I suggested the Jefferson Airplane, which obviously dates me.

People ask me how I can cover so many demonstrations, which is a fair question. Today’s ceremony was a good way to remember those who served, particularly those killed in the line of duty. It was certainly a better use of my time than heading out to a mattress sale. In my own way, I liked doing something that counter-balanced Trump’s highly inappropriate and self-centered remarks earlier today.

In closing, I should note, the Trump Administration has announced plans to cut the VA’s work force by 17%, or about 82,000 employees. Everett Kelley, the national president of the American Federation of Government Employees, said:

The VA has been severely understaffed for many years, resulting in longer wait times for veterans in need. The DOGE plunder of career VA employees, adding to the illegal mass firings of thousands of probationary employees, can only make matters worse. Veterans and their families will suffer unnecessarily, and the will of Congress will be ignored.

I hope those veterans who voted for Trump now see the error of their ways.

[Click on an Image to Enlarge It. The Images Are Not Necessarily in Exact Chronological Order]