Forgotten Eagles® of Michigan
Michigan "War Time" clause excludes Those who served! Act 190 of 1965 "Uniformity of Service Dates"There are 200,000 Cold War Veterans residing in Michigan. They are not included in Michigan Veteran Law. This is because the law that defines a veteran contains a "war time" clause. The "war time" clause excludes those who served honorably in the armed forces of the United States during the Cold War. The Cold War was the period September 2, 1945 to December 26, 1991. By pegging veteran status to specific conflicts, or by the awarding of the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, is in itself exclusionary because it is not uniformly awarded, and it does an injustice to those men and women who served during periods other than Korea, Vietnam, and the War on Terror.
Michigan Act 190 of 1965 "Uniformity of Service Dates" discredits Cold War veteran service by not mentioning the 45-year Cold War period. Further the Act diminishes the great achievment of winning a conflict against a determined enemy, the Soviet Union. This is why the American Legion took up this issue by advocating for changes in this defining Act in Michigan Law.
The American Legion, Dept. of MI in convention June 18-21, 2009 passed with a unanimous vote that this be resolved. "That Act 190 of 1965 and subseuent amendments define veteran as any person who served in the active military forces on the United States honorably during any period;" and, it was finally resolved, "That the phrase "Cold War" be included in the mentioned Act when reffering to the period September 2, 1945 to December 26, 1991."
By amending Act 190 of 1965 to include the service of those who served during the Cold War will restore a long overdue injustice. And Further, it will establish parity in the Veteran community. Sociologists have a term that describes this condition. It is called relative deprivation and refers to the condition when segments of our population feel their situation so unjust because there is a significant difference between the conditions in their lives and their expectations, they react with social movements. For example, African Americans felt this way after the Civil War. They had the rights of citizenship but they had many restrictions placed upon them. Women felt this way in the early 20th Century and it led to the women's suffrage movement that was resolved in 1920 with the adoption of the Twentieth Amendment to the United States Constitution. World War I veterans were not paid their promised veteran bonuses until massive demonstrations in Washington. Now in Michigan we have 200,000 Cold War veterans not included in State Law and are not eligible for State benefits.Their relative deprivation is reflected in statements like "I never felt my service contributed to anything or was appreciated by our Nation, Society or Government". The United States Department of Veterans Affairs and Michigan's Department of Military and Veterans Affairs call these veterans 'Peace Time' veterans.I would like to believe this is an oversight, but it is not. It's an undervalueing of their contribution in the Cold War. It is not appropriate for Cold War veterans. That is why I advocated for the resolution as an amicable way to include the Cold War veterans into our veteran community. And, further by amending Act 190 Cold War veterans will take their rightful place in our states history.
Finally, the grand and glorious victory in the Cold War prevented the nuclear annihilation of our Country. The Cold War victory was a unique victory and it preserved our Nation. The Cold War should be included in our State's Laws so that the deeds and service of Cold War veterans will never be forgotten and future generations will know about the Cold War.
Don Lotter, Commander
American Legion Post No. 7