Memorial Day Weekend is quickly approaching. For many residents, this weekend symbolizes the beginning of the summer. There will be a day off from work or school. There will be cookouts and celebrations. There will be a respite from our harried schedules of work and life with our children.
However, Memorial Day has a deeper and more solemn significance.
This is the day that was set aside in 1868 to remember those who died in the Civil War. Those four long years of conflict had virtually touched almost every single family in the United States since the death toll was enormous.
And as reason dictated among world leaders that the only way to solve a disagreement was to have another war, those who perished in subsequent wars like World Wars I and II, Vietnam and Korean, were also remembered on this day.
In the past few years, there has an effort by lawmakers in Washington to have Memorial Day return to its true meaning.
At 3 p.m., on Monday, a moment of silence is supposed to be observed for those who have died to maintain our freedoms.
We ask our readers to observe this designated moment of silence and tell their children about the experiences of family members who fought in wars and are now dead.
For too long, we in the United States were immune to the horrors of war and the inequality that exists among populations in the world. For many, September 11, 2001, brought these problems of the world to our shores. For us in Boston, the Marathon Bombings of last year brought these problems to our doorsteps.
On page 1 of today’s newspaper is a list of Memorial Day activites, Please try to attend.