The fight to protect the original meaning of Memorial Day seems to be a losing battle.
According to History.com, “Memorial Day, as Decoration Day gradually came to be known, originally honored only those lost while fighting in the Civil War. But during World War I the United States found itself embroiled in another major conflict, and the holiday evolved to commemorate American military personnel who died in all wars.”
In 1968, Congress passed a law known as the Uniform Monday Holiday Act. That legislation took effect in 1971, when Memorial Day was changed from each May 30th to the last Monday in May, and was declared a federal holiday.
Today, the meaning of Memorial Day seems to be allied with retail sales and picnics.
To quote History.com:
The Civil War, which ended in the spring of 1865, claimed more lives than any conflict in U.S. history and required the establishment of the country’s first national cemeteries. By the late 1860s, Americans in various towns and cities had begun holding springtime tributes to these countless fallen soldiers, decorating their graves with flowers and reciting prayers.
A Forgotten Remembrance of the Meaning of Memorial Day
For decades, Americans paused for a moment of prayer and reflection on the sacrifice of the thousands of soldiers who gave their lives to pay the price for our freedom. Wherever you are at 3 PM on Monday, May 29, 2017, we ask you to sacrifice a minute of your day to remember our fallen brothers and sisters.
Please join other Americans in reflecting on the greatest sacrifice men and women can give to others — their lives — on Memorial Day.
Arlington National Cemetery Remembers the Meaning of Memorial Day
