20/03/2022
54 years ago today, the US Army carried out the Mỹ Lai Massacre.
Under orders from their commanding officers, American soldiers murdered several hundred Vietnamese civilians, including women's and children. Many of the women were gang-raped by soldiers before murdering them.
Warrant Officer Hugh Thompson and his flight crew attempted to stop the Massacre by shielding civilians, blocking soldiers and threatening to kill them if they continued. He later testified against the Massacre participants.
It is impossible to count how many lives were saved by Thompson and his crew.
For this, Thompson was denounced as a traitor, and spent the rest of his life suffering from depression and PTSD. He died in 2006.
Of course, the Vietnamese survivors of the Massacre have no doubt suffered from trauma for the rest of their days as well.
Today, we remember the lives of those who were senselessly murdered, we honor the sacrifice of Hugh Thompson and his crew, and we consider what happens when we believe our government and their corporate media instead of the people trying to tell us the truth.
