Remember the Bonus Army! B.E.F.'s March on Washington,

[Dover]

“In the sad aftermath that always follows a great war, there is nothing sadder than the surprise of the returned soldiers when they discover that they are regarded generally as public nuisances. And not too honest.”

-- H.L. Mencken


WWI Vets block the steps of the Capitol, July 5, 1932

Story by the AP - http://www.parida.com/bonusmarch.html

____________________________________________________________________________


Long before the cries of "support the troops" became commonplace during every brutal U.S. military intervention, the powers-that-be made it clear how much they intended to follow their own counsel.


From Shays Rebellion in 1787 to the quarter-million homeless vets today, generation after generation of U.S. military personnel has suffered a lack of support from their government. The American soldiers who fought in World War I were no exception. In 1924, WWI vets were voted "Adjusted Compensation" by Congress: $1.25 for each day served overseas, $1.00 for each day served in the States. To the "doughboys", it was seen as a bonus.

Veterans owed $50 or less were paid immediately. Everyone else was given a certificate that would collect 4 percent interest with an additional 25 percent tacked on upon payment. However, there was a catch: the certificate was not redeemable until 1945...and a little something called "The Depression" was looming over the horizon.


One of the enlisted men stuck in such a predicament was Joe T. Angelo of Camden, New Jersey. In 1918, Private Angelo saved the life of a certain Major George S. Patton on a battlefield in France (Angelo was Patton's orderly). For his efforts, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.


In the spring and summer of 1932, disgruntled, broke, and unemployed veterans like Angelo got the idea to demand payment on the future worth of the aforementioned certificates. Anywhere from 17,000 to 25,000 former doughboys formed a Bonus Expeditionary Force (BEF), otherwise known as the "Bonus Army," and-bonus certificates in hand-they marched on Washington to picket Congress and President Herbert Hoover.


While they may have fought in Europe as an integrated army, the men of the BEF did not invite Jim Crow to this battle. Arriving from all over the country, alone or with wives and children, both black and white veterans of huddled together, mostly across the Potomac River from the Capitol, in what were called "Hoovervilles," in honor of the president who adamantly refused to hear their pleas...cont'd

http://www.dissidentvoice.org/Aug05/MickeyZ0831.htm

_________________________________________________________

Also PBS did a documentary titled, March Of The Bonus Army (currently being played on PBS, check schedule).
Also for sale:
http://www.shoppbs.org/sm-pbs-the-march-of-the-bonus-army-dvd--pi-2273279.html

___________________________________________________________

Marching on History - Anacostia and the veteran's tent city

http://www.smithsonianmagazine.com/issues/2003/february/marching.php?page=5

___________________________________________________________

The Bonus Army

In 1924, a grateful Congress voted to give a bonus to World War I veterans - $1.25 for each day served overseas, $1.00 for each day served in the States. The catch was that payment would not be made until 1945.

However, by 1932 the nation had slipped into the dark days of the Depression and the unemployed veterans wanted their money immediately.

In May of that year, some 15,000 veterans, many unemployed and destitute, descended on Washington, D.C. to demand immediate payment of their bonus. They proclaimed themselves the Bonus Expeditionary Force but the public dubbed them the "Bonus Army." Raising ramshackle camps at various places around the city, they waited.

The veterans made their largest camp at Anacostia Flats across the river from the Capitol. Approximately 10,000 veterans, women and children lived in the shelters built from materials dragged out of a junk pile nearby - old lumber, packing boxes and scrap tin covered with roofs of thatched straw.

Discipline in the camp was good, despite the fears of many city residents who spread unfounded "Red Scare" rumors. Streets were laid out, latrines dug, and formations held daily. Newcomers were required to register and prove they were bonafide veterans who had been honorably discharged. Their leader, Walter Waters, stated, "We're here for the duration and we're not going to starve. We're going to keep ourselves a simon-pure veteran's organization. If the Bonus is paid it will relieve to a large extent the deplorable economic condition." ..cont'd

http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/snprelief4.htm

[Monkeyman]

1. Dover Thanks for reminding people what happened

It might just happen again if things don't change

[Dover]

2. If/when it DOES happen again, the Vets will have ALOT of company this time.

Everyone is finally getting it. Eyes wide open.

Packing my tent now...