Today, Westwood Regional High School joins the nation in acknowledging Veterans Day. On Veterans Day America highlights the service of all members of the United States Armed Forces, both past and present.
WWI was a conflict that inflicted violence on a global scale. In its infancy, Veterans Day was called Armistice Day and was created by President Woodrow Wilson to highlight the cessation of hostilities in WWI. In addition, the holiday was created to honor members of the Armed Forces who had served in WWI.
By time the Cold War was underway, President Dwight Eisenhower signed a bill that changed Armistice Day to Veterans Day. With the holiday’s new title came the concept of acknowledging the service of all members of the Armed Forces, not just the members who served in WWI.
I leave you with some facts about Veterans Day provided by the United States Census Bureau:
As of 2019, there are 17.4 million military veterans in the United States.
As of 2019, 1.6 million military veterans in the United States are women.
Approximately 20% of veterans in the United States are African American or Hispanic.