Forging The Future
December 7, 2018
On this 77th Commemoration of the attack on Pearl Harbor, we recall the "Unconquerable Spirit" of the United States during World War II. Those two words were central to a 1943 speech to an international audience by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. He called for cooperation between free nations, along with "mutual respect as a governing rule of conduct by all nations everywhere." FDR noted the "forging of that new international policy" and, on the American homefront, "the forging of the weapons" to defeat the forces of Germany Italy and Japan.
"First in the importance in the American scene has been the inspiring proof of the great qualities of our fighting men," Roosevelt said in his address from Congress. "They have demonstrated these qualities in adversity as well as in victory. As long as our flag flies over this capitol, Americans will honor the Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines who fought our first battles of this war against overwhelming odds. The heroes ... living and dead, of Wake and Bataan and Guadalcanal, of the Java Sea and Midway and the North Atlantic convoys. Their unconquerable spirit will live forever."
Through special events like this 77th Commemoration, we honor and remember all of our Pearl Harbor and World War II veterans. Their unconquerable spirit and enormous sacrifices were the reasons we survived this war and escaped tyranny.
