2023 -- H 6226

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2023

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H O U S E   R E S O L U T I O N

THANKING AND HONORING AMERICA AND RHODE ISLAND'S VIETNAM WAR

VETERANS FOR THEIR SERVICE AND SACRIFICE ON "VIETNAM VETERANS DAY"

     

     Introduced By: Representatives Azzinaro, Shekarchi, Blazejewski, Chippendale,
Kazarian, Casimiro, Casey, Edwards, Bennett, and Vella-Wilkinson

     Date Introduced: March 29, 2023

     Referred To: House read and passed

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     WHEREAS, Our Nation owes an unmeasurable debt to all those individuals who have

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served in the United States Armed Forces. Whether volunteering so another would not have to go

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or answering the call when drafted, our country's Vietnam vets, out of a profound and selfless

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sense of duty, shouldered the burden of long periods away from home, difficult and frequently

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dangerous training and deployments, and inherent physical, mental, and emotional risks. Such is

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the debt we owe to Vietnam War Veterans; and

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     WHEREAS, More than 2.7 million United States Armed Forces personnel served in

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Vietnam from 1965 to 1975, with approximately 21,000 members from Rhode Island; and

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     WHEREAS, Over 58,000 members of the Armed Forces lost their lives in that conflict,

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and more than 304,000 were wounded. The casualties included more than 200 service members

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who called Rhode Island their home; and

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     WHEREAS, Vietnam Veterans were not accorded the same welcome home as those who

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served in other wars. Rather, those who had answered the call to serve the United States in

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Vietnam were often treated with animosity by their fellow countrymen upon arriving home; and

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     WHEREAS, Though the Vietnam War was unpopular at the time and continues to have a

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complex and divisive history today, the brave American citizens who left their homes to serve in

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Vietnam should be fully supported and honored by a grateful nation; and

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     WHEREAS, Remembering the service of Vietnam Veterans honors their bravery and

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ensures that they are not forgotten. We remain deeply appreciative of their sacrifice and

 

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steadfastly supportive of them and their families who still often grapple with the visible and

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unseen scars of war; and

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     WHEREAS, In 2017, the Rhode Island General Assembly passed Rhode Island General

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Law ยง 25-2-20, which sets aside the twenty-ninth day of March annually to be known as

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"Vietnam Veterans Day"; now, therefore, be it

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     RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island hereby

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thanks and honors all of America's and Rhode Island's Vietnam War veterans, and asks that all

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Rhode Island residents remember their service and sacrifice on behalf of our nation on "Vietnam

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Veterans Day on March 29, 2023; and be it further

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     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to

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transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to the Honorable Daniel McKee, Governor of the

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State of Rhode Island, and Major General Christopher Callahan, Adjutant General of the State of

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Rhode Island.

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