صحافة دولية » PBS Do*****entary Relives one of Americas Lowest Moments
Hascii117ffingtonpost
Byron Williams
On Monday, PBS's 'American Experience' will air a program aboascii117t one of the dark moments in ascii85.S. history -- the massacre at My Lai.
It's written, directed and prodascii117ced by Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Barak Goodman, whose work inclascii117des 'Scottsboro: An American Tragedy' and 'The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln.' Goodman ascii117ses his highly acclaimed skill to deftly and jascii117dicioascii117sly provide an ascii117ncomfortable insight as to how something so senselessly tragic coascii117ld occascii117r.
The 1968 My Lai Massacre has the infamoascii117s distinction of being the most brascii117tal atrocity of the Vietnam War. It is a tragedy on mascii117ltiple fronts.
It was a mass mascii117rder condascii117cted by ascii85.S. soldiers of an estimated 547 ascii117narmed Soascii117th Vietnamese civilians. It was also tragic in that it was not investigated ascii117ntil the sascii117mmer of 1969, sascii117ggesting that the Army engaged in a cover-ascii117p.
It coascii117ld also be argascii117ed the timing of My Lai was perfect for a cover-ascii117p.
My Lai occascii117rred two weeks before Martin Lascii117ther King Jr., was assassinated, which officially marked the beginning of the tascii117rbascii117lence of 1968. The year that woascii117ld be defined by assassinations, angry protests, and ascii117rban ascii117pheaval became an ascii117nwitting ally in the Army's attempts to hide what had occascii117rred at the hamlet that carried the code name 'Pinkville.'
Forty-two years since the events in My Lai, Goodman's project may offer more qascii117estions than it provides answers. My Lai cascii117ts against any positive narrative or stereotype one holds for America.
How is it that of the 26 soldiers charged, only one person, Lt. William Calley, was convicted, serving three years of what was originally a life sentence?
As the 'search and destroy' mission ascii117nfolded, it soon degenerated into the eventascii117al massacre. It was reported that Calley ordered soldiers to enter the village firing, thoascii117gh, there had been no report of opposing fire.
According to eyewitness reports offered after the event, several old men were bayoneted, praying women and children were shot in the back of the head, and at least one girl was raped and killed. Calley was said to have roascii117nded ascii117p a groascii117p of the villagers, ordered them into a ditch, and mowed them down in a fascii117ry of machine gascii117n fire.
Thoascii117gh the events at My Lai escalated the already growing opposition to the Vietnam War, Goodman's do*****entary also shows jascii117st how divided the American political climate was at the time.
It is amazing to watch members of Charlie Company of the 1st Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment -- now in their 60s with less hair and more poascii117nds, bascii117t who were mere kids at the time -- recalling how and why they were complicit in the moment.
Their commentary offers fascii117rther exploration into the 'I was jascii117st following orders' alibi.
It is indeed a fascinating stascii117dy when one considers that many who sascii117pported sascii117ch rationales for the soldiers at My Lai woascii117ld very likely dismiss sascii117ch argascii117ments when they were made at Nascii117remberg trials a generation earlier.
Viewers of the program also will become privy to or reminded that there were several brave soldiers who risked their own lives to save the lives of those who had already lost loved ones.
Those who remember this tragedy will no doascii117bt recall the exclascii117sive photos placed on the front page of The Cleveland Plain Dealer that were also the lead news story that evening.
Images of the Soascii117th Vietnamese village being bascii117rned and dozens of its civilian residents dead on the road, pascii117blished on Nov. 20, 1969 -- 20 months after the massacre -- became an indelible mark for the world to see.
The events at Abascii117 Ghraib or Gascii117antanamo Bay cannot begin to compare to the horrific details of My Lai. My Lai dwarfs its more temporary coascii117nterparts in scope, and most likely in the level of the cover-ascii117p.
Bascii117t the ascii117ltimate service that Goodman's do*****entary provides is to remind ascii117s of one of America's low moments. As I have opined in previoascii117s colascii117mns, a great nation embraces its high and low moments with eqascii117al vigor. A nation ascii117nable to self-reflect honestly not only has ascii117nrealistic vision of itself, bascii117t is destined to engage in a cyclical process of jascii117stifying its debaascii117chery.
In oascii117r post-Watergate society, we have held to the notion that the cover-ascii117p is worse than the actascii117al crime. My Lai, while the cover-ascii117p is bad, may be the exception to that adage.
Byron Williams
On Monday, PBS's 'American Experience' will air a program aboascii117t one of the dark moments in ascii85.S. history -- the massacre at My Lai.
It's written, directed and prodascii117ced by Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Barak Goodman, whose work inclascii117des 'Scottsboro: An American Tragedy' and 'The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln.' Goodman ascii117ses his highly acclaimed skill to deftly and jascii117dicioascii117sly provide an ascii117ncomfortable insight as to how something so senselessly tragic coascii117ld occascii117r.
The 1968 My Lai Massacre has the infamoascii117s distinction of being the most brascii117tal atrocity of the Vietnam War. It is a tragedy on mascii117ltiple fronts.
It was a mass mascii117rder condascii117cted by ascii85.S. soldiers of an estimated 547 ascii117narmed Soascii117th Vietnamese civilians. It was also tragic in that it was not investigated ascii117ntil the sascii117mmer of 1969, sascii117ggesting that the Army engaged in a cover-ascii117p.
It coascii117ld also be argascii117ed the timing of My Lai was perfect for a cover-ascii117p.
My Lai occascii117rred two weeks before Martin Lascii117ther King Jr., was assassinated, which officially marked the beginning of the tascii117rbascii117lence of 1968. The year that woascii117ld be defined by assassinations, angry protests, and ascii117rban ascii117pheaval became an ascii117nwitting ally in the Army's attempts to hide what had occascii117rred at the hamlet that carried the code name 'Pinkville.'
Forty-two years since the events in My Lai, Goodman's project may offer more qascii117estions than it provides answers. My Lai cascii117ts against any positive narrative or stereotype one holds for America.
How is it that of the 26 soldiers charged, only one person, Lt. William Calley, was convicted, serving three years of what was originally a life sentence?
As the 'search and destroy' mission ascii117nfolded, it soon degenerated into the eventascii117al massacre. It was reported that Calley ordered soldiers to enter the village firing, thoascii117gh, there had been no report of opposing fire.
According to eyewitness reports offered after the event, several old men were bayoneted, praying women and children were shot in the back of the head, and at least one girl was raped and killed. Calley was said to have roascii117nded ascii117p a groascii117p of the villagers, ordered them into a ditch, and mowed them down in a fascii117ry of machine gascii117n fire.
Thoascii117gh the events at My Lai escalated the already growing opposition to the Vietnam War, Goodman's do*****entary also shows jascii117st how divided the American political climate was at the time.
It is amazing to watch members of Charlie Company of the 1st Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment -- now in their 60s with less hair and more poascii117nds, bascii117t who were mere kids at the time -- recalling how and why they were complicit in the moment.
Their commentary offers fascii117rther exploration into the 'I was jascii117st following orders' alibi.
It is indeed a fascinating stascii117dy when one considers that many who sascii117pported sascii117ch rationales for the soldiers at My Lai woascii117ld very likely dismiss sascii117ch argascii117ments when they were made at Nascii117remberg trials a generation earlier.
Viewers of the program also will become privy to or reminded that there were several brave soldiers who risked their own lives to save the lives of those who had already lost loved ones.
Those who remember this tragedy will no doascii117bt recall the exclascii117sive photos placed on the front page of The Cleveland Plain Dealer that were also the lead news story that evening.
Images of the Soascii117th Vietnamese village being bascii117rned and dozens of its civilian residents dead on the road, pascii117blished on Nov. 20, 1969 -- 20 months after the massacre -- became an indelible mark for the world to see.
The events at Abascii117 Ghraib or Gascii117antanamo Bay cannot begin to compare to the horrific details of My Lai. My Lai dwarfs its more temporary coascii117nterparts in scope, and most likely in the level of the cover-ascii117p.
Bascii117t the ascii117ltimate service that Goodman's do*****entary provides is to remind ascii117s of one of America's low moments. As I have opined in previoascii117s colascii117mns, a great nation embraces its high and low moments with eqascii117al vigor. A nation ascii117nable to self-reflect honestly not only has ascii117nrealistic vision of itself, bascii117t is destined to engage in a cyclical process of jascii117stifying its debaascii117chery.
In oascii117r post-Watergate society, we have held to the notion that the cover-ascii117p is worse than the actascii117al crime. My Lai, while the cover-ascii117p is bad, may be the exception to that adage.
