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Stopping the Shooting Did Not Bring Peace

Schenectady Gazette

August 13 1988

Peace is coming because the people of making the peace. It was during the planning stages for the

May Day demonstrations against the war in Vietnam that I first saw this slogan. It seemed absurd at

first. How could the people of America do what the government refused to do? Step-by-step, I began to

realize it was the only hope for bringing American soldiers home alive.

When I came home from Vietnam, I was obsessed with the need to end the war. It was clear that we

could not win. I felt obligated to those who were still there to work for peace. At that time, however, Ithought peace was the absence of war. Many of us thought that the peace movement and ant-war

movement were one and the same. They are not. Peace is a deeper process going beyond keeping the

safety catch on our weapons. Peace is a constructive resolution of conflict that dignifies all participants.

Romantic? Yes! Visionary? Yes! Practical? Absolutely! Without that dignity violence moves to a different

arena. That is what we have with Vietnam today. Economic, social and political violence.

The United States and Vietnam are not at peace: we are just not engaged in a shooting war. Peace must

come between these two countries, with these two cultures, if peace is to come to the lives of Vietnam

veterans. We are not just veterans, we are Vietnam veterans. That means our psyches are imprinted

with the Vietnam experience. There is a relationship between attitudes toward Vietnam and towardVietnam veterans. As we deal with our experiences during the war, we find ourselves dealing with those

who lived, fought and died in Vietnam. We wonder about those we knew, friends and foe. We reflect on

the land we walked upon, flew over and the rivers we navigated. We remember the people and the

food. Their culture is alive within us. It is in our memories and in our dreams.

I've often heard it said that we should forget the war. It was a nightmare! It is over. There's nothing

more that can be done. Wrong. It isnt that easy; nor is it healthy to pretend that something does not

exist. True health comes from integrating our experiences and moving forward. Ask the Jews who

survived the Holocaust. Ask the winners of awards. We all know someone who is stuck in the past like

the tragedy of a high school football star who dreams of glory days.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder comes from the numbing process that we all use to survive a shocking

experience. We block out the pain long enough to take the appropriate action which will get us to

safety. The trouble comes when we do not undergo resensitizing. The numbness needs to give way to

the feelings we blocked. Otherwise, they will seek out in inappropriate times and ways. If we continue to

behave as if we are still in a dangerous situation, we will make our life worse than if we deal with the

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pain and go beyond it. Some get scared of the pain and embarrassed. They self-medicate through

alcohol and drugs; politics and bravado. It is a denial of pain that exacerbates the problem.

The same is true for our nation. In 1975, we went into a collective amnesia about the war in Vietnam.

With Orwellian logic, we declared Vietnam to be a non-country. The war became un-history. But we all

remember the days when Vietnam was a central part of our consciousness. We were intensely engagedwith the culture, the geography, the political and military leaders. Careers were made and broken

around the war. Families were split apart. Relationships developed and/or were destroyed.

For 13 years, the United States has tried to isolate Vietnam just as some vets have tried to deny their

own painful memories. It hasnt worked. But at long last, Vietnam is beginning to be dealt with. Peace is

coming because the people are making the peace. Americans are visiting, businessmen, veterans,

academics; even tourists are going to Vietnam. Conservatives are calling for diplomatic recognition.

Vietnamese boat people are calling for the opportunity to visit their families.

It's time for reconciliation both on a diplomatic level and on a cultural/psychological level. There are

many reasons. A significant one is that it will help the healing process of Vietnam veterans. Some of us

will go back to Vietnam. Not to meet the ghosts, but to meet that part of ourselves that was young,

alive, hopeful, despairing, afraid, lonely, confident and far from home. We will know that even we could

not destroy a culture. Losing was not the worst thing to do to us. Winning would not have been for the

best either. Then we will know that it was one of many experiences and we will focus on the adventures

to come.

Edward Murphy is a Vietnam veteran living in Saratoga Springs. Is a regular contributor to the Saturday

op-ed page.