Vietnam Veteranos: Chicanos Recall the War

263 Pages·2004·0.998 MB·English

by  Lea Ybarra

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VIETNAM VETERANOS
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V I E T N A M
V E T E R A N O S
Chicanos
Recall
the War
LEA YBARRA
Foreword by Edward James Olmos
University of Texas Press
austin
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The poem “The Darkness of War,” pages 239–240, is published by
permission of the author, Juan Carlos Heredia.
Copyright © 2004 by the University of Texas Press
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
First edition, 2004
Requests for permission to reproduce material from this work should
be sent to Permissions, University of Texas Press, P.O. Box 7819,
Austin, TX 78713-7819.
(cid:2)(cid:3) The paper used in this book meets the minimum requirements of
ansi/niso z39.48-1992 (r1997) (Permanence of Paper).
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Ybarra, Lea.
Vietnam veteranos : Chicanos recall the war / Lea L. Ybarra ;
foreword by Edward James Olmos.—1st ed.
p. cm.
Includes index.
isbn0-292-70225-6 (cloth : alk. paper)—isbn0-292-70244-2
(pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Vietnamese Conflict, 1961–1975—Participation, Mexican
Americans. 2. Vietnamese Conflict, 1961–1975—Personal
narratives, American. 3. Vietnamese Conflict, 1961–1975—
Veterans—United States. 4. Veterans—United States.
5. Mexican American soldiers—Vietnam. I. Title.
ds559.8.m39 y23 2004
959.704(cid:2)3(cid:2)09236872073—dc22
2003018270
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This book is dedicated
to my brother Tanis, who, we thank God, came home alive,
physically and mentally;
to my cousin Raymond, who never quite overcame the trauma
of Vietnam and lived his short life lost in a world of his own;
to my cousin José, who lost his youth, his dreams, and
his life in Vietnam.
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CONTENTS
Foreword by Edward James Olmos ix
Preface xi
Acknowledgments xiii
PART ONE The Vietnam War and the Mexican American
Community 1
1. Introduction 3
PART TWOVeterans Recall the War 13
2. Idealism, Patriotism, and Politics 15
Gilberto 15
Tanis 26
Alejandro 33
Charley 39
Leonel 45
Tony 51
Raúl 59
Antonio 68
Guillen 75
John 84
3. A Matter of Conscience 95
Obed 95
Ricardo 101
Frank 110
4. Psychological and Medical Issues in the Aftermath of
Vietnam 121
Ray 121
Lupe 130
David 136
Joe 146
Daniel 150
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viii Contents
5. The Impact of War on Family 160
Francisco 160
Marcello 164
Robert 171
Jay 179
Connie 184
Frank and Socorro 192
PART THREE Overview of Issues Discussed by the Veterans 207
6. The Impact of Differing Levels of Political and Cultural
Awareness 209
7. Psychological and Medical Problems 223
8. What Did It All Mean? 232
9. Conclusion 236
10. The Darkness of War by Juan Carlos Heredia 239
Notes 241
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FOREWORD
Edward James Olmos
I was born in 1947, just after the Second World War, and my life and
thoughts of patriotism were established for me long before I got here.
From the time I can remember, and I am sure I mean from the time I was
born, I can recall hearing about the heroic deeds of Mexican Americans,
Chicanos, during our country’s wars. It was part of our culture, part
of our heritage, better yet, part of life itself. As a matter of fact, it served
as the cornerstone of the pride of our people. Fighting for one’s coun-
try was an integral part of living. We were bred on this. I will forever
remember hearing about a father or brother, uncle or cousin, niece or
nephew who was joining or returning, or who had died in the line of
duty for our country.
My eternal gratitude to Dr. Lea Ybarra and all the Chicanos who
participated in this book, for they have brought us closer to understand-
ing the incredible plight not only of Mexican Americans but of the hu-
man race in general during times of war. Within the pages of this book,
we truly get a candid look at war, patriotism, fear, and love.
Bless all who have helped us with this compelling assemblage of
truth. What can one say other than thank you to all who have partici-
pated, to those who have lived the stories we are about to embrace. It is
part of my upbringing to be proud of God and country, but with this in-
timate look at the people who have had family or who have themselves
been in a war, I, as well as thousands of others, will understand a little
more of how we as humans relate to, feel, and handle the overall impact
of war.
My culture will benefit immensely from these strong and com-
pelling stories, but my hope is that all cultures of this incredible society
we call America will read the oral histories of Chicano Vietnam veter-
ans and their families and learn. One cannot quote enough times George
Santayana’s immortal statement, “Those who do not remember the past
are condemned to repeat it.”