The Greatest Generation in America

Author: Tom Brokaw
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-01-27
Features: Tom Brokaw, one of the most renowned journalists in the United States, has received numerous awards for his reporting, including two Pulitzer Prizes, one Peabody Award, and several Emmys. In 1984, on the 40th anniversary of the D-Day landings, he traveled to France for a reporting trip and was deeply moved. After 15 years of reflection, he wrote this book, The Greatest Generation; a collection of the lives of an entire generation, a history drawn from the experiences of many individuals, interwoven to form a grand and thought-provoking tapestry. The sequel, The Greatest Generation Speaks, is equally captivating. Indeed, this was a generation with extraordinary experiences. No one can match their journey—they were witnesses to the Great Depression and World War II. "Born into the years of the Great Depression, they saw their parents' businesses collapse, their farms and jobs lost, and their hopes dashed. As the economy began to recover, war broke out again in Europe and Asia." Thus, "this generation was called to the parade grounds, given orders to train for war, and left the vast ranches of Saline County, South Dakota, abandoned their jobs on Georgia's Amsterdam Avenue, abandoned the assembly lines of Detroit's factories, and abandoned their social status on Wall Street, and abandoned their studies." "They fought on the bloody lands of France, Belgium, Italy, and Austria under the most primitive conditions. They fought all the way to a long chain of islands in the South Pacific, in the terrifying skies, far from their homeland's coast, in the hostile seas. Without their efforts and sacrifices, the world today would be far different." They were also builders of post-war American economy. As soon as the war ended, they were "briefly celebrating the joy and then immediately set about rebuilding the life and world they longed for." Although the war left them scarred, it also shaped them. These people "were more mature than their actual age, disciplined by military training and sacrifice. They were loyal to personal responsibility, duty, honor, and principles—these values." This nation has not forgotten their sacrifices, and the Great Society's GI Bill became the United States' "glorious, enduring commitment to the future." American university campuses were "packed with young people around the age of 25, who graduated after receiving degrees, determined to make up for lost time. They now form a new army, bringing the same enthusiasm and discipline they had in the war to all areas of American life—industry, science, art, public policy. They helped transform the wartime economy into the most powerful peacetime economy in history. They made breakthroughs in medicine and other scientific fields. They brought new art and literature to the world. They began to understand the necessity of federal civil rights legislation. They gave America the Medicare program." Moreover, they also "helped former enemies rebuild their economic and political systems." They were also traditionalists, "shocked by the social and political chaos of the 1960s. Many of them hated long hair and free love, especially what they saw as an insult to the flag. But they did not lose hope in the new generation." What is particularly valuable is that women of this generation were no less than their male counterparts. "The women of the Greatest Generation have convincingly shown that they can do more than just traditional jobs—they are the foundation of women's liberation." Of course, this generation was not perfect, and they made mistakes. "They allowed McCarthyism and racism to go unchallenged for a long time. When a new war broke out, many veterans initially failed to see the difference between the Vietnam War and the war they had experienced." This is the story of the "Greatest Generation" told by Tom Brokaw.