Of course anyone thinking of making a career in the military probably pretended they never heard anything. I was on the backup team that day and we went out to try to retrieve the bodies. The squad leader ordered Thompson and his men to get out of the way. Some soldiers even jumped on the water buffalos, riding them around while trying to kill them with their bayonets. One of the instructors told me a story that he wished Hugh could hear. HistoryNet.com is brought to you by HistoryNet LLC, the worlds largest publisher of history magazines. Well, Hugh told them, if you just give it to me Ill take the medal, with a camera crew, to the first mens room I can find and Ill flush it down the toilet. This is a colonel he is talking to. So you were encouraged at that point? When the American people responded as they did in defense of Calley, it was really hard, especially for Hugh. Thompson landed his helicopter next to a ditch that contained 150 people many dead, but many others wounded and trying to escape. But in the end,. Medina and maybe higher. And he was a character, a real joker. Subscribe to receive our weekly newsletter with top stories from master historians. As murderous bloodlust unfolded on the ground below, Thompson and crew confronted fellow GIs to save numerous civilians from the fate of some 500 others that morning. A $300-million (minimum) gondola to Dodger Stadium? Out of the blue, our unit was called out onto the tarmac for an awards and decoration ceremony. Thats what keeps me going. Typically, when we post testimonies here on truthsaves, we're detailing conversion experiences. Hugh Thompson Jr. - Wikipedia I said, Thank you, sir, and went back to work. How did you feel about that? On March 16, 1998, Mr. Thompson and Mr. Colburn attended a service at My Lai marking the 30th anniversary of the massacre. Interview - Larry Colburn: Why My Lai, Hugh Thompson Matter Larry Colburn was a door gunner with crew chief Glenn Andreotta and Warrant Officer Hugh Thompson as pilot of a small scout . Hood to give testimony in the basement war room of the Pentagon. California cities shouldnt be deterred. A forgotten hero stopped the My Lai massacre 50 years ago today - Los US military helicopter pilot Hugh Thompson helped stop one of the most infamous massacres of the Vietnam War. Hugh told her he probably didnt have any family left. Having redeemed himself for other peoples mistakes, his heroic act was written in US Military history. He was saying: Ill never fly again. Many fellow GIs still dont think you did the right thing? After Hugh died, I was invited to Annapolis to speak one more time. Its like the line from the movie No Country for Old Men when the Vietnam veteran played by Josh Brolin, who responds to another guy who introduced himself and says he was in Nam too: Oh, you were in Vietnam too. And it turned out, after we dropped him off with the nun at the hospital, he didnt stay 24 hours. We had no direct radio contact with the men on the ground. Hood were returnees, but no one really zeroed in on what was happening. With Hugh, usually the more tense the situation, the more comical he would be. Mr. Thompson remained in combat, then returned to the United States to train helicopter pilots. And we did, the best we could. Did you fly with him much before My Lai? Thompson risked his life and career and had Lt. Calley shoot him. Jon Wiener is professor emeritus of history at UC Irvine, and working, with Mike Davis, on a book on Los Angeles in the 1960s. Nobody would be held responsible. There was some chatter since most of the people at Ft. Im not that much of a man., I always questioned, in my mind, did anybody know we all arent like that? Calley pointed his weapon at him and threatened him with a court-martial. We came in from altitude down to low level. On March 16, 1968, he was flying a mission in Vietnam and came across a large number of dead civilian bodies; and in pursuing surveillance, he discovered that those civilians had been killed, and the survivors were still under fire, by American forces. Id never seen nor heard of anything like that before, except in World War II. We were told by the prosecuting attorneys to keep our mouths shut, and I didnt advertise the fact I was at My Lai. You started out on an OH-23 scout helicopter? In harsh times, heroes are ordinary men doing extraordinary things. He said: They are coming this way. Whenever I felt discouraged about things, Hugh would remind me that if we get through to just one person, its worth it. By this time, Lt. William Calleys Charlie Company was reaching My Lai? Hugh said, Im going to take him on the right, which meant he was my target. Hannah's Testimony. Thompson felt obliged to return to military service when the Vietnam War began. That Is little Hugh!" It was "Little Hugh" sure enough. It was fresh enough that things hadnt changed much. It was a case of bloodlust. In 1998, 30 years after the massacre, Hugh Thompson and the two other crew members, Andreotta and Colburn, were awarded the Soldiers Medal (Andreotta posthumously), the United States Armys highest award for bravery not involving direct contact with the enemy. When Hugh gave his order, I distinctly remember pointing my weapon directly down at the ground, so there was no question. When I moved to the East Coast, I stopped at a VA hospital and had a list of things I thought I should get out. before the subcommittee, and then refused to release the transcripts of the testimony. From Testimony to Tragedy: My Lai in Personal Perspective Could you have just reported this and left, knowing youd at least made an effort? Did you have a sense that what you had seen at My Lai was and isolated incident or did you suspect similar atrocities were happening elsewhere? But despite Thompsons heroic actions, the Army tried to cover up the massacre. I flew in the 23 as a gunner through that summer, then I asked about throwing my hat into ring for a gunship where there was a little more armor and security. made a statement in Congress honoring Thompson, stating that the United States has lost a true hero, and the State of Louisiana has lost a devoted leader and dear friend. I got there and Ill never forget my mother taking me into the kitchen and telling me if I didnt want to tell these people anything, I didnt have to. And it turned out it was a good thing that they did. Some peoplepublicly stated that they felt Thompson was the only soldier at My Lai who should be punished (for turning his weapons on fellow American troops) and wanted to see him court-martialed for his actions at My Lai. "I threatened never to fly again. Letters to the Editor: Should speed humps be put around all L.A. elementary schools? Does it worry you that it was, and remains, in our capacity to excuse or rationalize an atrocity like My Lai committed by Americans? And on the 30th anniversary of the massacre, Hugh Thompson returned to M Lai. When Hugh realized it was our people doing this killing, he knew he had to take drastic measures. After evacuating the people, you thought you could do more? Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion or Facebook, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Opinion: California wants more psychiatric detentions. Charles Guiteau told a local newspaper that he shot James A. Garfield without malice or murderous intent.. We started noticing these large numbers of bodies everywhere, he told me, people on the road dead, wounded. In 1999, Thompson and Colburn received the Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience Award. Thompson and Colburn returned to Sn M to meet with survivors of the massacre at the Sn M Memorial in 1998. Then again, it was a Saturday morning and they were possibly going to market. And although he lived with post-traumatic stress disorder, alcoholism, and nightmare disorder for decades, he eventually became a veterans counselor for the Louisiana Department of Veterans Affairs. It was in their hands. Youve got to love this guy. And then she finished her sentence: she said, So we could forgive them.'. Ive had PTSD issues for 42 years. Genevieve Carlton earned a Ph.D in history from Northwestern University with a focus on early modern Europe and the history of science and medicine before becoming a history professor at the University of Louisville. 171 0 obj <> endobj No. These people appeared to be no threat at all, and we couldnt figure out why they were fired on and killed as they were leaving the area. In an interview first broadcast in 2004, Hardtalk's Tim Sebastian spoke to Mr. Did the gunship crews know what was happening on the ground before this? Mr. Thompson radioed for a helicopter gunship to evacuate the group, and then his crew chief, Glenn Andreotta, pulled a boy from a nearby irrigation ditch, and their helicopter flew him to safety. I dont know how they found me, but I gave a brief interview, and it appeared with the Life magazine photo spread in December 1969. And they recommended charging 28 officers for the massacre and coverup. Trent Angers, Thompsons biographer and friend, analyzed the list and found about 50 there who were 3 years old or younger. 30 years after the massacre, Thompson and the two other members of his crew, Glenn Andreotta and Lawrence Colburn, were awarded the Soldier's Medal (Andreott. The low gun probably did because they had visual and were communicating with Hugh, and Hugh had been telling them what wed been seeing, hoping they were relating that up to the command craft that was flying above at altitude. Calley had many supporters, who condemned and harassed Thompson. 1895), in United States testimony 1892, typescript, 247, Church History Library, Salt Lake City. They were taking volunteers for the 11th Brigade. He knew the importance of getting people who are struggling the attention they need so they can transition back into civilian life and deal with problems, be they physical or emotional. Nick Turse investigated violence in Vietnam against noncombatants for his book Kill Anything that Moves. He concluded after a decade of research in Pentagon archives and more than 100 interviews with American veterans and Vietnamese survivors that Americans killing civilians in Vietnam was pervasive and systematic. One soldier told him there had been a My Lai a month.. Today is the 50th anniversary of the My Lai Massacre, when US soldiers raped and murdered 500 Vietnamese civilians and burned their homes. Everybody walked. Mercy Thompson, Testimony, Church of Christ in Missouri v. Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, 70 F. 179 (8th Cir. There were real good highs, he told me, and very low lows. Im going to go over to the bunker myself and get these people out. Everybody's heard of the My Lai massacre March 16, 1968, 50 years ago today but not many know about the man who stopped it: Hugh Thompson, an Army helicopter pilot. All of a sudden I hear my name called, I had no advance knowledge, no idea what was happening until they pinned the Bronze Star with Valor on me. I was back in Mount Vernon, outside Washington, and I got a call from my mother saying there were some people at the house who wanted to talk to me. But still, who do you shoot? Among those numbers were 17 pregnant women and 56 infants.