Commemorating World War II at 70: Ethnic and Transnational Perspectives – An Introduction

Almost 70 years after it ended, World War II is still a lastingly shaping event in global public history. In the United States, the image of the “Good War” prevails, and the remembrance of the soldiers is marked by the display of national heroism, as the dedication of the National World War II Memorial on the Mall in D.C. in 2004 exemplifies as much as recent Hollywood films such as David Ayer’s Fury (2014) or George Clooney’s The Monuments Men (2014). This national narrative of unity and moral self-confidence, however, is counterpointed by the experiences—both within and after the war—of ethnic American individuals and groups. For instance, 15,000 Arab American soldiers served in World War II, together with 44,000 Native American and nearly one million African American soldiers. For these soldiers, the myth of a glorious nation united in a “good war” turned into a specific challenge of commemoration and social reorientation.