Beyond “Thanks for Your Service”: The Future Global War on Terrorism Memorial Must Foster Crucial Engagement
By: Jim Craig
References
- Archie, A. (2023, March 6). These were the most visited national parks and memorials in 2022. NPR.
https://www.npr.org/2023/03/06/1161246636/national-parks-momuments-attendance-visits - Associated Press. (1982, January 13). Watt raises obstacle on Vietnam Memorial. The New York Times.
https://www.nytimes.com/1982/01/13/us/watt-raises-obstacle-on-vietnam-memorial.html - Benton-Short, L. (2006). Politics, public space, and memorials: The brawl on the Mall. Urban Geography, 27(4), 297–329. 10.2747/0272-3638.27.4.297
- Benton-Short, L. (2016). The National Mall: No ordinary public space. University of Toronto Press. 10.3138/9781442630574
- Best, R. H., Hunter, K., & Thomas, K. H. (2021). Fighting for a seat at the table: Women’s military service and political representation. Journal of Veterans Studies, 7(2), 19–23. 10.21061/jvs.v7i2.266
- Byrne, D. (2022). A worked example of Braun and Clarke’s approach to reflexive thematic analysis. Quality & Quantity, 56(3), 1391–1412. 10.1007/s11135-021-01182-y
- Carhart, T. (1981, October 24). Insulting Vietnam vets. The New York Times.
https://www.nytimes.com/1981/10/24/opinion/insulting-vietnam-vets.html - Coble, T., & Cid, C. (2023). The four-truths: Activating inquiry and story in ways that have the potential to heal. Legacy, 12–18.
- Coble, T., Lindsay, R., Blair-Bruce, P., Cid, C., Craig, J., Fitzsimmons, C., Galan, R., Miller, K., Overholser, L., Stanton, R., & Westhoff, L. (2024, Nov/Dec). Engaging with contested heritage: Working through and walking alongside (Part 1). Legacy, 35(6).
https://profiles.umsl.edu/en/publications/engaging-with-contested-heritage-working-through-and-walking-alon-3/ - Coble, T., Lindsay, R., Blair-Bruce, P., Cid, C., Craig, J., Fitzsimmons, C., Galan, R., Miller, K., Overholser, L., Stanton, B., & Westhoff, L. (2025, Jan/Feb). Engaging with contested heritage: Working through and walking alongside (Part 2). Legacy, 36(1).
https://profiles.umsl.edu/en/publications/engaging-with-contested-heritage-working-through-and-walking-alon-2/ - Cresswell, T. (2014). Place: An introduction (2nd ed.). John Wiley & Sons.
- Global War on Terrorism Memorial Foundation. (n.d.). About the Global War on Terrorism Memorial Foundation.
https://www.gwotmemorialfoundation.org/ - Global War on Terrorism War Memorial Act, Pub. L. No. 115–51, 131 Stat. 1003. (2017).
https://www.congress.gov/115/statute/STATUTE-131/STATUTE-131-Pg1003.pdf - Gordon, S., Early, S., & Craven, J. (2022). Our veterans: Winners, losers, friends, and enemies on the new terrain of veterans affairs. Duke University Press. 10.1515/9781478023142
- Heifetz, R. A. (1994). Leadership without easy answers. Belknap Press of Harvard University Press. 10.4159/9780674038479
- Ladino, J. K. (2019). Memorials matter: Emotion, environment, and public memory at American historical sites. University of Nevada Press.
- Lin, M. (2000, November 2). Making the memorial. New York Review of Books, 47(14), 64–72.
https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2000/11/02/making-the-memorial/ - Martin, T. L. (2022). War & homecoming: Veteran identity and the post-9/11 generation. The University Press of Kentucky. 10.5810/kentucky/9780813195643.001.0001
- McMeans, K. (2015, January 28). Oral history interview with Kelly McMeans [Interview conducted by A. Thompson]. Wisconsin Veterans Museum.
https://wisvetsmuseum.com/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=OH_01954.xml - Merriam, S. B., & Tisdell, E. J. (2016). Qualitative research: A guide to design and implementation (4th ed.). John Wiley & Sons.
- Merriam-Webster. (2023). Truth. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/truth - National Museum of the American Indian. (n.d.). National Native American Veterans Memorial.
https://americanindian.si.edu/visit/washington/nnavm - Park, C. L. (2010). Making sense of the meaning literature: An integrative review of meaning making and its effects on adjustment to stressful life events. Psychological Bulletin, 136(2), 257–301. 10.1037/a0018301
- Piehler, G. K. (2004). Remembering war the American way (Paperback reissue). Smithsonian Books.
- Piehler, G. K. (2019).
War and memory . In D. Kieran & E. Martini (Eds.), At war: The military and American culture in the twentieth century and beyond (p. 331). Rutgers University Press. 10.36019/9780813584331-017 - Rose-Redwood, R., Baird, I. G., Palonen, E., & Rose-Redwood, C. (2022). Monumentality, memory scapes, and the politics of place. ACME: An International Journal for Critical Geographies, 21(5), 448–467.
https://acme-journal.org/index.php/acme/article/view/2266 - Saldaña, J. (2013). The coding manual for qualitative researchers (2nd ed.). Sage.
- Straus, J. R. (2023). Commemorative works in the District of Columbia: Background and practice, CRS Report R41659.
https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/R41658 - Switzler, V., Johnson, R. D., Coble, T., Cid, C., Galan, R., Kellert, K., Lindsay, R., Blair-Bruce, P., Craig, J., Fitzsimmons, C., Miller, K., Overholser, L., Stanton, B., & Westhoff, L. (2025, Mar/Apr). Engaging with contested heritage: Working through and walking alongside (Part 3). Legacy, 36(2).
https://national-association-for-interpretation.foleon.com/legacy/mar-april25/heritage-leadership - Terry, G., & Hayfield, N. (2021). Essentials of thematic analysis (1st ed.). American Psychological Association. 10.1037/0000238-000
- Truth and Reconciliation Commission. (1998). Truth & Reconciliation Commission Report (Volume One).
https://www.justice.gov.za/trc/report/ - Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. (n.d.). About the Wall.
https://www.vvmf.org/About-The-Wall - Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. (n.d.). History of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
https://www.vvmf.org/About-The-Wall/history-of-the-vietnam-veterary-memorial/ - Watson Institute, Brown University. (n.d.). The Costs of War Project. The Costs of War.
https://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/home - Wellman, P. W., & Lawrence, J. P. (2020, October 6). Years after they fought in Afghanistan, U.S. troops watch as their children deploy to the same war. Stars and Stripes.
https://www.stripes.com/news/2020-10-06/years-after-they-fought-in-afghanistan-us-troops-watch-as-their-children-deploy-to-the-same-war-1468802.html - Withdrawal sheet re Vietnam Veterans Memorial. (1982). Cicconi Files (Box 14, ID 40-94-6914308-014-003-2016) [Archival document]. Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21061/jvs.v12i1.822 | Journal eISSN: 2470-4768
Language: English
Page range: 18 - 30
Submitted on: Sep 29, 2025
Accepted on: Nov 28, 2025
Published on: Jan 8, 2026
Published by: Virginia Tech Publishing
In partnership with: Paradigm Publishing Services
Keywords:
© 2026 Jim Craig, published by Virginia Tech Publishing
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.