Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Injured Soliders


Yesterday I went on an excursion to Artropolis at the Merchandise Mart (an exhibition of contemporary and modern art), and one of the many exhibits was about the war in Iraq. The activist/artist used powerful images to send a message to the viewers that the war in Iraq was unjust and should be stopped. The one that moved me the most was a simple portrait of a man injured in the Iraq war. Similar to Ron Kovic, the man in the picture was in a wheel chair, but he had both legs aputated below the hip and in their place had two mechanical legs. He was proudly wearing a U.S. Marines uniform adorned with many medals. Not only did this image remind me of the young Ron Kovic from the film, but it also made me relize how little I have heard in the news about the injured. All the time there are reports of how many have died, but rarely are there details of wellbeing of those that have been injured and the effect their injury has had on their quality of life.

I was able to find a similar image of the same man online. His name is Marine Staff Stg. John Jones, and he is 30 years old and from San Antonio, Texas. He was featured in a HBO film about injured soliders titled "HBO's Alive Day Memories: Home From Iraq," which aired September 9, 2007. After about nine months of service in Iraq, Jones was sitting in the passenger side of a hummer that was hit by a double-stacked anti-tank mine in Iraq. In addition to being a double amputee, his other injuries from the accident include loss of hearing and memory, post tramautic stress disorder, and shrapnel in parts of thighs and wrists.

Although he now has a positive mental outlook on situation, many other soliders in a similar situation do not. Jones says that he "hopes to be a positive influence for others and set an example for those who have given up hope." In what mental and physical state is the war leaving soliders? How does this affect their quality of life?

1 comment:

Tara C said...

Great post Rachel, and it seems like your excursion was really interesting. I wish I could have gone on it! My junior theme highlighed the effects on soldiers once they return from war. For the men and women fighting overseas, the war doesn't really stop when they come back. They are not only affected physically, but mentally as well. Every day is a new battle, and they have to try to heal the wounds they have painfully recieved. When soldiers return home, everyone is just to so happy that they are back and alive. They fail to realize that even though they are home, they are still suffering.