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    Back to To the Point

    To the Point

    Memorial Day in America: Fun or Remembrance?

    Memorial Day has divided Americans as much as it has united them. It began as a celebration of Union Army soldiers who died in the Civil War. Southern States didn't embrace it until after World War I — and some still hold separate "Decoration Days" to remember the casualties of the Confederacy.

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    By Warren Olney • May 12, 2014 • 1 min read

    Memorial Day has divided Americans as much as it has united them. It began as a celebration of Union Army soldiers who died in the Civil War. Southern States didn't embrace it until after World War I — and some still hold separate "Decoration Days" to remember the casualties of the Confederacy. Except for the Revolution, only the Civil War has been fought on American soil, and that makes it easy to forget those who've sacrificed for our country. Without the draft, more and more families don't have loved ones who've died in war. We talk to public radio listeners are others about how they plan to spend a holiday that also features retail sales, barbeques and the Indy 500.

    The full episode

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    Memorial Day in America: Fun or Remembrance?
    1. 0:00The Dispute over the Eisenhower Memorial Design
    2. 0:00Memorial Day in America: Fun or Remembrance?You’re reading this
    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Warren Olney

      former KCRW broadcaster

    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Frances Anderton

      architecture critic and author

    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Caitlin Shamberg

      KCRW

    • Sonya Geis with wavy brown hair wearing a black dress with red accents and decorative earrings against a white background.

      Sonya Geis

      Senior Managing Editor

    • KCRW placeholder

      Alex Yaron

      US Army Vietnam veteran

    • KCRW placeholder

      Dixie Damm

      Tennessee Democratic Party

    • KCRW placeholder

      David Hines

      American Printing House for the Blind

      NewsNationalPolitics

    The full episode

    2 of 2
    Memorial Day in America: Fun or Remembrance?
    1. 0:00The Dispute over the Eisenhower Memorial Design
    2. 0:00Memorial Day in America: Fun or Remembrance?You’re reading this
    Back to To the Point