Few people actually understand why Veterans’ Day is celebrated on November the Eleventh. On November 11, 1918, at 11 AM, the First World War effectively ended with the signing of an Armistice agreement between the Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire) and the Allied Powers (Great Britain, France, Italy, United States, Japan). In honor of the millions who have died unsung deaths is this poem dedicated:

It is the Soldier, not the minister
Who has given us freedom of religion.

It is the Soldier, not the reporter
Who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the Soldier, not the poet
Who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the Soldier, not the campus organizer
Who has given us freedom to protest.

It is the Soldier, not the lawyer
Who has given us the right to a fair trial.

It is the Soldier, not the politician
Who has given us the right to vote.

It is the Soldier who salutes the flag,
Who serves beneath the flag,
And whose coffin is draped by the flag,
Who allows the protester to burn the flag.

-Charles M. Province

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