Bøger af Glenn Robins

"On December 15, 1972, as rumors swirled of a pending peace agreement between the United States and North Vietnam, Governor Jimmy Carter issued an executive order creating the Georgia Advisory Committee on Vietnam Veterans (GACVV). His reasoning was simple: "the citizens of the State of Georgia and of the United States of America owe a debt of gratitude to these veterans who have served the Nation in an unpopular war." Carter's efforts followed trends occurring across the country as a host of states contemplated their responsibilities to Vietnam veterans by considering such benefits as cash bonuses, educational stipends, and free hunting licenses. Through his words and actions, Carter joined this broader debate regarding society's obligation to Vietnam veterans. In A Debt of Gratitude, Glenn Robins examines Carter's role in the creation of Vietnam veterans' issues as a national agenda item. Covering virtually the entire decade of the 1970s, from Carter's single terms as governor and president of the United States, Robins demonstrates that, throughout this period, Carter distinguished himself as one of the country's most important decision-makers concerning Vietnam veterans' policy. By addressing Vietnam veterans' issues and by communicating his positions and views, Carter made a substantial political investment in moving these items from the level of public debate to the level of policy prescriptions, thereby raising awareness, generating concern, and promising government attention to honor and thank Vietnam veterans"--

While serving as a crew chief aboard a U.S. Air Force Rescue helicopter, Airman First Class William A. Robinson was shot down and captured in Ha Tinh Province, North Vietnam, on September 20, 1965. After a brief stint at the "e;Hanoi Hilton,"e; Robinson endured 2,703 days in multiple North Vietnamese prison camps, including the notorious Briarpatch and various compounds at Cu Loc, known by the inmates as the Zoo. No enlisted man in American military history has been held as a prisoner of war longer than Robinson. For seven and a half years, he faced daily privations and endured the full range of North Vietnam's torture program.In The Longest Rescue: The Life and Legacy of Vietnam POW William A. Robinson, Glenn Robins tells Robinson's story using an array of sources, including declassified U.S. military documents, translated Vietnamese documents, and interviews from the National Prisoner of War Museum. Unlike many other POW accounts, this comprehensive biography explores Robinson's life before and after his capture, particularly his estranged relationship with his father, enabling a better understanding of the difficult transition POWs face upon returning home and the toll exacted on their families. Robins's powerful narrative not only demonstrates how Robinson and his fellow prisoners embodied the dedication and sacrifice of America's enlisted men but also explores their place in history and memory.