As Black History Month draws to a close I thought I would end my little series with the story of someone more contemporary. Shoshana Johnson stands out not only for what she has endured but also what she has accomplished.Most of us will remember the dramatic 2003 rescue of American POW Jessica Lynch in Iraq after her capture by Iraqis in the early days of the invasion, but little was reported about the six others also taken captive in that same ambush.
One of them was Specialist Shoshana Johnson, who would spend her 22 days in captivity with gunshot wounds to both legs. While the media frenzy was focused on the rescue of Lynch, the eventual rescue of the others by the Marines went largely unnoticed.
Ms Johnson, the first black female POW, came home but her troubles were far from over. While her physical wounds would eventually heal, her mental health was more precarious. To add insult to injury she not only suffered from PTSD but also had to endure being misaligned as being greedy for challenging her disability rating so that she could get better benefits.
But the true nature of Shoshana Johnson is seen in her refusal to give up and succumb to her illness. Instead she continued therapy and soldiered on. Today she and her 9 year old daughter are living in Texas where she is training to be a pastry chef so she can make wedding and birthday cakes.
"Even when I came home, I didn't think I'd ever get better. I didn't think the issues I had would ever ease," Johnson said in the (AP) interview. "But as time goes on and I stick with my therapy, it has gotten easier, and I know if I keep on the right track, I'll be OK."
Ms Johnson has written a book about her experiences called, “I’m Still Standing.” It is available at amazon.com.
The ambush in 2003 resulted in 11 deaths of US soldiers. Of the seven soldiers taken captive, Private Lori Piestewa would die of her mortal injuries just hours later.
The survivors who were all eventually rescued by the Marines are:
Jessica Lynch, Shoshana Johnson, Joseph Hudson, James Riley, Edgar Hernandez and Patrick Miller.
May they all find peace and happiness.
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ReplyDeleteOh wow thanks for reminding me of this. I remember Shoshana Johnson's name coming up among us Lefties during the whole obscene Jessica Lynch media feeding frenzy. It was such an outrage, so obviously staged. You know, these Republicans who are making a big deal about "teleprompters" are conveniently ignoring all of the stage-managed media moments the Bush Administration created, and the media swallowed whole.
ReplyDeleteThanks you gave me today's blog post!
Rocky - I saw the name on your post and thought - where have I heard that name before? Thanks for the reminder - whereas the name J. Lynch would have registered immediately.
ReplyDeleteYes, well -
I very much appreciate your giving her her due. I am glad to know how her story has continued.
Thanks, Rocky.
ReplyDeleteI can't help but cynically ponder that Jessica Lynch, who is white, blond and blue-eyed, inspired the awe and publicity (which made even her uncomfortable and which she denounced eventually), but Shoshana's story went practically unmentioned.
Sadly predictable.
Thank you everyone. I'm happy to highlight Ms Johnson's courage and service to our country. And I don't want to diminish the bravery of Jessica Lynch and all the others involved in that ambush. They all showed great courage in trying to hold off the enemy and protect each other.
ReplyDeleteBut the way this played out is certainly an indictment against the Bush administration's attempts to manipulate and direct coverage of the Iraq invasion.
They all deserve to be recognized and their lives and deaths should be honored and spoken of with respect and gratitude.
Of course, that would mean admitting that people die in wars, many of them and far fewer are rescued. But telling the whole ugly truth would ruin the Disneyesque spin.
RockyNC, once again, please accept my thanks for this wonderful series of posts commemorating Black History Month. All of your posts were unique and precious.
ReplyDeleteNot meaning to veer of subject, even Jessica Lynch later repudiated the media hype surrounding her story, most especially those accounts that attempted to raise her to mythic hero status.
The last administration and the media acted deplorably during the this sad chapter of American history. First, the media failed to act in the best interests of the public by allowing itself to serve as a propaganda organ for the Bush administration.
Although not a Black History story, let us not forget Pat Tillman, the soldier who gave up a lucrative pro football contract to serve his country. A coverup attempted to disguise the fact that the poster child for the administration was killed by friendly fire.
Most despicable of all was this statement made by Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Kauzlarich about the Tillman family: "These people have a hard time letting it go. It may be because of their religious beliefs" and "When you die, I mean, there is supposedly a better life, right? Well, if you are an atheist and you don’t believe in anything, if you die, what is there to go to? Nothing. You are worm dirt. So for their son to die for nothing and now he is no more ... "
By far, the entire Bush era is one of the darkest chapters in our history.
Octo - perhaps we need to do a post or series on the military men and women who are living and dying in the Middle East.
ReplyDeleteIf you remember my posts on Eve Carson and Dennis Hayle, my main objective was to bring these dead children to life for readers so that they would not be forgotten and become just another sad statistic of our sick society.
We need to remember this "army" we are using to invade other countries are made up of sons and daughters, mothers and fathers and they are out there fighting and dying or living with injuries.
Rockync, for a military series, I recommend starting with Andrew Olmsted. He was a former blogger with Obsidian Wings who died in Iraq.
ReplyDelete