Veteran Gives Up Medal of Honor in Nicaragua Protest
A Vietnam veteran and former priest who carried 20 wounded men to safety while under enemy fire gave up his Medal of Honor today to protest U.S. aid to Nicaraguan rebels, calling Central America “another Vietnam.”
Veteran Charles Liteky put the gold medal--the nation’s highest military honor--in a large manila envelope and placed it at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial with a statement outlining his reasons for renouncing it.
“The question is no longer, ‘Will Central America become another Vietnam?”’ Liteky told a news conference in the Capitol.
“Central America is another Vietnam, and the time to demonstrate against it is now, not only to prevent the future loss of young American lives, but to stop the current killing of Nicaraguan and Salvadoran innocents,” said Liteky, who currently serves as the coordinator of the National Federation of Veterans for Peace.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
