A Long Overdue Justice

Finally. The 75 or so old soldiers who gathered at the Veterans Affairs Ambulatory Care Center downtown Monday had waited close to 60 years for this day.

They are among the 200,000 Filipino servicemen who volunteered for perilous missions as spies for the U.S. military during World War II and as part of anti-Japanese guerrilla forces fighting in mountains and jungles. When the war ended, they wanted what other soldiers got by right: medical benefits and veterans burial rights. What they got, instead, was discrimination and delay.

Now, with their numbers dwindling -- barely 8,000 of these vets remain in the U.S. -- and their medical ailments multiplying, the men finally received the official recognition so long denied. Wearing old service caps adorned with medals and American and Filipino flag patches and carrying yellowed service records, they jammed the lobby of the Los Angeles center Monday to apply for coveted veterans identification cards.

The early Christmas present to these men, most of them 80 or older, came after President Bush signed legislation in November finally making good on pledges made when they enlisted. Washington originally promised these Filipino recruits the same health and pension benefits as their American brothers. But just months after V-J Day, with anti-Asian sentiment running strong, President Truman signed the Rescission Act of 1946, summarily reneging on those vows.

In the decades since, Congress has moved slowly to recognize the sacrifice these men made. Only in 1990, for example, did Congress permit those living in the United States to become citizens. The legislation the president signed last month extends them full veterans benefits.

Perhaps the conflict in Iraq forced this belated reckoning; wars often do that. It’s impossible to watch American soldiers risk their lives for their country yet deny privileges to other soldiers whose sacrifices, on behalf of their adopted country, were just as brave. That disparity fueled moves in recent months to award posthumous citizenship to foreign-born soldiers killed while serving in U.S. units in Iraq. Another bill Bush signed last month streamlines the citizenship process for living green-card soldiers and their families.

And now, at last, the Filipino veterans are getting their red, white and blue veterans cards, an honor too long delayed.