Leaf from Virgil’s Eclogues, Georgics and Aeneid. (Walters Art Museum) By Dr. Joshua Cannon An Arabic cryptologic linguist with the Marine Corps from 2000 to 2005, Dr. Joshua Cannon deployed twice to Iraq—first with the invasion in 2003 and again in 2004. Upon his return, Josh pursued graduate studies in linguistics and
The lithograph that hung in the McKinley family dining room. Combat artist and Army Lieutenant Rudolph Charles von Ripper made it from a sketch he did during the fighting in Anzio, Italy. Staff Sgt. Philip McKinley is the soldier on the field phone. (Jane McKinley) By Jane McKinley Jane McKinley is a
By Todd DePastinoIt’s the question of the day: why does President Trump want the United States to own Greenland?President Trump may be singular in his approach to the Presidency and foreign affairs, but his pitch for Greenland isn’t without precedent. Long before climate change, rare earth minerals, and the China rivalry came into play, American
Q&A with Author Wil Haygood By Daria Sommers In his latest book, The War Within A War, author Wil Haygood lays bare the psychological burden Black Americans faced serving in Vietnam. The country that sent them to fight for democracy abroad denied them equality and justice back home. By presenting their stories in counterpoint
Albert DeFazio somewhere in Italy, circa 1944-45. (Albert DeFazio) By Albert DeFazio World War II veteran Albert DeFazio, a Bronze Star and Purple Heart recipient, attended our storytelling programs faithfully up to his death in 2021 at age 95. Before Al passed, his daughter, Valerie DeFazio Vacula, published his memories in an
When Americans think of World War II in Europe, they usually picture Normandy hedgerows or the frozen forests of the Battle of the Bulge. Italy, where Allied armies fought for nearly two years and learned some of the hardest lessons of the war, often comes in as an afterthought. Though long treated as a
