For Latino Vets, a Salute With Gusto

Porfirio Duarte has always avoided Veterans Day celebrations--they stir too many emotions, too many painful memories, particularly of a horrific two days he spent “fighting and shooting and running” in France during World War II.

But this year was different. Duarte’s wife convinced him it was time he accept some recognition. So the Placentia resident agreed to join more than 100 Latino war veterans who were honored Saturday at Santa Ana College at the Latino Advocates for Education’s fifth annual Veterans Day celebration.

Gov. Gray Davis attended, as did Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Garden Grove) and Assemblyman Lou Correa (D-Anaheim). The veterans were presented with certificates and pins commemorating their service.

The yearly event recognizes the contributions of more than 300,000 Latinos who served in the armed forces during World War II.

Several hundred people gathered in the college’s gymnasium for the event; booths displaying World War II memorabilia gave the room the feel of a war museum.

Many of the veterans wore their uniform hats decorated with pins and medals. Photographs from their war days--enlarged and mounted on thick boards--hung from the ceiling.

“Their names are not famous . . . but no one showed more bravery than these warriors,” Davis said, addressing the veterans. “Latinos fought bravely for freedom; Latinos died for freedom; Latinos did more than their part to secure victory. Theirs are stories of bravery and sacrifice, and they are the stories of America.”

Duarte, however, puts it all in the words of a humble man. He was doing what he was supposed to do, what was right.

Duarte was 21 when he was drafted. He spent the next three years as an Army gunner corporal, fighting in the Battle of the Bulge and Normandy.

His most vivid memory is of spending a harrowing 48 hours with his squad as the Nazis pushed them 35 miles behind Allied lines in France.

“We didn’t eat for two days,” Duarte, now 80, remembered. “But we were too excited and too exhausted to notice.”

Now the recollection brings tears.

“It’s tough to talk about it,” Duarte said, wiping his eyes. “It’s overwhelming.”

Joseph Rodriguez doesn’t like talking about his battles, either.

Rodriguez, of El Paso, Texas, who was awarded the Medal of Honor in 1951, received special recognition Saturday for his heroism while fighting in Korea.

He was given the Medal of Honor for single-handedly killing 15 enemy soldiers, allowing his Army squad to secure a small hill.

“We had made several attempts to secure the hill, and they resulted in many casualties,” said Rodriguez, who was drafted at age 22. “The squad was pinned down by machine-gun fire, and we couldn’t go forward or backward.”

So Rodriguez gathered as many grenades as he could and carried them to the front of the line. Then he tossed them one by one at the enemy. When they were gone, he ran back, collected more grenades and did the same thing.

“After that, we took the hill--all the enemy was dead,” he said. “I don’t like to tell that story.”

But Sanchez said, “It’s important for us to understand what our veterans and our heroes have done for us. . . . The reason we [Latinos] deserve just as much as any other American is that the blood of our heroes and our veterans has been shed for this country.”