When President Barack Obama announced the end of our nation’s combat mission in Iraq Tuesday, many Americans breathed a sigh of relief. But rewind 65 years and a sigh of relief stands in stark contrast to the raging party this nation threw itself in the summer of 1945 when Japan surrendered to the Allied forces, officially ending World War II.
Today the US celebrates the official V-J Day, which marks the time when the Japanese forces surrendered in a formal ceremony aboard the USS Missouri. As important as Japan’s official surrender is to our recent American history, the day has a bit of an identity crisis. Although we remember the day on Sept. 2 annually, 65 years ago people didn’t wait for Japan’s official surrender to party like it was 1945. They were more than happy to take to the streets with joy on Aug. 14, the day President Harry S. Truman told the country Japan had announced its surrender. Even today, the country still “unofficially” celebrates V-J Day on Aug. 14.
The event not only marked the end of a nation-changing war, but marked the beginning of a new era. The Greatest Generation emerged, the Baby Boom began and the middle class expanded. In short, it was a turning point in our nation’s history.
It even created one of the most famous magazine photos to date. Remember that iconic Life magazine photo of a sailor kissing a nurse in Times Square, the one that seems to sum up the country’s passionate relief at the end of the war? That was snapped on Aug. 14, 1945. And on this past Aug. 14, hundreds of would-be sailors and nurses gathered in Times Square to recreate that famous kiss. According to the New York Daily News, the “kiss-in,” as it was dubbed, coincided with the debut of a 26-foot statue replicating the famous smooch.
While the nation currently celebrates the end of active fighting in Iraq, we also take time to recall a day that changed all of our lives — forever.
Photo courtesy of the Times Square Alliance.