JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – On National Vietnam War Veterans Day, Americans come together to commemorate the service and sacrifices made by the nearly 3 million service members who served in Vietnam. The war wall in Jacksonville’s LaVilla neighborhood pays tribute to African American service members, including those who fought in Vietnam. Racism was still existing in boot camp and even in Vietnam,” Vietnam veteran Hallie Williams-Bey. He said he believes we need to use Vietnam War Veterans Day as more than a salute to the sacrifices made. In 2012, President Barack Obama signed a presidential proclamation, designating March 29 as the annual observance of Vietnam War Veterans Day.

President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden make a tracing of Cpl. Dennis F. Shine's name at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in honor of Vietnam War Veterans Day on Monday, March 29, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden paid tribute Monday at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial to mark the 48th anniversary of the departure of the last U.S. combat troops from the war zone. March 29 is National Vietnam War Veterans Day, which commemorates the date in 1973 when the U.S. Military Assistance Command in Vietnam was disestablished. It was not immediately clear why the president chose Shine, a 21-year-old Massachusetts man who was killed in Vietnam in 1969.

David Treffinger is the president of the Vietnam Veterans of America Col. William G. Burns Chapter 1059 in Clay County. Eighteen are Vietnam War veterans. National Vietnam War Veterans Day is March 29. Treffinger, who’s now the president of the Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 1059, was only 19 years old when he was drafted. Treffinger said Vietnam veterans are a special breed and, for him, there’s an equally special comradery between them.