LZ Lambeau and Wisconsin Vietnam War Stories, NETA Session Notes
Thursday January 13, 2011
LZ Lambeau & Wisconsin Vietnam War Stories
Kathy Bissen, WPT (not in attendance)
Don Jones/Project Director for LZ Lambeau
Jon Miskowski, WPT
Blogger/Reporter: Kate Spears http://www.KateSpears.com
(FYI: A toolkit is available that was funded by CPB)
During the listening sessions with Vietnam Veterans, they began to open up and share their stories, which then drove and inspired the question of "what to do with this project in dealing with certain limitations (reach, etc.)?
Don Jones - Within the circle of veterans, they distinguish themselves as Vietnam veterans and Vietnam "hero" veterans based on whether or not they served in the country. Some were hesitant to come because of the stigmas attached to these distinctions. There are also folks that the vets called "wanna-bes" who are known for big talk, but aren't legitimate and the true veterans can identify them very quickly.
The panelists showed about seven minutes of the documentary, including the section entitled "All Hell Broke Loose."
"No other group in the American populace has a higher suicide rate than Vietnam Veterans, although the rate of suicide within veterans from Iraq/Afganistan is rising."
Veterans were extremely resistant to this project and it took much diligence in building their trust. The producers had to remain committed and keep coming back to prove themselves to the veterans, who had never told their stories before this documentary project. Public Broadcasting provided a good vehicle because of the built trust that it has as well as the ability to show the power & meaning through storytelling.
Partners began coming on board to see how they could help make this project happen.
Regarding public broadcasting...."At our best, we are sensitive to our audiences"
Producers even had an issue arise for the initial screening where some folks vocalized things they were dissatisfied with, but because the producers listened and took things into consideration, it was resolved in a constructive way.
Panelist Jon Miskowski said they have learned from teachers that more resources were needed in order to teach these topics effectively. They created curriculum for the school system to use in companion to the documentary.
There were community screenings in partnership with the Wisc. Library Association & Univ. of Wisc. System.
A traveling portrait exhibit created by WPT Photog Jim Gill & Wisc. Veterans Museum has been a powerful tool to help show people that all vets are not the stereotype "homeless guy under a bridge."
Look for Medal of Honor recipients in your area because Vietnam vets take this medal very seriously.
Some of the challenges of this event:
1) Liability insurance/working with police/fire depts.
2) Protest from veterans groups
3) Logistics of "The Ride"
In the small town of Freedom, Wisconsin the entire town shut down while the ride was going through. With the help of State Troopers and community members, the ride was a success. The producers said they had little to do with what happened in Freedom, that it was just a result of the project being taken over by the community members involved.
The plan was to have 1244 motorcycles to represent the number of Wisconsin veterans who were killed in action, but there ended up being many more.
The event gave veterans a chance to attend with their families, which is not often the case as there is a history of vets being alone.
Another part of the project was the creation of a large map of South Vietnam and S.E. Asia where the veterans could go identify locations on the map and sign their names on the map in the spots where they had been. This led to vets meeting each other on the map and connecting based on where they served.
White chairs were lined up on the field to represent the veterans killed in action.
Visit the site to find all the tools and materials associated with this project: http://www.LZLambeau.org/toolkit