Watch our webcasts featuring Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez in Austin, TX and Ivan Roman in Washington, DC:

August 23, 2007 webcast

Why are we doing this?

The Story Must Be Told and The History Preserved

Defend the Honor - Hispanic WWII Related pic

A 15-hour "documentary" about Americans and World War II, was broadcast over PBS in September and October 2007. Initially it completely excluded any mention of Latino heroes who fought to defend the United States from its enemies. After much public pressure, producer Ken Burns agreed to include interviews with Latinos and hired a Latino documentary producer. Subsequently, the new material added up to interviews with two Latino WWII Marines, and one Native American WWII veteran -- a total of 28 minutes.

The result was disappointing to many. Burns had promised on April 17, 2007, in a meeting with Latino organizations and elected leaders held in Washington, DC, that the additional material would be added in a seamless manner. The interviews were added AFTER the episodes, as obvious supplements. THEY WERE NOT ADDED IN A SEAMLESS MANNER.

For the past 10 months, Defend the Honor has been talking to many people throughout the country and it is obvious that this issue has revealed longstanding problems regarding how Latinos are viewed in our own country.

Thus, Defend the Honor is entering a new phase in which it will help organize and mobilize communities to address longstanding and profound problems related to Latino representation. Please send us your ideas of what needs to be done and how the work can be undertaken --- everything is on the table and we deeply appreciate the support and goodwill of people throughout the country of all races and ethnicities.

This website is dedicated to supporting efforts of individuals and organizations to ensure that Latinos and Latinas are included in today's general historical narratives. It began in response to The War, the PBS/Ken Burns documentary, but it will continue to work steadily on other issues now. The story of our country is incomplete without including the stories of Latino contributions.

Hay que avanzar! We must progress!

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You can help

Get Involved

Thank you for viewing the Defend the Honor campaign. If you would really like to make an impact in this effort to make sure that the Hispanic contribution to World War II is recognized and remembered, we hope you will consider expressing your opinion. Below are letter templates which you can download, insert your information, and mail to PBS, the documentary's sponsors, your elected representatives, and your local PBS station.

Letter Templates

Campaign Flyer

The Defend the Honor informational flyer may be downloaded and disseminated as widely as possible at public events, meetings, etc. Feel free to borrow the language and make up your own flyer, for your organization.