Previously Published in The Messenger
By Matt Meduri
A bill has circulated the Suffolk County Legislature that, if passed, would require the Veterans’ Suicide Awareness and Remembrance (SAR) Flag flown wherever a Prisoner of War-Missing in Action (POW-MIA) Flag is flown.
The legislation is sponsored by Legislator Chad Lennon (C-Rocky Point), currently serving in his first term, Vice Chair of the Veterans Committee, and a Marine Corps Veteran and current Reservist. The legislative intent finds that military personnel and Veterans are twice as likely to die by suicide compared to their civilian counterparts each year. That factor, coupled with the persistent stigmas of mental health and seeking treatment, as well as the tangible symbol of such a delicate subject presented by flying the SAR flag, are arguments for the bill’s passage.
The bill has been co-sponsored by Legislators Leslie Kennedy (R-Nesconset), Catherine Stark (R-Riverhead), and Ann Welker (D-Southampton).
Tuesday’s General Meeting in Riverhead saw the unanimous tabling of the bill, with many legislators vocalizing their support for the initiative. However, Lennon and others feel more time is required to galvanize significant support or opposition to the bill among Veterans, who, even at Tuesday morning’s public portion, remain divided on the flag being flown.
Lennon said ahead of Tuesday’s table vote that with all correspondence considered, he believes net support for the initiative to be about “three-to-one in favor”.
“How many Veterans were taking their own lives in the 1960s? We don’t know,” said Lennon. “How many in the 1970s, the 1980s, 1990s, and the 2000s? We don’t know because the Department of Veterans Affairs did not track this until 2005, and they realized we have more Veterans taking their own lives than dying in combat. That is outrageous.”
Lennon says that the creation of a national bill of flying the POWMIA flag took forty years, from the 1970s to the 2000s.
“Are we going to wait forty years to do something different? It has been twenty years, and this [suicide] number has not changed,” said Lennon.
Since taking office last January, one of Lennon’s top priorities has been cementing the problem of Veterans’ suicide and mental health into minds throughout Suffolk County. Last April, his bill recognizing September 22 as “Veterans Suicide Awareness and Remembrance Day” was unanimously passed, with the date of 22 referencing the twenty-two Veterans’ lives lost on average to suicide. Lennon has also made a career as a military and Veterans’ attorney.
“This is a war because people are dying. People are taking their own lives,” said Lennon. Legislator Rebecca Sanin (D-Huntington Station) the bill’s objective and praised Lennon’s “leadership”.
“This issue has not been something that public, and that is very dangerous for our Veterans,” said Sanin. “Just putting this bill forward has already made a difference, and I know you’ll continue making a difference for Veterans.”
Legislator Dominick Thorne (R-Patchogue) also agrees with the purpose of the SAR flag.
“Many people have spoken about not putting that image [SAR flag] out there. When you’re going to clear up something like suicide of our Veterans, you don’t hide it. You put a glaring spotlight on it. You let other Veterans know that …feelings are normal and there are others who feel it,” said Thorne. “I strongly support it.”
Legislator Kennedy shared a story from when she was eleven years old, recounting how “horrible” the stigma was around PTSD and suicide at the time. Since the “movie” that “keeps going on in their [Veterans’] heads”, in Kennedy’s father’s words to her then, has not ceased in decades, she supports the bill.
“[The SAR flag] belongs under the American flag, in my opinion,” said Kennedy. Legislator Welker, a daughter of a Korean and WWII Veteran, argued that the SAR flag “emphasizes the importance of breaking the stigma of mental health and suicide and the importance of seeking treatment.”
Legislator Nick Caracappa (C-Selden), Chair of the Veterans Committee, agrees with the overall purpose of the flag, but questions if the importance of the issue will be watered down with yet another flag.
“Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is real and must be made aware of, treated, eradicated, or drastically lowered,” said Caracappa. “What about all those Vietnam veterans who came home with health issues related to Agent Orange, and they continue to battle the cancer they developed due to Agent Orange? Where is their flag? Or many brave men and women who came home without their limbs or without their sight or the ability to ever walk again, where’s their flag?”
Caracappa says that “none of them are asking for their own flag”, and that the American flag flies highest for a reason.
“Our American flag encompasses each and every aspect of serving. Those lost in battle and those lost in the battles of service-related illnesses are honored under the stars and stripes of our American flag,” said Caracappa. Caracappa is also calling for compromise, with some notable Veterans’ post commanders not entirely decided on the fate of this bill.
“This is indeed a Veterans’ issue and should go back to them. Pitting Veterans against Veterans is a clear indication that this bill, as it’s written, is simply wrong,” said Caracappa. “Lastly, this bill would lock the county into a forever contract with the sole manufacturer’s flag. I’d rather see this county utilize those resources to order a media campaign for all suicide awareness for all residents, including SAR and all Suffolk County Veterans’ agencies who specialize in mental health services.”
The bill continues to be debated at the horseshoe.