Veterans' "Fire Watch" protest at the Senate demands passage of vet healthcare bill
They did their jobs, it's time for Congress to do theirs.
Military servicemembers know what it means to make sacrifices and endure unpleasant conditions in order to achieve mission success. They train for it, they put their lives on the line depending on that toughness to survive, and it sort of becomes a way of life. They do their job, whatever may come.
Last Friday evening, as I sat a home comfortably wondering whether I should spend the weekend wandering the streets of D.C. or maybe just make a day trip out of it, a rain shower began that nealy dissuaded me. The forecasts weren’t sure either way whether there would be rain at all, or even how much. Who wants to get caught in a heavy shower in cooler than normal temperatures?
I’d heard about the group of veterans on the Senate steps, and knew that they’d be out there either way. Congress had left them out in the cold. So now they were out there, in the rain and the cold. What the Hell was I bitching about, again?
If they had to be out there in this weather to demand something they should have always had, then they deserved someone to be willing to take a photograph. I set up a two night hotel reservation, grabbed my gear, and hit the road. After dropping my bags at the room I found myself at the Capitol shortly before midnight, where a handful of people veterans were maintaining their watch.
Last week the Senate failed to advance Senate bill 3373, otherwise known as the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our PACT Act (or simply “PACT Act”). Also called the “burn pits” bill (invoking the toxic garbage incineration pits that were widely used in Iraq within the immediate vicinity of military facilities), the purpose would expand veteran healthcare access to cover chemical illnesses and injuries incurred as a result of a veteran’s military service. That is to say, cancer.
Members of the armed forces do their job, whatever may come. Unfortunately Congress hasn’t. These men and women were here, going unseen by the very government that ordered them into combat. So what’s are veterans to do? Define a new mission, doing what they do best to get the job done—endure whatever unpleasant conditions it takes to achieve mission success. They call it Fire Watch. It’s an activity they’ve all done countless times. Someone has to be on guard duty.
When a soldier loses a limb in combat, their healthcare needs will forever be provided by the US government. And well it should. But when military personnel are sent into toxic conditions, any illness or injury they suffer as a result is treated very differently. They have to fight an uphill battle to prove that their illness was caused by that particular exposure. And the burden of proof is basically impossible to meet. Every hypothetical and miniscule exposure to any toxic substance has to be fully ruled out. How do you know this cancer wasn’t caused by exposure to smog throughout your life? That one time you smoked half a cigarette when you were 16 might have been the culprit. I see that you have Teflon cookware.
The fact that years of evidence in the medical community has identified unique cancers that arise in otherwise healthy individuals, all of whom only have the one common trait of exposure to service related toxic environments, isn’t good enough. A person can be convicted of a crime and sentenced to death based on evidence beyond a reasonable doubt. But servicemembers can only receive healthcare for service related cancers if they produce evidence beyond all infinitely far fetched doubt. And a death sentence is exactly what it’s been for many.
But more than access to veteran healthcare is on the line, because those who die leave behind families. There are no survivor’s benefits for the widows and children of these servicemembers who die from service related chemical injuries. Some families are left with financial ruin as the legacy for their loved one’s ultimately fatal service to their country.
The PACT Act would change that. It would eliminate the barriers to recognizing chemical injuries as service related, provide retroactive survivors benefits for families of servicemembers who have already died, among other details. These things should always have been in place. And passing this bill now would seem like a no-brainer. In fact, the bill already passed both houses of Congress. But due to a technical detail, the bill needed to be re-passed by the Senate (where it originated). This past Thursday, the same Senate that had previously voted overwhelmingly in favor of the measure (with 84 Senators in the yea column) failed to advance the bill the second time around.
As a result, this group of veterans have coalesed with a mission to compel the Senate to pass the bill. They vow to maintain a permament protest until the bill is passed, come what may. It’s remarkable that these people, who have taken up firearms and explosive munitions for the sake of their country are now, as civilians, taking up signs and engaging in the civic process to once again strengthen the nation. It’s hard to imagine a more complete example of service.
The Senate is now their duty station. Someone must always be on duty. They’ve established a schedule and rotation to ensure that everyone can get regular sleep, but that their position is never surrendered.
As those gathered in the rain on Friday night stood their watch, scarcely a word was said about the weather. Instead the conversations I heard were all about strategy, organization, and execution. Those on duty weren’t the kind of sick veterans who would receive the benefits the PACT Act would provide. They weren’t there for themselves, but on behalf of those veterns who couldn’t be. A couple people weren’t even veterans themselves, but had asked if they could join as a family member of a veteran.
As I observed Fire Watch I wasn’t quite sure how exactly to capture the right kind of photograph that could properly reflect what these people were doing. These were veterans, they had been discarded, and here they were in the dark, nearly invisible. I could only hope that I could find a way to make them felt.
After about an hour I decided to get a few hours sleep and come back at zero dark thirty before heading out into the rest of the city. When I did, the group was smaller, with some new faces. But others had stayed through the night.
As I began chatting with those taking lead organizational roles I learned that avenues of support were starting to come in. People would be sending meal delivery, others were asking for an address to have Instacart deliver bottled waters and granola bars. One notable individual sent a few thousand dollars through Zelle to be used for whatever needs the group might have. As the sun emerged, word was beginning to spread on social media. Some participants began livestreaming video messages inviting others to join, and calling on Congressional acion.
As the morning went on, tourists and local passersby began asking participants about the cause they were supporting. Some had heard about burn pits before. Many had no idea. Most had no idea that sick veterans were being treated this way. And seemingly everyone was appalled by the fact. By mid-morning a shift change resulted in a fresh crop of personnel taking over.
Fire Watch has continued, with no signs of abatement. The Capitol Police have forced the group to officially migrate off the Senate steps and onto the grass. But they continue to make walking rounds past the chamber. Behind the scenes, direct engagement with Senators has been ongoing, and a cautious optimism emanates that an upcoming new vote will be successful. What seems clear is that this group will not surrender their battlefield and will continue until the mission is fulfilled.