>> MORE THAN 320,000
MINNESOTANS SERVED IN THE
ARMED FORCES DURING WORLD
WAR II.
AND AT LEAST 22,000 PEOPLE
ATTENDED THE DEDICATION OF
MINNESOTA'S WORLD WAR II
MEMORIAL IN JUNE 2007.
PAUL MANDELL TELLS US MORE.
MINNESOTA'S WORLD WAR II
MEMORIAL TAKES A PROMINENT
SPOT HERE ON THE CAPITOL
GROUNDS JUST SOUTH OF THE
CAPITOL BUILDING AND NORTH OF
THE VETERANS BUILDING.
WHAT WAS MINNESOTA LOOKING FOR
IN THE DESIGN OF THIS
MEMORIAL?
>> WELL, WE KNEW WE WANTED IT
HERE, BY THIS TIME, THE
VIETNAM MEMORIAL HAD GONE IN,
THE KOREAN MEMORIAL HAD GONE
IN, AND IT ENDED UP VERY MUCH
LIKE IN WASHINGTON, D.C.,
WHERE TWO SIDES OF THE
NATIONAL MALL YOU HAVE THE TWO
MEMORIALS.
AND THEN THE D.C., THE WORLD
WAR II MEMORIAL, WHICH HAD
ACTUALLY ALREADY BEEN STARTED
FOR FUNDRAISING WAS GOING TO
BE CENTER ON THE AXES WITH THE
CAPITOL, ON THE CENTER, WITH
THE CROSSROADS.
SO WE CHOSE THE SITE
ORIGINALLY.
AND THEN THERE WERE A NUMBER
OF DIFFERENT PROPOSALS IN THE
DESIGN COMPETITION.
THIS ONE WAS ONE OF THE LOCAL
TEAMS.
U.R.S. AND STAN SEARS AND
ANDREA MYKLEBUST.
THE SIMPLICITY OF IT AND THE
DEPTH OF THE MEANING, IT WAS
ONE OF THE CLEAR WINNERS.
>> AND SO WE'RE STANDING HERE
RIGHT NEXT TO THE PIT THAT
GOES INTO THE GROUND.
WHAT IS THE SYMBOLISM OF THAT?
>> THAT WAS AT THE BEGINNING
OF THE WAR THE STATE OF
EVERYONE'S DESPAIR,
DEPRESSION, OUTLOOK THAT WAS
VERY, VERY PESSIMISTIC AND
GLOOMY AND DARK.
AND THAT'S WHY IT'S ALSO
ROUGH.
IT PURPOSELY PREVENTS YOU FROM
EVEN WALKING INTO IT BECAUSE
IT'S REALLY ROUGH HEWN.
>> FOREBODING.
>> VERY MUCH.
SO THAT'S WHY THIS WAS THE
COUNTER-BALANCE TO THE RISE IN
THE HILL WHEREBY THE END THEY
WERE ALL CELEBRATING BECAUSE
GOOD HAD TRIUMPHED, THE END
WAS VISIBLE, AND SO IT WAS THE
COUNTER BALANCE TO THE RISE.
>> AND IT'S A JOURNEY THROUGH
TIME FROM THE DARKNESS INTO
THE LIGHT, AND THEN IN THE
CENTER THERE'S A MAP OF
MINNESOTA.
WHY PUT THAT THERE?
>> THE MAP IS ACTUALLY A
REMNANT FROM THE ORIGINAL CODE
OF HONOR, SO IT SHOWS THE 87
COUNTIES.
>> PART OF THE DESIGN WAS TO
INCORPORATE THIS MAP THAT
ALREADY EXISTED SURROUNDING
THE GRANITE PIT AND THEN
ENSUING RAYS OF HOPE ARE TEN
GLASS PANELS TELLING A STORY.
WHAT STORY ARE THEY TELLING?
>> ON THE EAST SIDE YOU'VE GOT
THE ATLANTIC OCEAN THEATER,
THE ATLANTIC EUROPEAN THEATER,
IF YOU WILL AND THE PACIFIC
THEATER OVER HERE AND THEY'RE
ALL ABOUT WHAT MINNESOTANS'
ROLE WAS.
SO YOU HAVE, FOR INSTANCE, YOU
HAVE CHARLES LINDBERG, NOT THE
AVIATOR, BUT CHARLES LINDBERG
WHO RAISED THE IWO JIMA FLAG,
YOU HAVE HAROLD STASSEN WHO
LEFT THE GOVERNORSHIP TO GO
FIGHT AND YOU HAVE THE STORIES
OF THE CAYUNA MINES SUPPLYING
SOME OF THE STEEL.
YOU HAVE SOME OF THE -- ALL
THE LOCAL FOLKLORE AND SOME OF
THE LOCAL PEOPLE ARE QUOTED.
AND U THINGS LIKE THE U.S.S.
WARD WHICH WE HAVE THE CANNON
FOR, HAVING SUNK THE FIRST --
FIRED THE FIRST SHOT AT PEARL
HARBOR.
SO IT'S ALL MINNESOTA STORIES
OF WHAT HAPPENED IN THE WAR
THAT MINNESOTANS EITHER BACK
HERE OR OVER ABROAD PLAYED A
ROLE IN.
>> THIS MEMORIAL IS RELATIVELY
ABSTRACT, I THINK, JUST
BECAUSE WE HAVE THE HOLE IN
THE GROUND, AND THEN IT'S
RISING.
IT MAKES SENSE IF YOU THINK
ABOUT IT, BUT YOU HAVE TO
THINK ABOUT IT.
SO WHAT DO -- WHAT HAVE PEOPLE
SAID OVER THE YEARS ABOUT THIS
MEMORIAL?
ARE THEY SATISFIED THAT IT'S
CONVEYING WHAT IT WAS MEANT TO
CONVEY?
>> I DON'T GET THE INTERACTION
WITH PEOPLE ON A DAILY BASIS.
THE COMMISSIONER, PREVIOUS
COMMISSIONER, LARRY SHELATOW
WAS ALWAYS TALKING ABOUT HOW
HE'D LOOK OUT HIS WINDOW HERE
AND HE'D SEE THREE
GENERATIONS, HE'D SEE THE SON
WHO HASN'T BEEN FIGHTING YET,
THE DAD WHO MIGHT HAVE BEEN IN
THIS WAR OR MAYBE THE VIETNAM
WAR, AND THEN THE GRANDPA.
AND SO HE'D SEE THREE
GENERATIONS, AND TELLING
STORIES, OR THEY'RE CONVEYING,
YEAH, THIS WAS WHAT WE WENT
THROUGH, AND THAT'S HOW IT
WENT, AND IT WOULD BE VIEWED
AS A SUCCESS, I THINK, YEAH.
>> I READ THAT -- ACCOUNTS OF
THE DEDICATION, THERE WERE
22,000 PEOPLE WHO CAME.
SO IT WAS MEANINGFUL.
>> YEAH, THIS WAS THE BIGGEST,
BY FAR, THE BIGGEST CROWD, AND
I MEAN, IT WAS PACKED FROM
HERE ALL THE WAY UP TO THE --
TO MARTIN LUTHER KING AND
BEYOND.
THEY HAD THE BIG, BIG FLAG,
SUSPENDED RIGHT IN FRONT OF
THE CAPITOL.
THEY HAD THE FLYOVERS.
THE THING I REMEMBER THE MOST,
BECAUSE THE CEREMONIES WERE
ALL TAKING PLACE FACING US
HERE.
WITH THE BACKDROP OF THE
VETERANS BUILDING.
BUT -- AND PEOPLE WERE
STANDING ON ALL THESE
PEDESTALS AND I WAS LIKE, YOU
KNOW, THE FIRST TEST OF
WHETHER THESE PANELS WOULD
TAKE THE ABUSE.
THE THING I REMEMBER THE MOST
WAS AFTER THE CEREMONY WAS
OVER, I'M JUST WALKING AROUND
AND OBSERVING.
AND ON MARTIN LUTHER KING
BOULEVARD WHICH WAS CLOSED TO
TRAFFIC, THERE WAS THIS ONE
VETERAN ALL DECKED OUT WITH
HIS UNIFORM.
HE WAS IN A WHEELCHAIR.
HE HAD HIS MEDALS ON AND THERE
HAD BEEN A BAGPIPER, AND HE'S
VERY CEREMONIALLY WALKING UP,
HE'S CROSSING MARTIN LUTHER
KING AND HE SEES THIS GUY AND
IN FULL, LIKE, LEFT TURN,
RIGHT TURN, WALKED OVER VERY
REVERENTLY, STARTED PIPING,
AND THEN KNELT IN FRONT OF THE
GUY AND PIPED HIM A WHOLE
SONG.
AND THEN SALUTED HIM
AFTERWARDS.
AND IT WAS JUST TWO PEOPLE.
NOT CEREMONIALLY, JUST THAT
INTERCHANGE, AND IT WAS SUCH A
BEAUTIFUL MOMENT.
[ DRAMATIC MUSIC ]
♪♪
