KOREAN WAR VETS-GOLD MEDAL

Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of SJR0056

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SJR0056 - 104th General Assembly

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SJ0056
LRB104 21023 MST 34936 r
1
SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION

2

WHEREAS, The Korean War began on June 25, 1950 and raged
3
for three bloody years; 1.5 million members of the United
4
States Armed Forces, including thousands from the State of
5
Illinois, answered the call to arms during the war; and

6

WHEREAS, The President of the United States may present
7
Congressional Gold Medals to Korean War veterans in
8
recognition of their contributions while serving under the
9
United Nations Command (UNC), which was the first
10
international unified command in history; and

11

WHEREAS, The purpose of the medals is to express
12
recognition for the exemplary contributions made by all Korean
13
War veterans, both U.S. and allied forces, who demonstrated
14
selfless acts during the conflict; and

15

WHEREAS, The Empire of Japan occupied the entire country
16
of Korea from 1910 until the end of World War II; prior to the
17
official Japanese surrender on August 15, 1945, the U.S. and
18
its allies prepared an arrangement to divide Korea
19
horizontally into two regions, North and South; and

20

WHEREAS, On June 25, 1950, the North Korea Peoples' Army
21
and their allies invaded South Korea; the U.N. Security

SJ0056
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LRB104 21023 MST 34936 r
1
Council adopted a resolution to send U.N. Forces into Korea;
2
on June 27, 1950, President Truman sent U.S. troops as aid
3
under the aegis of the United Nations; in October 1950, the
4
Peoples Volunteer Army of China entered the conflict by
5
encroaching into North Korea; in response, China's ruling
6
party ordered the immediate destruction of the entire 1st
7
Marine Division, the Republic of Korea Army Divisions, and the
8
U.S. Army's 7th Infantry Division, which led to the struggle
9
to defend the Pusan Perimeter; and

10

WHEREAS, A series of battles against the Chinese forces
11
took place throughout autumn 1950, including the Battle of
12
Inchon, the Battle of Naktong breakout, the Battle of
13
Seoul-Second, and the Battle of Changjin (Chosin) Reservoir,
14
which tested the capacity of U.S. and allied forces against
15
both the enemy and the elements; and

16

WHEREAS, On November 25, 1950, Chinese communist forces
17
launched an all-out assault, swiftly overtaking the UNC forces
18
and forcing U.S. and UNC allied troops to withdraw south;
19
battles against the communist forces continued throughout
20
1951, including the Battle of Seoul-Fourth, by far the largest
21
artillery operation of the Korean conflict; during this time,
22
U.N. allied forces from countries such as Australia, the
23
Philippines, and parts of the United Kingdom assisted in
24
combatting the Chinese communist forces; and

SJ0056
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LRB104 21023 MST 34936 r
1

WHEREAS, By 1953, at least another dozen battles took
2
place in an attempt to retake South Korea; the ground action
3
was led by U.S. and allied forces; and

4

WHEREAS, On July 27, 1953, the United States, North Korea,
5
and China signed an armistice agreement that ended the
6
conflict and created the demilitarized zone (DMZ), again
7
dividing Korea but failing to bring about peace within the
8
peninsula; to date, the Republic of Korea (South Korea) and
9
the Democratic Peoples' Republic of Korea (North Korea) have
10
not signed a peace treaty that would officially end the war;
11
and

12

WHEREAS, One of two principle objectives was to not lose
13
the war to the aggressors and the other was to keep Seoul,
14
South Korea from occupation by the Democratic Peoples'
15
Republic of Korea to the north; American combat troops and
16
allied forces from 16 nations helped secure this mission;
17
today, Seoul's vibrancy is possible because of those who
18
served and sacrificed; and

19

WHEREAS, It is the appropriate time for America to honor
20
the troops, including all United Nations allied forces during
21
the Korean conflict, and to award them the Congressional Gold
22
Medal; it is appropriate that these medals stand as evidence

SJ0056
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LRB104 21023 MST 34936 r
1
that The Forgotten War is no longer forgotten, but forever
2
remembered; therefore, be it

3

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL
4
ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE HOUSE OF
5
REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING HEREIN, that we urge Congress to
6
authorize the President to present Congressional Gold Medals
7
to all Korean War Veterans in recognition of their service and
8
sacrifice; and be it further

9

RESOLVED, That following the awarding of the medals, we
10
urge that one Congressional Gold Medal be given to the
11
Smithsonian Institution and one Congressional Silver Medal be
12
given to the War Memorial of Korea, Seoul, where they shall be
13
available for display as appropriate and made available for
14
research; and be it further

15

RESOLVED, That we recognize and honor the service and
16
sacrifice of all Korean War veterans, the brave men and women
17
who served honorably and those who paid the ultimate price
18
defending our freedom; and be it further

19

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
20
delivered to President Donald J. Trump, U.S. Senate Majority
21
Leader John Thune, U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer,
22
U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, U.S. House of

SJ0056
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LRB104 21023 MST 34936 r
1
Representatives Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, each member
2
of the Illinois Congressional Delegation, and all Ministry of
3
Foreign Affairs with volunteer forces to the U.N. Command.

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