Long Road Home - Bev Russell, Library Director
(This column appeared in the April 22, 2007, Star-Herald)
In all honesty, I avoid writing about books on the War in Iraq. However, I was so moved by Martha Raddatz’ "The Long Road Home: A Story of War and Family", a book—so intense and heartrending that I had to share it. Martha Raddatz is a reporter for ABC News. Her book focuses on the April 4, 2004, ambush of a First Cavalry Division platoon in Sadr City, a Shiite enclave in Baghdad. This attack killed eight American soldiers and signaled the enormous escalation of sectarian violence in Iraq. Ms. Raddatz interviewed the commanding officers, surviving soldiers and soldier’s families for this book. She intersperses her narrative of the battle with scenes from the lives of the unsuspecting loved-ones left at home. This gripping book reads like a novel and is all the more haunting because it is true.
Sent to Iraq on a peacekeeping mission, the men of the First Cavalry Division believed that they faced little danger. They would be "babysitting" only. However, within 24 hours of their arrival the "babysitting mission" turned into a bloodbath.
On the morning of April 4, 2004, Lt. Shane Aguero’s First Platoon, assigned to security duty for Iraqi sewage trucks, ran into a planned ambush by Moqtada Al-Sadr’s Mahdi militia. Their assignment was to escort the trucks through Sadr City as they cleaned up ankle-deep human excrement that ran through the streets. The "honey wagons" as they were affectionately known sucked the waste into the trucks often splattering it over the accompanying Humvees and troops. It was not desirable duty, but troops felt anything they did to make life more livable in the Shiite slum would eventually be appreciated. While on these patrols, American soldiers frequently met with spitting, slurs and rocks hurled at them by the locals. When asked why the Iraqis reacted this way, unfazable Sgt. Eddie Chen commented, "I guess they don’t realize we’re just here to help."
That evening as they neared the end of their assignment, hundreds of Mahdi militiamen ambushed Aguero’s platoon. The attackers seemed to be everywhere and nowhere at the same time, coming at the convoy from rooftops, doorways, and alleys. Unable to escape from the narrow streets, the platoon took shelter in an alleyway where they commandeered a house. The Mahdi militia blocked the alley, preventing escape. The first to die that day was the unflappable gunner Sgt. Eddie Chen. With one dead and several wounded Lt. Aguero radioed base for assistance, and the rescue attempts began, throwing more men into the fight
Ms. Raddatz tells the story juxtaposing the carnage in Sadr City with the life of family members at Fort Hood, Texas. It was Palm Sunday but to the men who fought it became "Black Sunday". At home unsuspecting loved ones proceeded through their normal Sunday routines. In Sadr City attackers used children as human shields. The contrast makes the firefight even more horrific. The battle scenes are unflinching, and the narrative riveting.
Eight men died that Black Sunday and over 70 were wounded. These are the young men who died.
Sgt. Yihjyd "Eddie" Chen—A 34 year-old gunner sergeant, native of Taiwan, and naturalized citizen, he died immediately from a gunshot wound to the upper body. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
Spc. Stephen "Dusty" Hiller—24 years-old from rural Alabama, married with two daughters and son on the way, he was shot through the neck and chest while driving an unarmored Humvee.
Cpl. Forest Justes—21 years-old from Indiana, he came from a religious background but was a wisecracking prankster. Women found him irresistible. His face was blown away. When informed of his death, his mother hugged the officer who brought the news because "I might not get an opportunity very soon to embrace a young man in uniform."
Spc. Ahmed Cason—A 24 year-old father of two, he liked to party but had shown a growing maturity. He told his wife only days before his deployment that he would not come home alive.
Spc. Robert Arsiaga—24 years-old and married for only five months, he was killed in the back of an unprotected LMTV truck by a gunshot wound to the face. His best friend was Israel Garza.
Spc. Israel Garza—25 years-old and married with two young boys, his wife Lupe was panicked by his deployment. Moments after he was shot in the gut, his best friend Robert Arsiaga died in the back of the same truck.
Sgt. Michael Mitchell—25 years-old and scheduled to leave Iraq the next day, his bags were packed. When he heard a platoon had been ambushed, he volunteered for the rescue mission. A lone gunman in an Iraqi police uniform shot him through the right eye as he stood behind a gun in a Bradley Fighting Vehicle (tank). He was to be married in four months.
Spc. Casey Sheehan—24 years-old, a soft spoken former altar boy and a humanitarian at heart, he took another man’s place in the rescue mission. The round that killed him slammed through his Kevlar helmet and ricocheted through his skull. His mother Cindy has become an antiwar activist.
Martha Raddatz does not judge this war. "The Long Road Home" honors the sacrifice of those who served and that of their families. Should every American read this book? Yes. Will all have the stomach for it? No. If you are up to the task, I strongly recommend "The Long Road Home: A Story of War and Family".
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