History of Military Parades

Guest: Andrew Bacevich, PhD, Retired Army Colonel, Professor Emeritus of International Relations and History, Boston University Many countries are in the habit of parading their militaries through the streets, but the US hasn’t had a military parade in nearly 30 years. The last one was in 1991 when “Storm’n” Norman Schwarzkopf led thousands of Desert Storm veterans down Constitution Avenue in Washington to celebrate the Gulf War victory.  But President Trump saw a military parade in France last summer that impressed him, so he’s ordered one here – and the Department of Defense says it will oblige this coming Veteran’s Day. There will be period costumes from previous wars and military aircraft flyovers, but no tanks because they tear up streets. The parade will go from the White House to the Capitol as President Trump watches from a viewing area surrounded by veterans and Medal of Honor recipients.  Why are these types of parades so rare in the United States and what’s the point of holding one?