Crowd honors ‘gift of freedom’ from Pearl Harbor servicemen

PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii—Thousands of people observed a moment of silence before fighter jets streaked across the sky during a ceremony on Wednesday at Pearl Harbor marking the 75th anniversary of the attack that plunged the United States into World War II and left more than 2,300 service people dead.

The crowd bowed their heads at the precise moment decades ago when Japanese planes began their assault on the harbor’s US naval base.

And they stood and clapped when survivors joined active-duty servicemen and women and National Park Service rangers in dedicating wreaths to those killed.

Attendees also gave a lengthy ovation to Adm. Harry Harris of the US Pacific Command when he spoke in favor of standing for the national anthem.

The anniversary is a tribute to “what freedom does when it is faced with fascism,” said Paul Hilliard, incoming chairman of the board of the National World War II Museum in New Orleans.

“I suspect the Americans of today would do the same thing,” said Hilliard, a Marine veteran and one of several dignitaries and officials who presented wreaths for the fallen at a memorial over the sunken hull of USS Arizona.

“America went abroad to gain freedom for millions of other people. We are an exceptional nation.”

The ceremony started with the USS Halsey sounding its whistle to mark the start of the moment of silence at 7:55 a.m. F-22 fighter jets then flew in formation overhead.

Harris told the crowd the servicemen attacked at Pearl Harbor “engaged the enemy as best they could,” and there is sorrow for those who died.

“Yet we are also inspired by their great gift to the world — the gift of freedom itself,” he said.

Harris also said: “You can bet that the men and women we honor today” never failed to stand for the national anthem. The crowd erupted in cheers.

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and others have knelt through the anthem in recent months to protest police brutality and the treatment of minorities, drawing criticism and acclaim. (AP)

(AP FOTO) WW II VET. In this Dec. 5, 2016 photo, Jim Downing, 103, poses in a Navy uniform in Honolulu, with a photo of himself taken when he was about 20 years old. Downing is among a few dozen survivors of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor who plan to gather...