In Las Cruces, New Mexico stands a memorial to those from the state that suffered as part of the Bataan Death March. In the center stands a statue of three men. The centerman is being helped along by the two on his sides. The man on his left looks ahead wearily towards what is to come. The man on his right looks back at what they’ve gone through. He looks down to the present. In both directions, bootprints are cast into the cement, but there are more behind them than ahead. This is done to signify that as the march wore on, their numbers dwindled due to the deaths. Among the boot, prints are 38 sets of bare footprints. These barefoot impressions are of 38 actual survivors. This is a small part of a larger Memorial Park for veterans of all wars.
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Visiting the Bataan Death March Memorial
The memorial honors April 1942, when American and Filipino soldiers defending the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines were ordered to surrender to Japanese forces — the largest surrender of American-led forces in United States military history. The Japanese rounded up approximately 70,000 prisoners and forced them to march 65 miles through jungle heat with almost no food or water. Those who fell were beaten, bayoneted, or shot. Between 5,000 and 10,000 Filipino soldiers and 600 to 650 Americans died during the march itself. Thousands more died in the prison camps at the end of it from disease, starvation, and continued brutality.
New Mexico bore this more personally than perhaps any other state. The 200th and 515th Coast Artillery Regiments — both New Mexico National Guard units drawing from communities across the state — were among the forces defending Bataan. At the time of surrender, New Mexico had the highest per capita prisoner of war population in the nation. Men from more than 300 New Mexico communities were taken prisoner that day. Many never came home.
True American patriotism is honored in this memorial. It is a fitting tribute to the many veterans of not only war or World War II, but to Bataan specifically. That these men so willingly volunteered to go to war shows a culture devoted to fighting for what is right. War memorials, whether they be local, state, or national, commemorate the sacrifices borne by our nation’s defenders.
The memorial was dedicated on April 13th, 2002. The 60th anniversary of the march. Much like when the event happened and when the memorial was dedicated, the country was reeling from a devastating attack a few months prior. Suddenly, our differences didn’t seem so overwhelming. We were again united in a cause of freedom and patriotism. Fighting against a common enemy for our common good. We focused on what united us instead of what divided us. Not seeing political parties, left or right, but seeing fellow Americans. Memorials such as this reminded us of the defenders of our way of life. As the oft-repeated quote says, “The Nation which forgets its defenders will itself be forgotten”.
Read more about the Las Cruces Veteran Memorial Park here.
While you’re in town embrace the area’s history and culture here.
Vince DiLoreto spent 20 years in the United States Air Force seeing the world before deciding to see it properly — this time with a camera, an RV, and considerably better food. A trained photographer and the visual half of Fitting in Adventure, Vince captures the places, people, and moments that make every trip worth telling. When he’s not behind the lens, he’s behind the wheel, which means he’s seen every gas station between Florida and the Pacific Northwest.