Request an investigation of the Army Human Resources Command concerning discrimination against Vietnam Vets. 

Urge Secretary of the Army Daniel Driscoll to order an investigation of the Army Human Resources Command, Fort Knox, Kentucky, to determine whether it discriminates against veterans of the Vietnam War by failing to adhere to relevant laws and regulations that apply to those veterans regarding awards and decorations.

As part of the Fiscal Year 1996 National Defense Authorization Act, Congress waived the time limitations on submissions for nominations for acts of valor during the Vietnam War, which had previously been five years. When the Department of Defense issued implementing instructions to the services concerning that law, it ordered that: “The level of the decoration approved will be based solely on the merits of the act [not previous time restrictions].”

However, the Army Human Resources Command refuses to process a request regarding a Vietnam veteran unless that veteran or his supporters can prove that the original nominator and at least one member of his wartime chain of command are still alive and that their request has the written support of those survivors.   

This unilateral requirement effectively shuts the door on all Army Vietnam War veterans ever having the facts in their case considered because few, if any, senior officers in command between 1955 and 1975 are still living. Not only is such a ruling unfair to veterans, but it also violates both the intent of Congress and DoD policy.

In support of this request, the website linked below has been created to highlight a clear case of discrimination by the Army Human Resources Command and underscore the need for the investigation.

www.vietnamstolenvalor.com