Charles James "Charlie" Liteky (February 14, 1931 – January 20, 2017), formerly known as Angelo Liteky, was an American
peace activist
A peace movement is a social movement which seeks to achieve ideals, such as the ending of a particular war (or wars) or minimizing inter-human violence in a particular place or situation. They are often linked to the goal of achieving world peac ...
who served as a
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
chaplain
A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a Minister (Christianity), minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a laity, lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secularity, secular institution (such as a hosp ...
in the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
and was awarded the U.S. military's highest decoration, the
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...
. A
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
priest
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...
, Liteky received the award for braving intense fire to carry 20 wounded soldiers to safety during a 1967 battle. He later left the priesthood, became a social activist, and in 1986 renounced his Medal of Honor.
Military service
Born on February 14, 1931, in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, Liteky joined the Army from
Fort Hamilton, New York. He served in Vietnam as a
captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
and
chaplain
A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a Minister (Christianity), minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a laity, lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secularity, secular institution (such as a hosp ...
in Headquarters and Headquarters Company of the
199th Infantry Brigade
The 199th Infantry Brigade (Light) is a unit of the United States Army which served in the Army Reserve from 1921 to 1940, in the active army from 1966 to 1970 (serving in the Vietnam War), briefly in 1991–1992 at Fort Lewis, and from 2007 as a ...
. On December 6, 1967, near Phuoc-Lac in South Vietnam's
Biên Hòa Province, he was accompanying Company A, 4th Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment,
199th Light Infantry Brigade
The 199th Infantry Brigade (Light) is a unit of the United States Army which served in the Army Reserve from 1921 to 1940, in the active army from 1966 to 1970 (serving in the Vietnam War), briefly in 1991–1992 at Fort Lewis, and from 2007 as a ...
, on a
search and destroy mission when they came under heavy fire from a numerically superior enemy force. Seeing two wounded men lying from an enemy machine gun, Liteky shielded them with his body and, once the volume of fire had sufficiently decreased, dragged them to the relative safety of a helicopter landing zone. Although wounded in the neck and foot, he continued to expose himself to hostile fire in order to rescue more of the wounded and administer
last rites to the dying. When the landing zone came under fire, he stood in the open and directed the
medical evacuation
Medical evacuation, often shortened to medevac or medivac, is the timely and efficient movement and en route care provided by medical personnel to wounded being evacuated from a battlefield, to injured patients being evacuated from the scene of a ...
helicopters in and out of the area. After the wounded had been evacuated, he returned to the perimeter to encourage the remaining soldiers until Company A was relieved the next morning. Liteky carried a total of 20 soldiers to safety during the battle. For these actions, he was awarded the Medal of Honor.
Activism
Liteky left the priesthood in 1975. In 1983, he married a former
nun named Judy Balch (1942–2016), who encouraged his involvement in
social justice
Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals fu ...
activities, particularly protesting the
School of the Americas (now the
Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation
The Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation (WHINSEC), formerly known as the School of the Americas, is a United States Department of Defense school located at Fort Benning in Columbus, Georgia, renamed in the 2001 National Defens ...
) at
Fort Benning
Fort Benning is a United States Army post near Columbus, Georgia, adjacent to the Alabama–Georgia border. Fort Benning supports more than 120,000 active-duty military, family members, reserve component soldiers, retirees and civilian employees ...
,
Georgia. On July 29, 1986, he renounced his Medal of Honor by placing it in an envelope addressed to then-President
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
near the
Vietnam Veterans Memorial on the
National Mall
The National Mall is a Landscape architecture, landscaped park near the Downtown, Washington, D.C., downtown area of Washington, D.C., the capital city of the United States. It contains and borders a number of museums of the Smithsonian Institut ...
in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
The decoration is on display at the
National Museum of American History
The National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center collects, preserves, and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific, and military history. Among the items on display is t ...
. In doing this, he became the only recipient to have renounced the Medal.
He wanted to renounce his Medal of Honor before embarking, in September 1986, on the
Veterans Fast for Life The Veterans Fast for Life was a water-only fast that lasted from September 1 to October 17, 1986 on the steps of the United States Capitol, Washington, D.C., as a protest against the U.S. policies in Central America (see Contra wars). Charles Lit ...
in protest against the
U.S. policies in Central America. He also opposed the United States' invasion of
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
. He died on January 20, 2017, at the age of 85.
Medal of Honor citation
Liteky's official Medal of Honor citation reads:
See also
*
List of Medal of Honor recipients for the Vietnam War
*
Roy Bourgeois
Roy Bourgeois (born January 27, 1938 in Lutcher, Louisiana) is an American activist, a laicized Roman Catholic priest, and the founder of the human rights group School of the Americas Watch (SOA Watch). He is the 1994 recipient of the Gandhi Pe ...
, activist Catholic priest who also served in Vietnam
*
Brian Willson
S. Brian Willson (born July 4, 1941) is a U.S. American Vietnam veteran, peace activist, and trained attorney.
Willson served in the US Air Force from 1966 to 1970, including several months as a combat security officer in Vietnam. He left the Air ...
, antiwar activist, former U.S. Air Force officer who served in Vietnam
*
Veterans Fast for Life The Veterans Fast for Life was a water-only fast that lasted from September 1 to October 17, 1986 on the steps of the United States Capitol, Washington, D.C., as a protest against the U.S. policies in Central America (see Contra wars). Charles Lit ...
References
5.
https://www.ncronline.org/news/justice/charles-liteky-former-army-chaplain-who-returned-medal-honor-protest-dies
External links
* http://www.charlieliteky.org
Website for Charlie: Index of Articles, Letters & Sundry PostingsA Matter of Honor: He gave back his Medal of Honor to risk his freedom in protesting his country's policiesfrom the ''San Francisco Chronicle''
Charles Liteky and three other veterans fast on the Capitol steps in protest of U.S. policy in Central America.
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Liteky, Charles
1931 births
2017 deaths
American anti–Iraq War activists
American anti–Vietnam War activists
American Roman Catholic priests
Central America solidarity activists
Hunger strikers
People from Washington, D.C.
Robert E. Lee High School (Jacksonville) alumni
Liteky, Charles
United States Army chaplains
United States Army Medal of Honor recipients
United States Army officers
United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War
Vietnam War chaplains
Vietnam War recipients of the Medal of Honor