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Published

13 years ago

December 4, 2013

Vietnam 2013

In 1965, I remember talking to a classmate when I was 14 yrs. old about the Vietnam war. Even then we were speculating about the likelihood of us being drafted into what was then called a police action. I told him by the time we turn eighteen that war will be over—so not to worry. Well, the years went by and the next thing I knew I was about to graduate from high school and that damn war was still going strong. I was turning eighteen a few days before my graduation and at that time every eighteen year old, by law, was required to register with his local selective service board. So, If memory serves me right, I fulfilled that obligation by signing up at my local post office.

< p>< p> Basic Training 1970 Ft. Jackson

The war was being fought unfairly by the poor while the rich and upper middle-class kids were seeking and getting student deferments, medical deferments, or fleeing to Canada. I can’t emphasize strongly enough as to how important this war had become to the eighteen year old. From the ever increasing body count dished out on the nightly news, to the student protests, to the wounded soldiers returning home in wheel chairs–it was inescapable. My oldest sister had brought a returning vet to our home once who was missing both legs and consigned to a wheel chair. I had never seen a person in such condition. There had become such a hue and cry about the unfairness of the draft that a lottery system was devised based on every eighteen year old’s birthday.

The first drawing of numbers, which I was not eligible, was for those born between 1944 and 1950. The results of that drawing, had I been eligible, would have given my birth date of June 8th the number 366 which represented leap year. So, I certainly would have never been drafted that year. The following year of 1970, however, which I was eligible, was for those born in 1951. I received the number 7 for that drawing which meant I was guaranteed to be drafted.

Tank Hill, Fort Jackson, South Carolina

Not being one to wait for the Sword of Damocles to befall me, I approached my neighbor who had earlier joined the Army National Guard and asked him to take me with him on his next drill date where I would join forthwith. Yes, I had successfully dodged the draft by choosing the lesser of the two evils. I would do a four month active duty stint called Basic Training at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, and an Advanced Infantry Training (AIT) at Fort Gordon, Georgia. I received the same training as the regular army draftees with the only difference being I knew I was coming home while the majority of the people I trained with would be going to Vietnam.

The last day of our training, we all stood in formation as the Sergeant barked out the orders for our next duty station. Private So-and-So, Republic of Vietnam, Private Such-and-Such, Republic of Vietnam went the refrain as we stood at attention. One after another ordered to Vietnam while a lucky few heard names like the Presidio in San Francisco, Korea, or a base in Germany. For the minority of National Guardsmen in the company our orders were preordained, we knew where we were going. Some would jokingly say, “Fort Home.”

Although I was only obligated to serve six years in the National Guard, I would stick around for the next nine years. In hindsight, I’ve often wondered if I made the right decision. A combination of guilt I suppose and a sense that I missed out on something akin to a rite of passage. I find myself asking, how many of the friends I had made during my training are now names etched on a black granite wall in Washington, D.C.? I look at the faces in many photographs of the guys I lived with for four months wondering if this one is alive or if that one is alive. We were all so young and dumb. The oldest guy in our company was a prior service 26 year old–and we called him grandpa.

Ft. Gordon, Georgia

So, here it is 2013 and I am considerably older and much more reflective. I have traveled and experienced many things in the world. I have few regrets and continue to enjoy life with the zest and zeal of an eighteen year old. I will be returning to America soon after spending a year in China and Taiwan. Upon my return to Asia, I will be embarking on my next quest—called Vietnam. Not for the beaches or the Pagodas, not for the culture or the food, not for the landscape or the language, but for the War. My war, ironically. I will visit as many of the historical locations that I remember about that war from the iconic photo of the execution by General Nguyen Ngoc Loan of the Vietcong prisoner on a Saigon street, to the Son My Village massacre better known as the My Lai Massacre, to the Hanoi Hilton where American pilots were imprisoned, to Dien Bien Phu where the French suffered a humiliating defeat, to the ancient imperial city of Hue virtually demolished during the Tet offensive, to Khe Sanh where the U.S. Marines were under siege and Hamburger Hill. Hopefully, I will visit many sites of battlefield lore and take in the ghosts of Vietnam.

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Oakland Post: Week of September 2 – 8, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of September 2 – 8, 2026

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11 hours ago

September 7, 2026

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Longtime BWOPA Member Brendalyn Goodall Appointed to California Workforce Development Board

Gov. Gavin Newsom has appointed longtime Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA) member Brendalynn Goodall to the California Workforce Development Board. Goodall, an Oakland resident with decades of experience in public service, has held leadership positions focused on

Published

1 week ago

August 30, 2026

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Post Co-Publisher Gay Plair Cobb with Brendalynn Goodall. Courtesy photo.

By California Black Media

Gov. Gavin Newsom has appointed longtime Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA) member Brendalynn Goodall to the California Workforce Development Board.

Goodall, an Oakland resident with decades of experience in public service, has held leadership positions focused on employment, aging services and assistance for underserved communities.

“Brendalynn will be a great addition to this Board,” said Gay Plair Cobb, who served as former state Assemblyman Sandre Swanson’s alternate to the California Workforce Development Board (CWDB).

“She understands that California’s non-profit organizations serve persons who have the most significant barriers to their labor market success and that the Board should help these groups navigate the complicated requirements of state funding.

“In other words, she will be a strong advocate for our most marginalized populations. Her voice is needed now, more than ever.”

CWDB works with the governor to shape workforce policies, programs and investments designed to strengthen the state’s economy. It collaborates with employers, workers, labor organizations, educational institutions, community groups and California’s 45 local workforce development boards to expand access to quality jobs and respond to regional employment needs.

According to the board, its work includes coordinating state programs and guiding investments in workforce training and development.

BWOPA California celebrated the appointment, describing Goodall as a dedicated advocate for workers, families and older adults.

“Her appointment reflects a lifetime of leadership, service, and unwavering commitment to strengthening California’s workforce and expanding opportunity for all,” the organization stated in a press release.

Goodall served as summer jobs program coordinator in the Oakland Mayor’s Office from 2012 to 2014. In that position, she helped connect young people with employment opportunities and job experience.

Before joining the Mayor’s Office, Goodall was division manager for Aging and Adult Services in the City of Oakland Human Services Department from 2002 to 2011. She previously served as senior services supervisor and program director for the city’s Department of Aging, Health and Human Services from 1990 to 2002.

Goodall is also a member of the California Commission on Aging, which advises the governor and state officials on policies and programs affecting older Californians.

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Jackie Wright Champions Bay Area Stories, Filmmakers and Cultural Institutions

As an award-winning communications professional, Wright has worked with corporations, nonprofits, government agencies, educational institutions, artists, and community organizations. In 2026, she expanded that work by launching an introductory public relations class for small businesses and nonprofits, offering practical tools for gaining visibility, shaping messages and building productive relationships with the media.

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Jackie Wright of Wright Enterprises. Photo courtesy of Wright Enterprises.

By Carla Thomas

Jackie Wright has spent more than two decades helping people, organizations and communities understand the power of a well-told story.

As founder and president of Wright Enterprises, a San Francisco-based strategic communications and public affairs firm, Wright has built a career spanning journalism, public relations, media relations, crisis communications, community engagement and multimedia storytelling.

Wright’s commitment to storytelling is also deeply personal. She wrote and co-directed the 15-minute documentary, “Love Separated in Life…Love Reunited in Honor,” which chronicles the story of her parents, Specialist Five (S5 Wyley Wright Jr. and Ouida Fay McClendon Wright. Her father, a U.S. Army helicopter crew chief, died in Vietnam in 1964 while serving as an honor guard during a visit by then-Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. Decades later, Wright and her siblings had their father exhumed from a segregated cemetery in Jacksonville, Florida, and their mother moved from her burial place in Georgia so the couple could be reunited at Arlington National Cemetery in 2014.

The family journey later took Wright and her sister to Vietnam, where they discovered the former military compound that had been named in honor of their father and another fallen soldier. The documentary, centered on love, war, family, racial understanding, and remembrance, earned festival recognition at screenings.

“It was quite an honor to learn about my family’s history and share it on film,” said Wright.

That filmmaking experience complements Wright’s longstanding advocacy for independent cinema. She has served as a media partner and brand ambassador for Bay Area film festivals, including the San Francisco Black Film Festival, Oakland International Film Festival, and the Durban International Film Festival in South Africa.

“It’s important to help filmmakers and underrepresented stories reach broader audiences,” said Wright.

Whether promoting a neighborhood organization, championing an independent filmmaker or preserving her own family history, Wright has remained consistent. Through Wright Enterprises, she has turned communications into both a profession and a form of community service, telling stories that might otherwise go unheard.

“Our stories are an integral part of our history, and our history is not only American history, but worldwide,” she said.