WHEN HUGH MET EMMA

Meet Hugh. He was an American from Georgia. Raised by Christian parents. Finished high school, joined the Navy, and assigned to a construction battalion. Completed his service and came home to become a licensed mortician. Felt the call to service once again, joined the Army, and completed helicopter pilot training as a warrant officer.

Meet Emma. She is a Brit. Raised by a single mother who was a housekeeper; never knew her father. Adverse to organized religion. Attended prep schools and Oxford on scholarships. Read (majored in) Middle Eastern studies. Lived in an Israeli kibbutz. Became a pacifist and worked in non-government organizations (NGOs) bettering the lives of others,

No- Hugh and Emma never physically met. Yet, they were related by courage on the battlefield. Hugh’s climatic experience occurred one day in 1968- the year of Emma’s birth. Her experience was spread over several years.

Hugh Thompson and his crew of two were ordered on March 16, 1968, to provide air support in their scout helicopter for ground operations against a village complex including the hamlet of My Lai.  Hovering above the battlefield Thompson and his crew kept noticing something odd- the dead bodies were all children, women, and old people with no enemy fighters sighted.

Thompson landed his craft, got out, and went over to confront an infantry officer. Thompson demanded to know the situation. The officer told him he was following orders and that Thompson should mind his own business. Back into his helicopter above the killing fields he noticed an area in which civilians were huddled together with US soldiers approaching. He then did the unthinkable.

He landed his craft once again and ordered his crew to aim their weapons at their own soldiers and to fire upon them if they began shooting the civilians. Thompson personally led the group to safety. Some of them were put on his helicopter and others were flown away on other helicopters Thompson had radioed for assistance. His actions directly saved several dozen children, women, and old people from being murdered.

Thompson flew back to his base in a rage. He shouted at his commanders telling them what was happening, and that the killing spree must be ended immediately. It was but not until 300- 500 innocents were murdered by American soldiers. Many of the women had been raped and their tongues cut out. Yet, since this ground operation was expected to last four days, the actions of Thompson and his crew were estimated to have saved thousands more civilians in addition to the ones they personally rescued.

Thompson’s efforts were not immediately heralded in the Army. He was threatened with court martial, ostracized by fellow officers, and received death threats. He and his wife divorced, he became depressed and drank too much. He retired in 1983 with the rank of major. Finally, the Army honored Thompson and his crew with medals and commendations on March 6, 1998. Thompson died on January 5, 2006, at the age of 62. He was once asked in an interview whether he had forgiven the men who did those horrific deeds in 1968. He replied in the negative and stated that he was not that big of a man to do so. Quite the contrary, Thompson was a big man and a hero to all current military and veterans who know the difference between killing armed combatants and murdering innocent civilians.

Emma Sky in 2003 was working for the British Council, a quasi-governmental agency promoting international cooperation. One day she was copied on an e-mail from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) requesting volunteers to assist with Iraqi reconstruction following that nation’s defeat from an invasion by the US and UK. As a pacifist Sky felt the war was illegal but felt the need to volunteer to help the people there. Her application was accepted, and she was loaned by the British Council to the FCO for a three-month tour of duty.

After Sky arrived in Iraq a bizarre turn of events had the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) send her to Kirkuk in the north. As the highest CPA official in the province, she became the de facto governor, a position she reluctantly accepted but over time she relished the opportunity to assist Iraqis. She developed a positive working relationship with Colonel William Mayville, the commander of the US airborne forces in Kirkuk. She also gained the attention of Ambassador Paul Bremer, the CPA chief as well as Secretary of State Colin Powell and General Ray Odierno for her knowledge.

Sky survived an early assassination attempt but was determined to get her part of Iraq up and running. She came to appreciate the can-do spirit of the US Army despite being puzzled by some of its practices. When the British Council insisted that she return to the UK after three months of serving in Iraq and being suspicious of her role as a “colonial governor” Sky flew home to appeal and received the council’s approval to continue.

In 2004 Sky was transferred to the CPA staff working directly for Bremer. In the middle of the year, she returned to the UK to work for the British Council in conflict resolution and then she went to Afghanistan as the development adviser to an American general in the International Security Assistance Forces.

In 2007 US forces initiated a surge in Iraq to push for victory against the insurgents. General Odierno was ordered to take charge of the ground operations and he asked Sky to his political adviser. Odierno respected Sky’s judgement so in short time she also became a confidante on other policy matters. Sky, in addition, came under scrutiny of American media as the short woman with the Brit accent was often sighted in the battle zones with the towering and massively built Odierno.

As the active surge was winding down and Sky returned to London, she was angry. She felt the sacrifices of US and UK service personnel to the effort had been in vain since a reconstructed Iraq was so close. She foresaw Iran’s growing influence in Iraq with its proxy fighters. She was interrogated by the UK’s Iraq Inquiry into her role in the occupation and reconstruction and today teaches at Yale University.

“Courage,” stated Winston Churchill, “is the first of human qualities because it is the quality that guarantees all the others.” Both Hugh Thompson and Emma Sky demonstrated the prime quality of courage, not for a few hours or a few days or months, but for years. Different wars and different roles, but the same courage.