Duty, Honor, Country - and Dignity
By: Susan Saulny
Cadets in the United States Military Academy at West Point are encouraged to live by the motto, “Duty, Honor, Country.” We at the Dignity Index are thrilled that a group of seniors added “Dignity” to the list of values studied this year for a class project that became so much more than academic work – for us and the future Army leaders.
Sixteen cadets in the Social Sciences department chose the Dignity Index as the subject for a final group project, a months-long analysis that delivered proposals to promote the Index and increase its impact. But beyond that, the project produced new relationships.
“We really just love the Dignity Index - it’s such a useful tool,” said Cadet Summer Mirigliano. “And we find this particularly salient as future officers.”
On Saturday, Cadet Mirigliano and her classmates graduated and were commissioned as 2nd Lieutenants in the U.S. Army. We salute our newest officers and wish them well in their military careers.
Lately, our thoughts have been on dignity and how it serves our country's future leaders. Before they graduated, former cadets Tysen Barbour and Jack Pedersen took me and Dignity Index colleagues Madeleine Jones and Stephanie Wallace, to Trophy Point where the Army built critical fortifications during the American Revolution. Trophy Point enjoys a sweeping view of the Hudson River, which made it strategically important for a military on the lookout for enemy ships. Today, it displays captured weapons of war. We all contemplated the site’s lessons and its significance to our dignity work.
“If you look around you can see that a lot of these cannons that were used in the civil war are turned down, muzzles into the ground. That’s to signify that in our country, we’ll never fight another war against one another, ever again,” Pedersen said. “So, we definitely appreciate the Dignity Index’s efforts to keep us all reminded of the fact that we’re all Americans, and we’re all brothers and sisters in arms.”
Lieutenant Colonel Lee Robinson, who led the cadets through their senior projects on the Index, echoed those sentiments.
“Character is one of those attributes that is part of our leader development model, and empathy is one of those components of character,” he said. “And it’s hard to have empathy for people if you’re using the language of contempt. So, I think that this has become a tool for the cadets that is going to benefit them.”
My visit with the cadets was not my first time at Trophy Point. Back in the 1980s, I marveled at this same spot when one of my older brothers was a young cadet. My parents and I traveled to West Point many times for family weekends and football games.
As not to be accused of bias in favor of the Army, I should mention that I have another brother who served in the Air Force, attaining the rank of Captain before leaving the military for graduate school. My dad, Stan Saulny, who will be 89 years old this year, split the difference: he served active duty in the Army but later joined the Air Force Reserve.
Stan Saulny, late 1950s, in New Orleans
My dad enlisted in New Orleans at age 18 in 1954. He couldn’t wait to escape the crushing restrictions of Jim Crow laws in the Deep South. He also wanted to use the GI Bill to pay for college. He said the Army gave him his first real taste of dignity as a black man in America.
“When I put on the uniform, I felt proud, a part of the whole, some unity,” he recently told me.
Beyond my dad and brothers, every one of my six uncles spent time in the military. Sometimes I’ve wondered how so many peace-loving Catholic altar boys ended up training for war. As my brother, Eddie, explains it, sometimes you study and get ready for war to prevent war: After West Point, Eddie had the good fortune of being on duty at the Berlin Wall as it fell, ending the Cold War. His lasting memory of time in the service is, ultimately, peace.
Visiting West Point and meditating a bit on my family’s military experience has made it clear that the ideals of dignity stand up to the reality of what it means to be focused on the defense of a country.
As our co-founder Tim Shriver said at the beginning of the cadets’ class presentation, “I have been overwhelmingly moved and inspired by the cadets, and by the ways these young men and women can embrace the seriousness of their ultimate mission in partnership with a commitment to the highest degree of character and values and dignity for all people.”
Duty, Honor, Country – and Dignity! Enjoy Memorial Day.
-Susan
Dignity Updates
Last Sunday, Tim Shriver delivered the commencement address to Fairfield University’s Class of 2025. In a powerful and heartfelt speech, he invited graduates to reject the rising culture of contempt and instead live lives of courage, connection, and dignity. Drawing on lessons from the Special Olympics, civil rights leaders, and his own family’s legacy, Tim reminded students that the way we treat each other can shape not just our communities, but our country. Click HERE to watch the speech.
What’s New at Dignity HQ?
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