[January 20, 2016] There’s an old saying among troops in militaries across time and cultures that you never leave a soldier behind. This is part of the warrior ethos that brings them together on the battlefield and explains, in part, the band of brothers (sisters) phenomenon we know so well.
Of course, this saying applies to all military personnel and any civilian working for them, not just Army “soldiers.” And it applies to that soldier whether they are dead or alive. Some of the old salts (originally a navy term) in the military will tell you that this is an official military policy since before their time … but it’s not policy. However, it is an obligation handed down from trooper to trooper.
I will argue that the concept of never leaving a soldier behind also pertains to those not associated with the military and always has applied. We just never recognized it in so many words. It means that anyone who is part of your team, group, or organization should know that their companions have their backs whenever they put themselves at risk.
Being part of a team means more than simply working together to achieve an established goal. It means banding together and looking out for one another; to stand in harm’s way yourself to protect them from danger. Of course, this “danger” can mean anything from a threat to life and liberty to a threat to one’s job, social status, or reputation.
I clearly remember the day when two of our soldier’s were captured in Baghdad. It was April of 2014. One was found dead shortly after the DUSTWUN event.1 The other, Matt Maupin was not found after a prolonged and extensive search. While it served as a stern warning never to surrender to the Muslim terrorists, it was also a lesson in never leaving a soldier behind.
It took the U.S. military four years to find his body. We never gave up and in each of my three deployments to Iraq, we treated any missing person more serious than anything else we were doing. The United States takes this mission seriously; the Department of Defense has an organization, well funded, to account for all POW/MIAs from all wars regardless of location.2
Sometimes our nations’ leaders forget about this and they should be reminded again of it. During the Vietnam era, our political leaders not only discarded the belief to never a soldier behind, but they consciously ostracized our military. All elected officials should be reminded of the disgrace they brought upon themselves. And that is why this is an important leadership lesson.
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- DUSTWUN (abbreviation for duty status – whereabouts unknown) is a transitory casualty status assigned to United States service members who cannot be located but have not been confirmed captured or dead. Reference: Wikipedia.
- http://www.dpaa.mil/