92-year-old Howard Banks, a World War II veteran that lost his eyesight during the Battle of Iwo Jima, has become the latest victim of radical leftist violence.
Tired of having his American and Marine Corp flags stolen, Banks tried to stop thugs from desecrating his property, but was attacked and hurt during the scuffle earlier this month.
According to a local Dallas-Fort Worth news station, Banks heard someone trying to take his American flag down on July 11 and went out to confront them.
“I walked out, hanging onto the railing and stepped down. That must’ve startled them,” Banks told them. The vandals turned and knocked Banks down, injuring him.
“They could see me, but I couldn’t see them. I turned and looked in the other direction, and about then – ‘wham!’” Banks said. “They knocked me down.”
The suspects fled the scene and local police are asking the public’s help in identifying them.
Banks has a number of bad bruises from the attack. “On this forearm, it’s kind of sore and rough. Both of them. I’ve still got soreness here, but I’m durable,” Banks said. “I can take it.”
This isn’t the first time Banks’ property had been targeted. A year ago, someone shredded his American and Marine Corp flags. Banks has since had security cameras installed on his property.
There is good news, however.
A local Marine Corp unit heard about Banks’ courage and decided to do something to help. Sunday, they awarded their fellow Marine with a special Honor Flight trip to Washington, D.C. to visit the National World War II Memorial.
“It’s a shame. You know, this guy is living history. He’s a national treasure,” Honor Flight Austin’s Kory Ryan told Fox News. “People should be lined up on his porch to talk to him, not ripping his flags down.”
The 92-year-old veteran has promised not to back down from honoring the flag and the veterans who served under it
“I think we all had that same feeling, that the flag was our identity. We were Americans,” Banks told the local station. “The fact that I’m getting older, and the less I can do … at least I can still do that.”
“Once a Marine, always a Marine,” Banks said. “I try to live that way.”
— The Horn editorial team