In this opinion essay for The New York Times, Elliot Ackerman reflects on what truly makes Arlington National Cemetery sacred.
Responding to proposed burial restrictions, Ackerman argues that Arlington’s meaning comes not from prestige or geography, but from the bonds among those who served, fought, survived, and died together.
Arlington, Service, and Sacred Ground
Ackerman explains why the promise made between service members, “See you after,” gives Arlington its deepest meaning as a place of reunion, memory, and military family.
Burial, Brotherhood, and Remembrance
The essay recalls friends buried in Section 60, including Aaron Torian, Garrett Lawton, Doug Zembiec, and Dan Malcom, connecting personal grief to national remembrance.
What Makes Ground Hallowed
Drawing on Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, Ackerman argues that it is not the ground itself that is sacred, but the sacrifice and relationships that consecrate it.