Have you seen The Best Years of Our Lives, directed by William Wyler? The film is a classic, and I was happy to see it again last night after having first viewed it years ago in film school. It follows three veterans, including real-life double amputee Harold Russell in a gut-wrenching performance, who return home from World War II to discover their “readjustment” an emotionally challenging, economically frustrating, and often disappointing process. At numerous point in the story, civilians demonstrated little understanding about the real toll of the war and returning home. Here, support did not come easy, whether Federal, local, or interpersonal. It’s remarkable how similiar in many ways the plight of veterans remains unchanged after sixty years. Goes to show the more things change the more they stay the same. . .

The film did stir up my understanding of redlining, the development of the suburbs, and post-war wealth in white America. . .I’ve got more reading to do, but Wyler’s film, though considerably dramatic adds something unexpected to the picture.