DIA Beirut 1983 – Never Forgotten T-Shirt

Never Forgotten

By DIA

On October 23, 1983, at 6:22 a.m., a suicide bomber drove a truck filled with explosives into the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut, Lebanon. In a matter of seconds, 241 American servicemen—220 of them United States Marines—were killed. It was the deadliest single-day loss of Marine life since the Battle of Iwo Jima and the bloodiest day for the Corps since Okinawa in World War II.

We were there to keep the peace. To help stabilize a region drowning in chaos. But instead, we were met with an act of terror that marked the beginning of a new kind of war—one that didn’t come with clear front lines or defined enemies. It was a moment that should have shaped our national consciousness. And yet, 42 years later, the memory of that day is fading from our collective history.

This shirt stands as a solemn tribute to those who were taken and in honor of those who survived. You were there. You bore the weight of that moment, and you carry it still. We honor your sacrifice. And to the 241 brothers lost that morning, we say this:

You Are Not Forgotten, and You Never Will Be