M.R.

What possible concern could a country as large as the United States have with a place as small as the tiny island of Grenada? Well, during the time when Ronald Reagan was president, Grenada came to be a concern to Americans. At that time, the Soviet Union was still in place, and democratic America was not anxious to see any further Communist influence established in our half of the world.

In October, 1983, a group of radical communists in Grenada overthrew and killed the prime minister. The United States was already upset with Grenada because of its close ties with the Cubans, and because it had begun to build a large airfield. When the radical new government took power, it was quite clear that the airfield would become a valuable military base for the communists. The decision was made to attack Grenada using military force to prevent that from happening. The U.S. government was concerned about how it would look to the rest of the world if many innocent citizens were killed in the attack, so they set up a plan that would allow Grenadans to escape the pending attack if they so desired.

Safe-conduct passes were printed on paper that made them look like dollar bills, something everyone would recognize! They were printed in English and in Spanish, and they said, "To those who are resisting the Caribbean peace force: this pass will save your life if presented to any member of the Caribbean Peace Force. You will be taken to a safe place where your needs will be met. Food, clothing, shelter and medical treatment is available."

These passes were then dropped all over the tiny island. As promised, whoever did what the pass said was provided with food, shelter and safety until the battle was over. All they had to do was trust that the people who made the promise would keep it. It's not certain how many people of Grenada took the chance for safety, but it is for sure that some did not. Some thought they could survive on their own without help from Americans. Others didn't really believe that the U.S. would attack their tiny island. Still others just put off doing anything about the pass.

Whatever the reason, on October 25, 1983, nearly two thousand United States Marines invaded Grenada. After brief but strong resistance from mostly Cuban workers and troops on the island, the American forces claimed a victory that cost 18 lives. They captured Soviet arms that had already been placed on the island, and rescued American medical personnel who had been caught in the middle of the battle. The mission was a success, unless you were one of the eighteen people who had a chance to escape the attack and did not take it!

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