Overlooked: The Death of Army Spc. Joseph Patrick — Jul 18th 2008

By Dakota Smith

Not long ago, Propeller user Aidenag submitted a story about the recent death of Army Spc. Joseph Patrick Dwyer, a former medic who'd served in Iraq and gained national attention after appearing in a photograph taken by Army Times photographer Warren Zinn. In the photo, Dwyer is seen carrying a young wounded Iraqi boy across a field. The Army Times described it this way: "The photo was hailed as a portrait of the heart behind the U.S. military machine, and Doc Dwyer's concerned face graced the pages of newspapers across the country."

Following a struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder, Dwyer died of an accidental overdose last month. And while that story gained attention on the site, another story--a Washington Post essay penned by Warren Zinn, the Army Times photographer--got lost in the shuffle. The opening line of Zinn's essay is chilling and effective: "My shot made Joseph Dwyer famous. Did it also help lead to his death?"

Zinn recounts his casual email exchanges with Dwyer after both returned to the U.S. The medic had difficulties adjusting to life back at home. Reports that Dwyer didn't like his newfound celebrity troubled Zinn, who also notes that so many heroic acts are never seen by the public.

"U.S. soldiers perform courageous deeds daily," he writes, "deeds that go undocumented--and unrecognized. The difference between Joseph's act and theirs is that I just happened to be in front of him with a camera when he did his job. If a camera could follow U.S. soldiers in action around the clock, newspapers would be flooded with images of their valiant actions."

Later Zinn adds: "Had I never captured that image of Joseph, it's likely that very few people would have paid any attention to this one soldier's death."

Zinn says he's gotten about 250 emails praising his piece. "I've heard from veterans from every war," he said, speaking to Propeller by phone from Miami, where he attends law school. He also has heard from Dwyer's wife Matina, who wrote: "Thank you for the great article and the great photo you took, I appreciate it." According to Zinn, Matina Dwyer has told him to discount those reports that Dwyer didn't appreciate his appearance in the famous photo. "She told me: 'It's not true.'"

Zinn quit working as a photographer in 2004. Regarding his own transition from Iraq and Afghanistan to Miami, Zinn says: "When you first get back, you have a hard time experiencing the mundane things, it's hard to just go out to a bar... You realize how trivial the basic things of life are. But it goes away. And it gives you a better perspective."

As for the original story about Dwyer, Propeller user Aidenag notes in an email that his interest in both the story and photography prompted him to submit the article. "I found the story so interesting due to all the exposure him carrying that child in the photo got. And being that my day job is as a photographer, and that I grew up an army brat, it really hit home for me."

Tags: joseph patrick dwyer, pstd, warren zinn

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