Filthy Thirteen: Symbol of American Fighting Spirit
June 17, 2024 by Mike Kelvington
Units in the Airborne Divisions portrayed characteristics and a culture symbolic and unique to paratroopers. A demolition section attached to the 1stBattalion, 506thParachute Regiment, 101stAirborne Division, nicknamed the “Filthy Thirteen,” provides a great example. They were not the “Dirty Dozen” like Hollywood would want people to believe, nor were they a bunch of criminals on death row hired as hitmen. In the movie, they fought for individual freedom. If they accomplished and survived their mission, they would be acquitted of all their criminal charges and not be executed when they returned to the states.
The real men fought for freedom, but it was the type of unselfish heroes fight for freedom for others. These young men wanted to be part of something bigger than themselves. They found what they sought in the Airborne, and while they were no criminals, they managed to create their own paratrooper myth based on their young section’s behavior.
Jack Agnew, a member of the group, “prepared to do [his] share, whatever it might be after enlisting.”[1] He wanted to be involved in the fight of his generation. Agnew joined the Paratroopers and became a demolition specialist because he “liked the idea of harassing the enemy and demolition was the best way.”[2] Jake McNiece, another member, and creator of the “Filthy Thirteen,” became a Paratrooper to “have fun and participate in an adventure. He had no intention of being a hero. He liked to fight and the army was going to pay him to fight Germans.”[3] McNiece admits he was “never really interested in the war until after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor,” but once that event transpired, along with a run-in with the police in Oklahoma City, he knew he wanted to be a Paratrooper.[4]
https://havokjournal.com/nation/veterans/filthy-thirteen-symbol-of-american-fighting-spirit/
