Veteran Affairs Pledges to Remove Swastika Gravestones from Military Cemeteries
Source: Newsweek
U.S.
Veteran Affairs Pledges to Remove Swastika Gravestones from Military Cemeteries
BY DANIEL VILLARREAL ON 6/2/20 AT 5:23 PM EDT
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Monday announced it will remove and replace three headstones bearing swastikas from military cemeteries in Texas and Utah. The decision comes two weeks after the VA initially said it wouldn't remove them.
The gravestones signify Nazi military officers who died as U.S. prisoners of war (POWs) during World War II. The Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF), a nonprofit dedicated to maintaining religious freedom in the armed forces, initially requested the VA to remove them after a retired U.S. military colonel saw the gravestones while visiting the grave of his grandfather, who fought Nazis during World War II.
The VA initially said it couldn't remove them under the 1966 National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), which directs federal agencies to protect historic resources, even ones recognizing divisive historical figures or events.
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Read more: https://www.newsweek.com/veteran-affairs-pledges-remove-swastika-gravestones-military-cemeteries-1508231
I'M JUST GLAD NEWSWEEK FINALLY FOUND ITS CAPS LOCK KEY.
iluvtennis
(19,835 posts)bigworld
(1,807 posts)but not the Nazi insignia. I'm surprised they ever were approved.
obamanut2012
(26,047 posts)The current German flag is a terrific replacement.
Warren_Pointe
(327 posts)They belong closer to their families. It's not a mass grave on a battlefield.
mahatmakanejeeves
(57,319 posts)Warren_Pointe
(327 posts)but they still belong in their homeland.