After months of petition, the headstones were removed on Wednesday and replaced by Veterans Affairs officials. The headstones were replaced with government standard edition headstones, inscribed with the name, rank, affiliation and date of death of the deceased.
In addition to the two graves in San Antonio, a headstone at Fort Douglas Post Cemetery in Salt Lake City features an iron cross with a swastika inscription. The tombstone of the German prisoner of war Paul Eilert was bought by his fellow prisoners of war after his death in 1944 with money of their 50 cents per daily allowance, according to the VA.
Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery contains prisoners of war from eight camps that operated in Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas, including Camp Bowie, Texas where Kafka and Forst were originally buried.
According to the VA, the original headstones for Kafka and Forst were likely changed between their placement in the camp between 1943 and 1946-1947, when the remains and headstones were moved to Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery and the inscription added.
Earlier this year, members of Congress called on federal officials to remove or alter the headstones in two national swastika cemeteries.
In a May 25 letter to Veteran Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie, the House lawmakers’ group wrote that allowing the headstones “ with symbols and messages of hatred, racism, bigotry and genocide, is particularly offensive to all. veterans who risked, and often lost, their lives in defense of this country and our way of life. “
“It is also a stain on the sacred ground where so many veterans and their families have been laid to rest,” wrote lawmakers. “Families visiting their loved ones, buried in the same cemeteries as the Nazi soldiers they fought against, should never face symbols of hatred that run counter to our American values.”
The tombstones have been standing for decades
The tombstones have been in the cemeteries for decades, but were brought to attention earlier this year after the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) called for them to be replaced.
Mikey Weinstein, the founder and president of MRFF, said in a May press release that a retired senior military officer had informed his organization of the headstones after visiting the graves of relatives at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery.
“In light of the shocking and unforgivable existence of these Nazi-decorated graves on VA National Cemeteries, MRFF demands that Secretary Wilkie offer an immediate and heartfelt apology to all veterans of the United States and their families,” said Weinstein, veteran and founder of the Air Force. from MRFF, said in the press release.
Other advocacy groups, including the Southern Poverty Law Center, reiterated calls for the gravestones to be removed.
In May, the VA said it was aware of the gravestones, which date back to the 1940s and were approved by the US military. At the time, the department said it would not remove them as it was required by law to preserve historical artifacts.
“The National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 assigns stewardship responsibilities to federal agencies, including VA and military, to protect historical resources, including those who recognize divisive historical figures or events,” the department said in a statement to Salon.com. “For this reason, VA will continue to keep these tombstones, as every previous government has done.”
In June, United States Jewish War veterans working with MRFF announced that VA officials had changed course and began removing the “offensive headstones and replacing them with appropriate markers.”
A timetable for completion was not announced, and no other information was provided regarding the gravestone removal in Utah.
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