This bill directs the American Battle Monuments Commission to establish a program to identify and correct the headstones of deceased Jewish servicemembers buried overseas under markers that do not reflect their religion.
Debbie Wasserman Schultz
Representative
FL-25
The Fallen Servicemembers Religious Heritage Restoration Act aims to rectify past errors by establishing a program to identify and properly mark the graves of deceased Jewish members of the Armed Forces buried in military cemeteries outside the U.S. with markers that do not reflect their religion. The American Battle Monuments Commission will manage the program, contracting with a nonprofit organization to identify the servicemembers and contact their families. The program is authorized to receive $500,000 per year for 10 fiscal years.
Bill Proposes $5 Million Program to Correct Grave Markers for Jewish Servicemembers Buried Overseas
This bill, the Fallen Servicemembers Religious Heritage Restoration Act, sets up a 10-year program aimed at fixing a specific historical error: identifying Jewish American servicemembers from WWI and WWII who were mistakenly buried under Latin Crosses in overseas U.S. military cemeteries. The goal is to ensure their grave markers accurately reflect their religious heritage.
Righting a Historical Wrong
The legislation acknowledges that mistakes were made during and after the World Wars, resulting in an estimated 900 Jewish servicemembers resting under incorrect religious symbols. It emphasizes the vital role these individuals played and the government's duty to honor them properly. This program is essentially about correcting the record and ensuring the final resting places of these servicemembers align with their identity and faith.
The Nuts and Bolts
Here's how it would work: The American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) gets the job of managing this decade-long effort. Each year for ten years, the ABMC is authorized to receive $500,000. They'll use this funding to contract with a non-profit organization – specifically one with experience in this type of historical and genealogical research – to do the legwork. This involves identifying the specific graves and then attempting to contact living survivors or descendants of these servicemembers.
More Than Just Markers
Beyond the physical act of potentially changing headstones (though the bill focuses on identification and contact), this program represents a significant step in acknowledging and rectifying past oversights. For the families and descendants connected to these servicemembers, it offers a chance for accurate remembrance and recognition of their loved one's heritage. It's a targeted effort to ensure the way we honor fallen servicemembers is historically accurate and respectful of their individual identities.