By: Phil Williams
The great woke purge of U.S. history continues. In a never-ending series of virtue signals, the left erases the past with zealous fervor.
The Biden/Harris administration portrayed young troopers wringing their hands at the vast inequity of being assigned to a military post named after someone from 150 years ago that no one knew was tied to the Confederacy. Those names were chosen to bring healing to the broken nation in the post-Civil War reconstruction. But that matters not in the purge. Are we safer now that Fort Bragg is called Fort Liberty? The history purge became all-encompassing in the military as it swept up base names, statues, streets, and buildings. But in 2023, it focused on stones. That’s right…stones. As a former Army Ranger, I am partial to the US Army Ranger Monument at Fort Moore, GA (formerly Fort Benning). Prominently located in a grassy open area known as Ranger Field, the monument sits adjacent to the Maneuver Center of Excellence where young infantry and armor officers enter the profession of arms. Overseen by the National Ranger Memorial Foundation, the Ranger Monument was built with over $500,000 in private donations. Made up of large marble pillars surrounding a giant bronze Fairbairn-Sykes fighting knife, like those carried by the 1st Ranger Battalion in WWII, the monument is one of Fort Moore’s most visited historical sites. A key element of the overall monument is the long stone walkway containing the verified names of Rangers throughout history. No rank, just the word “Ranger” with a name and unit. Enter the days of the great modern purge. In 2023, the Ranger Memorial Foundation was informed that several engraved stones would have to be removed. Someone had anonymously complained, and again, it was believed scary to young troops who might be confused by a name, for which they would have no personal reference. The Foundation was directed by the Garrison Commander at Fort Moore to remove the offending stones or risk having a detail sent over to do it for them. The Foundation reluctantly agreed in order to avoid having damage done to the monument.
I must pause here and ask: If we are going to remove the names of dead Rangers from a historical monument that was built with private donations…well, when do we start removing headstones from graves? Keep in mind that Arlington National Cemetery is actually built on the land of former Confederate General Robert E. Lee. Applying the logic of Ranger stones, should we dig up and relocate the 482 Confederate graves at Arlington? Before you dismiss the craziness of that suggestion just know that earlier this year the Confederate memorial at Arlington National Cemetery was removed by order of Congress under then Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Where does this purge of history end?
But recently, a shining example of good people saying “enough is enough” occurred. Retired Master Sergeant Howard Mullen is a 2013 inductee into the Ranger Hall of Fame. He served honorably in the 75th Ranger Regiment and earned combat jump wings jumping into Grenada during the Reagan era. Mullen recently petitioned the town council of Andersonville, Georgia to receive and display several of the stones that were removed from the Ranger Memorial.
By: Phil Williams
October 4, 2024
