Posted on 03/05/2024 7:12:10 PM PST by Impala64ssa
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) abandoned plans Tuesday to remove an iconic World War II-era photo from its facilities due to an alleged lack of “inclusivity.” The move came following backlash that emerged immediately after the decision was leaked earlier that day.
In a memo issued last Thursday, VA undersecretary RimaAnn Nelson requested agency officials remove the “V-J Day in Times Square” photo from all Veterans Health Administration facilities, in compliance with the VA’s goal of “maintaining a safe, respectful, and trauma-informed environment.” Taken by Alfred Eisenstaedt in 1945, the iconic photograph depicts a Navy sailor kissing a female stranger during the Victory over Japan Day celebration in New York City at the end of World War II.
In her memo, Nelson claimed the picture represented a “non-consensual act,” and argued that allowing its presence in agency facilities “is inconsistent with the VA’s no-tolerance policy towards sexual harassment and assault.” She further asserted that while the photo’s placement in VA buildings “was initially intended to celebrate and commemorate the end of World War II and the triumphant return of American soldiers,” views on “historical events and representations evolve.”
“Recent discussions have highlighted concerns about the non-consensual nature of the kiss, prompting debates on consent and the appropriateness of celebrating such images in today’s environment,” Nelson wrote. “To foster a more trauma-informed environment that promotes the psychological safety of our employees and the Veterans we serve, photographs depicting the ‘V-J Day in Times Square’ should be removed from all VHA facilities.”
“This action reflects our dedication to creating a respectful and safe workplace and is in keeping with our broader efforts to promote a culture of inclusivity and awareness,” she added.
The X user known as EndWokeness posted the leaked memo Tuesday morning, generating widespread backlash and condemnation of the VA and its ludicrous decision. This prompted VA Secretary Denis McDonough to issue a statement on X, with a caption accompanying the V-J Day photo reading: “Let me be clear: This image is not banned from VA facilities — and we will keep it in VA facilities.”
While McDonough did not say whether the memo was legitimate, The Military Times confirmed its authenticity late Tuesday morning. Agency officials reportedly told the outlet the document “should not have been sent out and was formally rescinded on Tuesday,” but “did not provide details of whether senior leaders were consulted on the matter ahead of Nelson’s memo.”
Two unidentified officials who spoke with the Associated Press also verified the memo as authentic
The same kind of morons who think Beethoven was black.
Urinal pads with her picture on them.
Why would there be? Japanese-Americans were hustled off to concentration camps early during WWII?
My mother grew up in Oregon, she was a teenager during the War. I asked her on multiple occasions her thoughts on our treatment of Japanese Americans, she was always tight lipped about it.
You know the scariest part of this? These folks are in charge and they actually believe this memorial is not inclusive.
The cake was an anatomically correct version of a buxom female, with a cherry in a strategically located spot. The birthday boy (there were no women in our battalion) was obliged to eat the cherry.
Those were the good old days (79-81).
From TIME magazine Sept 13 2016 The Story Behind the WWII Kissing Photo
By Mahita Gajanan
The woman photographed in the iconic picture of a World War II sailor kissing a nurse died Thursday at the age of 92.
Greta Zimmer Friedman, identified later as the nurse in the photo, became the subject of perhaps the most iconic photo taken on V-J Day on Aug. 14, 1945. Taken by photographer Alfred Eisentaedt, the picture captured the jubilance people felt upon the war’s end.
The photo, published in LIFE, caught the U.S. at a moment of pure relief and represented people letting go of their inhibitions. An examination of that day in 1945 reveals how people celebrated:
Booze flowed; inhibitions were cast off; there were probably as many fists thrown as kisses planted: in other words, once the inconceivable had actually been confirmed and it was clear that the century’s deadliest, most devastating war was finally over, Americans who for years had become accustomed to almost ceaseless news of death and loss were not quite ready for a somber, restrained reaction to the surrender. That response would come, of course. In time, there would be a more considered, reflective take on the war and on the enemies America had fought so brutally, and at such cost, for so long.
As the photo drew fame over the 20th century, rumors swirled over the identities of the kissers. Many people also view the photo as depicting sexual assault, and not something to be celebrated.
Friedman was a 21-year-old dental assistant, out in Times Square when news of the war’s end broke. George Mendonsa, who in 2015 confirmed he was the man in the photo, saw Friedman for the first time, spun her around and kissed her.
“It wasn’t that much of a kiss,” Friedman, who came forward as the woman in the photo years later, said in a 2005 interview with the Veterans History Project. “It was just somebody celebrating. It wasn’t a romantic event.”
The VA should just hire greeters to spit in veteran’s faces when they come in the door.
Maybe say “Joe Biden has you in his thoughts” after they do it.
Great picture of you and your wife!!
If the regime is to be taken down, do you know how many RimaAnn Nelsons there are currently serving?
The Department of Veterans Affairs has named a new director to its beleaguered Phoenix VA Medical Center, and the decision instantly came under fire because the appointee left a previous hospital leadership post after it got the lowest satisfaction rating of any facility in the VA system.
RimaAnn Nelson, who most recently headed a tiny VA clinic in the Philippines, is expected to take charge of a Phoenix VA Health Care System that was the epicenter of a national crisis over its treatment of veterans. She is the seventh director during the past three years to enter a revolving leadership door at Carl T. Hayden VA Medical Center.
Members of Arizona’s congressional delegation reacted to the announcement with dismay.
She’s obviously jealous of the cute girl in the photograph getting smooched by the sailor. Nobody ever laid a “It’s Over” liplock on that gross battle-ax.
I don’t know the number, but I know we have to try.
I always got a kick out of the little girl in the background...we didn’t know she was there until we saw the pictures later!
That was my first thought as well.
Where is that kissing statue located?
BKMK
There was one in Sarasota FL, it looks like it.
My thought was that they would insist that the iconic Iwo Jima monument be "re-vamped" to include a couple of trannies.
Regards,
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