US Marine Corps commandant orders removal of all Confederate-related paraphernalia

February 29, 2020 in News by RBN Staff

COLUMBIA, SC – JUNE 27: Demonstrators protest at the South Carolina State House calling for the Confederate flag to remain on the State House grounds June 27, 2015 in Columbia, South Carolina. Earlier in the week South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley expressed support for removing the Confederate flag from the State House grounds in the wake of the nine murders at Mother Emanuel A.M.E. Church in Charleston, South Carolina. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

source: www.wkrn.com
by: CNN Wire

(CNN) – The highest-ranking officer in the US Marine Corps has ordered Confederate-related paraphernalia to be removed from all Marine installations.

The order from Commandant Gen. David Berger was one of several initiatives he prioritized for “immediate execution” in a memo sent to senior leadership last week, Marine Corps spokesman Capt. Joseph Butterfield told CNN.

Some of the other directives were posted by Berger on Twitter, including revising the parental leave policy to include same-sex couples, reviewing the possibility of yearlong maternity leave for female Marines and to get more female Marines into combat jobs.

Butterfield didn’t provide any details regarding when the paraphernalia needs to be removed, but he noted that any official policy decisions would be published in appropriate orders or servicewide messages.

Berger’s spokesman Maj. Eric Flanagan told CNN that while there isn’t a large amount of Confederate paraphernalia on Marine Corps installations, it’s “worth commanders taking an additional look.”

Military still has connections to the Confederacy

Despite a number of states and local governments taking down Confederate flags and statues in their cities, 10 Army bases are still named after Confederate generals, including Fort Hood in Texas, Fort Benning in Georgia and Fort Bragg in North Carolina.

The flag of the Confederacy, its symbols and the statues commemorating Confederate leaders have long divided the country. Critics call the flag a symbol that represents the war to uphold slavery, while supporters call it a sign of Southern pride and heritage.

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