US Military Cemeteries: Still Segregated, Just... Less Obvious Now
While The Hill's opinion piece 'Restoring Black Veteran Honors' details the shameful past of segregated military cemeteries, and the ongoing efforts to correct burial records, it conveniently sidesteps the larger structural racism impacting Black veterans today. It rightly notes that 'burying the past' doesn't erase segregation, but then completely buries contemporary issues. This isn't just about
headstones; it's about persistent disparities in VA healthcare, disproportionate rates of homelessness among Black veterans, and the systemic barriers that denied them the benefits they earned. We laud efforts to correct headstones (a 70-plus year delay, mind you), but when will The Hill tackle the DoD's own internal reports showing racial bias in military justice, or the long-standing fight to
achieve equitable disability compensation for Black veterans? The narrative suggests a problem solved by historical acknowledgment, rather than a living legacy of institutional racism that continues to manifest in tangible, painful ways. One might wonder if some 'pasts' are easier to exhume than others when it comes to present-day accountability.