UCCA ACTION ITEM - Say No! to the Stalin Memorial
11 June 2010
The UCCA expressed its outrage back in December 2009, upon hearing the plans to install a bust of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin at the National D-Day Memorial in Bedford, Virginia. [A copy of our letter can be found on the UCCA website at www.ucca.org]. However, despite protests from the UCCA, various ethnic organizations and veterans, the National D-Day Memorial Foundation went ahead with plans to place a bust at the memorial, just in time for the 66th anniversary of the World War II invasion of Normandy.
The bust of the Soviet Union's wartime leader was unveiled on June 6th to accompany existing busts of U.S. Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman as well as British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. The UCCA finds it incomprehensible that the Foundation could convince itself that a bust of an enemy of democracy and one of the worst dictators in history should be given a place of honor – at the D-Day memorial. To have a bust of Stalin at this memorial is a slap in the face to the countless victims of Soviet oppression and an affront to those who risked their lives to defend the United States and the world from the ravages of murderous dictators like Stalin.
The UCCA is therefore asking its members and friends to contact their respective members of Congress to express your outrage and urge the bust’s removal from the National D-Day Memorial. For your convenience, please find below a sample letter to your congressional representative. Your letter may be sent electronically by logging on to: https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml. Should you require additional information, please contact the UCCA by phone at (212) 228-6840 or by email at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
SAMPLE LETTER
The Honorable (Name)
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515
Dear Representative (Name):
As a Ukrainian American, I am writing to you to express my outrage of the Stalin bust recently unveiled at the National D-Day Memorial in Bedford, Virginia. To include the bust of this brutal Communist dictator in the pantheon of WWII heroes, side by side with such leaders as FDR and Winston Churchill, is not only an affront to every Ukrainian American, but also to millions of Americans who fought and died in the name of freedom from oppression.
As your constituent, I urge you to take the lead in Congress by expressing our indignation at the inclusion of the bust of Stalin at the National D-Day Memorial and urge its immediate removal. Moreover, it is my understanding that presently efforts are underway to have the National Park Service assume responsibility for the Memorial, and a feasibility study is being conducted in this respect. A Memorial that includes a bust of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin should never be part of the National Park Service, which is supported by tax-payers dollars.
Thank you for your attention to this important matter.
Sincerely,
