Effective immediately, [American Legion Department of Ohio] Department Commander Roger Friend has suspended [the] Hudson Lee-Bishop American Legion Post 464 Charter pending permanent closure, stated a news release issued by the American Legion Department of Ohio Friday afternoon. Upon demand, Jim Garrison has also resigned as a Post Officer and we have since demanded that he resign his membership altogether. The American Legion Department of Ohio does not hold space for members, veterans, or families of veterans who believe that censoring black history is acceptable behavior.
Garrison had served as adjutant of American Legion Lee-Bishop Post 464.
The American Legion Department of Ohio s executive board members who attended a Friday morning meeting unanimously backed Friend s decision to suspend the Hudson American Legion charter, said Suzette Heller, the state Legion s Department Adjutant.
A speaker’s microphone was muted when the former U.S. Army officer began talking about how freed Black slaves had honored fallen soldiers soon after the Civil War.
The state s American Legion organization is investigating why a veteran s microphone was shut off during a Hudson Memorial Day ceremony when he discussed the role Black Americans played in establishing the holiday.
American Legion post in Ohio will close after cutting veteran s mic during Memorial Day speech
AP
This frame grab from video provided by Hudson Community Television shows retired Army Lt. Col. Barnard Kemter tapping the microphone after organizers turned off the audio as he is speaking at a Memorial Day ceremony on Monday, May, 31, 2021 in Hudson, Ohio. Organizers of the ceremony turned off Kemterâs microphone when he began talking about how freed Black slaves had honored fallen soldiers soon after the Civil War. (Hudson Community Television via AP)
By: WEWS Staff
and last updated 2021-06-04 16:55:22-04
HUDSON, Ohio â According to an American Legion Department of Ohio news release, the Hudson Lee-Bishop American Legion, whose post officer cut the microphone of a veteran as he spoke about Memorial Dayâs connection to Black history during a speech on Memorial Day, has been suspended pending permanent closure.
The head of an American Legion post in Ohio stepped down Friday amid criticism following the decision of Memorial Day ceremony organizers to turn off a retired U.S. Army officer’s microphone while he was speaking about how freed Black slaves honored fallen soldiers just after the Civil War. American Legion