Placing wreaths on veterans' gravesites angers religious freedom group

[left-of-center2012]

A nationwide tradition viewed by some Americans as a patriotic display recognizing service and sacrifice represents for others a sectarian religious symbol amounting to desecration. Complaints about the popular ‘Wreaths Across America Day’, when fresh evergreen wreaths are placed at gravesites of military veterans at national and local cemeteries, are climbing says the founder of a civil rights advocacy organization that’s protesting the practice.

“We have no problem if people reach out and want a wreath on their deceased veterans’ graves, but to put them everywhere, to blanket them without permission of the surviving families is unconstitutional, an atrocity and a disgrace,” said Mikey Weinstein, founder of the ‘Military Religious Freedom Foundation’. Weinstein believes the wreath pays homage to Christianity. “This should be an aspect of respect,” Weinstein said. “It’s almost like a fundamentalist Christian gang sign to put a symbol of the Christian season of Christmas on any grave.

Amber Caron, spokeswoman for the Maine-headquartered Wreaths Across America, said the wreaths, each hand made of 10 boughs of balsam tied with a red velveteen bow, are veterans’ wreaths, not Christmas wreaths. “We are not ‘decorating graves’ but honoring American heroes,” she said.

Since becoming a nonprofit in 2007, Wreaths Across America has expanded to 3,100 burial sites including 145 of 154 National Cemetery Administration properties, Amber Caron, spokeswoman for the Maine-headquartered ‘Wreaths Across America’ said. “We are not ‘decorating graves’ but honoring American heroes.” Individuals as well as groups such as American Legion posts and Scouting programs, contributed $24.9 million to Wreaths Across America in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2020, tax forms show.

Volunteers are expected to lay nearly 2 million wreaths on graves during this year’s observance on Dec. 18.

https://www.pennlive.com/nation-world/2021/12/placing-wreaths-on-veterans-gravesites-angers-religious-freedom-group-it-is-an-atrocity-and-a-disgrace.html

[viva la]

1. Actually, the evergreen is probably a remnant

of the pagan midwinter celebration....

But "Christians" mostly don't realize that.

[DURHAM D]

3. lol My thought also.

Some people are just funny.

[left-of-center2012]

5. This ...

"While all the greenery in a home decked out for Christmas is beautiful to look at, these customs have nothing at all to do with Christ. In fact, they are sheer paganism directly descended from ancient rites practiced long before Jesus' birth.'

https://www.bibletools.org/index.cfm/fuseaction/topical.show/RTD/cgg/ID/504/Christmas-Tree.htm

[BradAllison]

15. Neither does the 'Military Religious Freedom Foundation' either

Great job, guys.

[hlthe2b]

23. Exactly.... Christianity coopted all things "evergreen."

[NH Ethylene]

2. An atrocity?

I disagree.

A mild incursion of Christianity? Yeah, I guess. But it's hard to see a a wreath as anything but a soft symbol of what has become a holiday nearly void of religious significance.

[Sapient Donkey]

4. My brain doesn't really link those wreaths to Christianity

As a result, these protests seem a bit silly to me. I am curious how many families have taken offense to this. After all, it’s their loved ones who are buried there, not mine. Their opinions are weighted far more heavy than mine or Mikey Weinstein‘s

[iemanja]

6. This is stupid

Don't they have more important things to worry about in this age of increasing theocracy?

[James48]

7. The man who started "wreaths across America"

Did so to get rid of hundreds of extra wreaths he had one year. Then he began selling them. Now he makes huge profits off their sale each year.

The Wall Street Journal and others have pointed out that WAA has a conflict of interest; the company that provides the wreaths used by this charity is owned by the same family which runs the charity. In six years, from 2011 to 2017, the charity’s revenues increased seventy-fold. Revenues in 2017 exceeded fourteen million dollars. NPQ fleshed out the troubling nature of the conflict of interest in an article last year: https://nonprofitquarterly.org/wreaths-across-america-is-a-nonprofit-built-on-conflict-of-interest-still-a-nonprofit/
Wreaths Across America gives out information stating that eighty-six cents on the dollar goes to the charity. But this is misleading. Because how much of that eighty-six cents is then turned back into the family coffers? It’s a little disturbing and makes me question how WAA can maintain it is a nonprofit and retain that status legally.
It’s good to be aware of the worst veterans’ charities as well as the best-rated. Here is a list that breaks that down: https://clark.com/military/best-worst-veterans-military-charities/

[Hugh_Lebowski]

8. I'm hardcore atheist and even I am thinking ...

Oh, brother

[ProfessorGAC]

19. Right With You!

And to think the word "atrocity" was apt is ridiculous.

[jimfields33]

9. I can't imagine why this group is protesting

They look beautiful and actually expresses winter then Christmas. Keep doing this. Ignore the naysayers on this topic.

[Pantagruel]

10. Two million wreaths

costing what? $10 each?
Seems like $20 m could be better spent helping the surviving families that might be in need ?

[Sympthsical]

11. "a fundamentalist Christian gang sign"

Yeah, this is the kind of moderate, level-headed person who should be given any attention at all.

Moving past the idea that someone outside of the entertainment world is using "Mikey" in a professional setting and expects to be taken seriously, has someone told President Biden he's trading in this "gang sign" every year?

I'm not even the slightest bit religious, but the drama of it all. "An atrocity and disgrace."

It's a plant, dude. I can think of another kind of plant that you seem desperately in need of in your life.

[phylny]

18. A dead plant at that!

[Biophilic]

22. Actually, as silly as the name Mikey seems to us the man himself is very much

respected within the Armed Services for the work he and his group do to protect service members from religious over reach and harassment. I've read several articles about him as well as some here on DU.

[Sympthsical]

24. You might be right

Thinking on it, the military does lend itself more to nicknamification than your average profession.

But I still can't take him even slightly seriously. A wreath is a "gang symbol." It's also a symbol of remembrance, used all year long. Which, being in the military, he would be aware of.

When I was an 18 year old coming out of Catholicism and rejecting religion, I behaved this way and took all symbols deadly seriously as an egregious affront to all things ever.

Then I, you know, grew up and found there are more important things one should generate irrational apoplexy about.

[Biophilic]

33. Yeah, I have to kind of agree with you. It does seem a bit over the top. nt

[sarisataka]

12. I have never thought of wreaths

As a Christian symbol or even strongly connected the Christmas. They are just a decoration that shows up in winter like straw and corn in the fall.

I give permission in advance for when I am gone anyone may put anything they want on my grave; I'll be dead, not offended.

[marybourg]

13. Looks pretty Christmas-y to me.

[Wahyee]

14. Unconstitutional?

[BradAllison]

16. As "unconstitutional" as assholes who say firing a radio guy violates the 1st Amendment

None of these attention seekers have law degrees I see.

[inthewind21]

34. Well

Maybe he needs to take it up with the Military since these are National cemetery's under the control of the military. If it wasn't approved by them, it wouldn't be happening.

[XanaDUer2]

17. Not a hill to die on

[70sEraVet]

20. I'd rather see volunteers cleaning debris from the cemeteries, than 'decorating' them.

And I have a natural distrust of Veteran 'charities'.

[Laurian]

28. The veteran's cemetery where my husband is buried is beautifully maintained.

[sarge43]

36. The NH veteran's cemetery certainly is.

I think the ground's keepers measure and clip each blade of grass individually.

[Biophilic]

21. Seems silly to me also, but I very much respect the work Mikey Weinstein does

protecting our service members from religious harassment and over reach so I guess I'll have to think about this some more.

[tritsofme]

25. Mikey Weinstein sounds like a right wing caricature. Atrocity? Give me a break.

[JHB]

26. I respect the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, but really Mikey...

...stick to cases like when not attending "voluntary" prayer meetings leads to ostracism, harassment, and/or career-affecting influences on performance reviews, and the like.

[Laurian]

27. My husband was buried at a veteran's cemetery earlier this year and I

contributed to Wreaths Across America. I want my husband to have a wreath and I think the uniform appearance is beautiful. Each grave gets the same wreath, regardless of rank. I do not see it as a religious symbol at all, but a meaningful recognition of service.

I appreciate that the cemetery is meticulously maintained and offers a peaceful, respectful and serene resting place for my husband.

[DavidDvorkin]

29. Weinstein is right

It's a case of Christian privilege, which so saturates our culture that people don't see it.

[Behind the Aegis]

35. Yup.

Since it is going on the graves of veterans, why not just make the bow "stars and stripes"? Wreaths, as a symbol, aren't Christian, and without the red bow, I wouldn't have thought "Christmas Wreath". It is always interesting which privileges are recognized and which ones aren't. Of course, I think he did overreact and the language is over-the-top, but the point is salient, IMO.

[MineralMan]

30. As a USAF Veteran Who May Have Been the First Airman to Have "Atheist"

on my dog tags in 1965, I think this is absolutely ridiculous. I had to fight to get that on my dog tags, and wouldn't have won that fight had it not been for a Jewish Chaplain who took up my cause and made it happen.

I can't imagine being offended if I were buried in a national cemetery and some group put a wreath on my headstone.

[Hekate]

31. As much as I admire Mikey Weinstein's work to get the christofascists out of the Air Force Academy...

On this issue I think he got triggered a little too quickly. I’d have to know more about the organization, among other things.

On the one hand, it is true that the average cultural Christian in our country is oblivious to the feelings of Americans from other traditions.

On the other hand, the significance of evergreens goes far back into pagan times in every region of the Earth that has a harsh, cold, “everything looks dead” winter season.

Still, early Christian missionaries co-opted every bit of symbolism they could lay their hands on… and red/green is now a definitely Christian shorthand for Christmas.

For my Jewish friends and relations, blue and silver are the colors of the season. And there is a reason for that.

[Vinca]

32. How ridiculous. I'm an atheist and I've bought wreaths because they smell good.