Latino civil rights chief will assist take away Accomplice symbols, names from DOD bases
SAN ANTONIO – The head of a national veterans civil rights group formed to protect Mexican Americans from discrimination has been added to a commission tasked with developing a plan to remove Confederate names, monuments and symbols from military bases and assets .
Lawrence Romo, National Commander of the American GI Forum, was appointed to the non-partisan commission that ultimately decides on the bases and other military assets whose names should be changed, or on symbols, monuments, displays or other items that commemorate the Confederation and should be removed.
The national defense law, which makes the moves mandatory, became law in January after Congress overruled then-President Donald Trump’s veto of the law.
A plan, which will include community contributions, is to be returned to the House and Senate Armed Forces Committees by October 2022, and the Secretary of Defense must implement the plan by January 1, 2024 under federal law.
Romo joins seven other members of the commission – the Secretary of Defense appointed four people and the members of Congress selected the other four. He’s the only Latino on the commission.
Originally the commission consisted of five white and three black people, but one of the black candidates failed to serve, and Romo was among the candidates for the Hispanic Caucus of Congress.
“Each appointed commissioner brings a wealth of different experience and knowledge to the table, and you can rest assured that we will endeavor to produce a fair, diverse and detailed plan as required by law,” Romo said in a statement to NBC News.
The Confederation targeted Mexicans
The Confederation and its loyalists were also directed against Mexicans and people of Mexican origin. Its symbols and monuments still embody this racism for many Latinos.
One of the bases named after a Confederate officer is Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas. His namesake, John Bell Hood, was a Confederate Army officer who led the Texas Brigade.
Some have suggested renaming the sprawling army post in central Texas to Fort Benavidez to attract medalist Roy Benavidez, a veteran of the Vietnam War.
Romo, a native of San Antonio, served under former President Barack Obama as director of the Selective Service System, which runs the country’s draft military registration. He retired as a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force and is a graduate of the US Air Force Academy.
Romo’s volunteering for President Joe Biden during the 2020 primaries and general election earned him “San Antonio’s Most Loyal Biden Supporter” status in his home newspaper, the San Antonio Express-News. He served as the national delegate to the National Virtual Convention of Democrats.
The American GI forum he heads was founded by Dr. Hector P. Garcia in Corpus Christi, Texas, after witnessing discrimination against Mexican Americans by the veterans administration at the time.
A diverse commission to fight the legacy of racism
Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, also from San Antonio, and Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., A veteran and a member of the House Armed Services Committee, worked to bring a Latino member to the commission.
As a Latino-American, Romo will “see to it that the commission itself becomes more like the diversity of the American people that gives us strength in the face of the racism and bigotry that formed the core of the Confederation and that haunt our country to this day,” Gallego said in a statement on Monday.
Gallego said “it has always been inappropriate” to name military bases after people “who have committed treason by waging war against the United States”.
Castro praised his fellow countryman from San Antonio and said in a statement that Romo “is deeply committed to civil rights and public service”.
“I hope this commission honors the members of the Latino service by identifying at least one base for a Latino who has made a great contribution to the defense of our nation,” Castro said.
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