WASPS (women pilots in ww2) denied burial in arlington (but, there is NO war on women!!)

[TexasProgresive]

3. boston bean posted this story January 7th and Journeyman gave a good reply.

I wish that all who wish to be interred at Arlington National Cemetary could have their wish, but cemeteries do fill up. My wife tells a story from her childhood when she was walking with her uncle. They were strolling past a crowded Stamford, CT cemetery when her uncle pointed at it and said, "People just dying to get in there!"

Perhaps you needed to be there and know the wicked sense of humor that runs rampant in her family. It's why they accept me. I'm not in their league but I appreciated their twisted ways.

Back to this situation. It is sad that the WASPs were not and are not considered part of the the U.S. Army Air Force. They did allow for WASPs to be buried in Arilington and as there were really a limited number of these brave women maybe they should've allowed a space were they could be buried with their comrades of the air.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10027509070
Journeyman (11,553 posts) Thu Jan 7, 2016, 08:07 PM
12. The article makes plain there's rationale for not allowing her to be interred at Arlington . . .

Arlington is running out of room, is tightening eligibility requirements for everyone, and the rules do not allow for inurnment of either the WASPs or tens of thousands of others who served in positions other than active military. Further, WASPs are only eligible for burial at VA cemeteries; Arlington is an Army post and can be quite selective about who they allow.

I wish they could have honored this woman's desires, and maybe someone will step forward to assist the family.

It used to be, military veterans could ask to be buried in any national cemetery. But rules are changing as space becomes scarce. Used to be, if you wanted you could be buried at Gettysburg. It seemed strange, as I walked among the graves a few years ago, to see dates up through WW2. But the rule changed, and it made sense -- only those who fought at Gettysburg can now be buried there. The last burial was in 1997 -- the remains of an unidentified soldier were found lodged in the earthen sides of the railway cut. Because he could not be positively identified as Union, or disqualified for being Confederate, the decision was made to inter him in Gettysburg as a soldier.