Sunday, July 27, 2025
Home Blog Page 320

Who were the 58 Alaska men who died in Vietnam? Norman Ridley of Metlakatla was one

Suzanne Downing
-
11
Who were the 58 Alaska men who died in Vietnam? Norman Ridley of Metlakatla was one

The Virtual Vietnam Wall lists the men from Alaska who died in the Vietnam War. They are listed by community below this story about one man from the Native village of Metlakatla who died. These names are also on the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C.

Click on the names below to find out more about the branch of service, when they served, and how they died. You can also search for other names by visiting the Virtual Vietnam Wall at this link.

One such fallen hero was Norman Ridley of Metlakatla. He was an airman apprentice and a member of the aviation fuels division aboard the USS Coral Sea, an aircraft carrier. He was struck by an aircraft during launch, while carrying out his duties.

The flight deck of an aircraft carrier conducting flight operations is a notoriously hazardous place to be … rarely is a cruise completed without casualties among the flight deck personnel. Norman Ridley was one such casualty – struck by an aircraft during launch.

Aviation Ordnanceman Michael L. Murphy of Attack Squadron 153 was within a few feet of Ridley when Ridley was struck and killed. 

Murphy wrote this tribute to his fallen comrade, whom he never knew:

I never knew you in life.

We may have passed each other at sometime on the ship or in port and never knew it. We met on the flight deck the day you died.

We had just armed the plane on the catapult and were waiting to launch it. For some reason they kept it on the cat for a long time and we started to recover the aircraft from the earlier flight and they started to bunch up on the deck. I kept thinking, “just scrub the damn flight, what the hell different will one more plane make.” Then the plane was launched just as you were pulling the fuel hose across the deck. My back was to you and I saw part of your ear protectors and goggles blow down the deck, I knew that something terrible had happened. You were lying on the deck about 20 feet from me. The wing had hit you in the head as the plane was launched. I looked down at you as I walked by. I did not stop, I had planes to de-arm, I just walked by.

When I finished my job I went below deck to the ordnance shop and thought about your death. Where was God this day, why did this happen, what purpose did your death accomplish. It happened it was over. Another sacrifice had been made to the “Prince of Death” and it wasn’t me. That may sound crass to those who weren’t there but I know that you understand. I went down to dinner and on with my life, but I never prayed again.

You have never been far from me, sometimes I wonder about what your hopes and dreams were, what you wanted to do in life. At 18 we think we will live forever. In 1979 I cried for you for the first time, I cried again when I went to the Wall in 1987, I was back on the flight deck I could hear the Jets and the Helos, I could smell it, feel it and I could see it. You will be in my memory till the day I die.

I only knew you in death.

Michael L. Murphy
Attack Squadron 153, Ordnance
U.S.S. Coral Sea
Vietnam 1967, 68, 69

From Five Stories by Mike Murphy. You can read this and all five stories by Murphy at this website.

The 58 men from Alaska who died in Vietnam are listed below. (Names are live links to the VirtualWall.org site to learn more about each one:

ANCHORAGE:
SP5 THOMAS M BARR
SP5 RICHARD GENE BAUER
SP4 GARY EDWIN BULLOCK
WO WILLIAM BRADLEY DUNCAN
1LT ROBERT THOMAS ELLIOTT III
LCPL DALE ANTHONY GRIFFIN
SP5 WILLIAM EARL HIBPSHMAN
AN HOWARD MARK KOSLOSKY
PFC MICKEY DANIEL LANG
SP4 WILLIAM FRANCIS PIASKOWSKI
PFC LARRY JOE PLETT
GYSGT DAVID SHELTON PRENTICE
CWO LLOYD STEVEN RAINEY
COL FLOYD WHITLEY RICHARDSON
PFC JOE WAYNE VANDERPOOL
CWO WILLIAM FRANCIS WALTERS
BETHEL:
PFC GEORGE GREGORY KILBUCK
BREVIG MISSION:
SN EDWARD NASUESAK BARR
CHUGIAK:
SSG DONALD GEORGE CHMIEL
COLLEGE:
CPT DONALD ROBERT ROBISON
CORDOVA:
PFC MICHAEL DEAN BANTA
SGT DAVID HENRY ELISOVSKY
WO DAVID ALEN LAPE
DOUGLAS:
PFC NORMAN LEWIS LINGLEY
EAGLE RIVER:
2LT LARRY LE ROY BETTS
ELMENDORF AFB:
SP5 DANIEL FRANKLIN COX
PFC MICHAEL THOMAS HOKE
PFC DONALD RAY SANDERS
FAIRBANKS:
WO WILLIAM STEVEN CHILDERS
SP5 DAVID LYNN FERRY
CWO WAYNE ELMER JONES
PFC GILBERT KETZLER Jr
PFC KERMIT HAROLD LA BELLE Jr
SP4 ROBERT EDWARD LEE
PFC PATRICK M Mc INERNEY
2LT DAVID REESE YOUNG Jr
FORT RICHARDSON:
PO3 ANDREW WILLIAM RICE Jr
HYDABURG:
SGT CLINTON ARTHUR COOK
JUNEAU:
SP4 CHARLES F GAMBLE Jr
CPL DONALD WALTER SPERL
KETCHIKAN:
CPL WILLIAM ARTHUR THOMPSON
PFC ARTHUR JOSEPH WHITNEY Jr
KODIAK:
SP4 DANIEL LEE HARMON
SP4 KURT INT-HOUT
MC GRATH:
PFC SAM IVEY
METLAKATLA:
AA NORMAN FRANKLIN RIDLEY
PETERSBURG:
LCPL DONALD HARRY KITO
SEWARD:
SSG HOWARD WAYNE GULLIKSEN
SOLDOTNA:
PFC WILLIAM ALBERT EATON
SP4 JERRY VERNE HORN
SPENARD:
CPL THOMAS EDWARD ANDERSON
SP5 NICK ULYSSES FLEENER
SP4 KENNETH BRUCE MILLHOUSE
WO FREDERICK M SIMEONOFF
THORNE BAY:
PFC CHARLES EDWARD BROWN
VALDEZ:
PO3 WARREN ALAN PAULSEN
WILLOW:
SGT JAMES PERRY DELANEY
WRANGELL:
PFC DAVID DEE BROWN Jr
Battle of Attu: Retaking the Aleutians in May, 1943

Battle of Attu: Retaking the Aleutians in May, 1943

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR
-
11
Battle of Attu: Retaking the Aleutians in May, 1943

Editor’s note: 549 American fighters were killed in battle, some of it hand-to-hand combat. Another 1,148 were wounded, and 1,200 suffered severe injuries from cold weather during the retaking of Attu in the Western Aleutians. Another 614 American soldiers died from disease and 318 from Japanese booby traps, friendly fire, or accidents. In 1943, the US Army’s 7th Infantry Division recaptured Attu as a part of removing Japanese occupiers of American soil, the second-deadliest battle for Americans in the Pacific after the Battle of Iwo Jima.

“The loyal courage, vigorous energy and determined fortitude of our armed forces in Alaska—on land, in the air and on the water—have turned back the tide of Japanese invasion, ejected the enemy from our shores and made a fortress of our last frontier. But this is only the beginning. We have opened the road to Tokyo; the shortest, most direct and most devastating to our enemies. May we soon travel that road to victory.” –  Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner Jr., after the Aleutian Islands campaign

“It was rugged…the whole damned deal was rugged, like attacking a pillbox by way of a tightrope…in winter.”  – Lt. Donald E. Dwinnell

“The ones who suffered were the ones who didn’t keep moving…. They stayed in their holes with wet feet. They didn’t rub their feet or change socks….” – Captain William H. Willoughby

By JOEY BALFOUR | NATIONAL WORLD WAR II MUSEUM

After occupying the Western Aleutian Islands of Attu and Kiska in June 1942, the Japanese forces on those islands were supplied by convoys from bases in the Japanese Home Islands and on the island of Paramushiro. To stem the flow of supplies to the enemy garrisons the US Navy set up a blockade. On March 26, 1943, one of those supply convoys was intercepted by a task force under the command of Rear Admiral Charles “Soc” McMorris.

The warships escorting the Japanese convoy outnumbered the American task force by two to one in heavy ships, but that did not stop McMorris from engaging them. At 8:42 a.m., the heavy cruiser USS Salt Lake City (CA-25) fired a salvo of 8” armor piercing shells at the Nachi, the flagship of the Japanese convoy. Almost simultaneously, the Nachi replied with a salvo of her own. The Battle of the Komandorski Islands had begun.

The battle lasted nearly three and a half hours. During the melee, the Salt Lake City was hit several times by 8” shells. Sea water pouring in through holes in her hull polluted the ship’s fuel and extinguished her boilers, causing the ship to go dead in the water. With fuel oil spilling out of a ruptured bunker, Machinist’s Mate 2nd Class James F. “Fran” McCorriston, at his general quarters station in one of the ship’s engine rooms, thought: “if the Salt Lake City took another hit she would have become the first cruiser on the moon.”

The U.S. Navy heavy cruiser USS Salt Lake City (CA-25) in action during the Battle of the Komandorski Islands on 26 March 1943,
with an enemy salvo landing astern. Photo credit: U.S. Navy

Destroyers quickly laid a smoke screen to shield the Salt Lake City, then turned on the Japanese ships which had continued to close the distance between them. The American destroyers launched a valiant, but ineffective, torpedo attack. The Japanese warships continued to close on the American task force which they now had on the ropes.

The American ships were in trouble. The Salt Lake City was dead in the water and only able to fire guns in one of her main battery turrets. McMorris’s other cruiser, the light cruiser USS Richmond (CL-9), was 30 years old and her 12 6”/53 caliber main battery guns were no match for Japanese Admiral Hosogaya’s two heavy and two light cruisers barreling down on the American task force.

Then, in a move that stunned McMorris and every American sailor with him, the Japanese warships broke contact shortly after noon and retreated from the battle area. Many theories abound as to why the Japanese broke contact, but whatever the reason, the March 26, 1943 Battle of the Komandorski Islands marked the last attempt by the Japanese to resupply Kiska and Attu by convoy for the remainder of the war. It was also the longest naval gun battle of the war and the last pure ship-to-ship battle in modern naval history.

By May 1943 the US Army Air Forces, along with elements of the Royal Canadian Air Force, had been bombing and strafing Japanese positions and facilities on Kiska and Attu on a somewhat regular basis. In addition to these aerial attacks, American naval vessels, ranging in size from submarines to battleships, had been bombarding the enemy held islands for months. Now, it was the Army’s turn.

On the morning of May 11, 1943, the US 7th Infantry Division landed on Attu and began driving inland from the invasion beaches. Over the next 19 days, the American troops ashore would fight for every inch of ground gained against a determined enemy, through some of the harshest combat conditions of the entire war.

The 7th Infantry Division had been shipped to the Aleutians soon after completing desert training. In order to conceal their destination, which was assumed to be North Africa, no specialized cold weather gear was loaded aboard the transports. When the GIs went ashore on Attu they were wearing the same uniforms and carrying the same equipment they had trained with in the California desert. During the three weeks of fighting on Attu the temperature rarely went above 40° Fahrenheit.

Those combat and support troops who went ashore after the initial invasion were better equipped to handle the cold, but frontline infantrymen like Lieutenant Stanley Wolczyk—the commander of 1st Platoon, Company G, 32nd Infantry Regiment—were forced to strip the cold weather gear off of the dead.

Even though taking gear from a dead soldier somewhat repulsed Wolczyk, he and his men were forced to do it anyway. Referring to the act, Wolczyk said, “if they happen to die, our fellows would steal their jackets, their parkas, and their boots. Can you imagine stealing? Not stealing but the poor soldier couldn’t use it anymore, and we could have some benefit from these people bringing it in.”

Continue reading how the battle unfolded at the National World War II Museum website, where there are many more stories of the war, at this link.

Denali National Park gets peaceful procession of patriots bearing flags, smiles, and water bottles

Suzanne Downing
-
73
Denali National Park gets peaceful procession of patriots bearing flags, smiles, and water bottles

A good time was had by all on Sunday at Denali National Park, which some Alaskans are now jokingly referring to as “Denial National Park,” after the National Park Service denied ordering construction workers to remove American flags from their vehicles as they transit the park to and from the Pretty Rocks Landslide bridge project.

The workers stand by their statements that they were ordered to remove their American flags. The order came by a message relayed through the Federal Highway Administration project manager at the bridge construction site but was from Park Superintendent Brooke Merrell, who said there had been a complaint about a truck flying the American flag as it transited the Park Road.

About 100 Alaska cars and trucks, decorated with American flags, converged on Denali National Park on Sunday to complete their mission of sending a community message to the National Park Service: An American flag mounted on a truck does not detract from the park experience.

The hastily organized convoy left Fairbanks at about 1 p.m., made a couple of stops along the way, and met up with about 20 cars and trucks that had arrived from Wasilla, Palmer, and Anchorage. The vehicles entered the park and spent a couple of hours driving the Park Road with their American flags aloft in different groups, not as one long caravan.

Spirits were good and the mood was festive, said Keith Fons of North Pole, organizer of the event. He only had 24 hours to publicize it and yet the news about the opportunity for patriotic fellowship went viral on his Facebook page. Fons was pleased with the turnout.

Fons said they encountered several Alaska State Troopers, starting with the gathering location at the Walmart parking lot in Fairbanks, where two Troopers stopped by to wish everyone well. There were no incidents, other than one driver being scolded by a park ranger when one of the convoy trucks went into the parking area near the park employee housing.

One member of the convoy reported, “When they got down to the administrative building the flagpole that always has the U.S. flag on it had no flag on it. Apparently the maintenance crew takes it down every night and put it up every morning. Our team leaders asked them to put the flag back up. They went to the box that it’s always in and the flag was not there. They were very embarrassed and apologetic. They said they couldn’t believe this was happening. They had no idea what happened to the flag that goes up every morning.”

The flagpole at the administrative offices at Denali National Park was not flying the American flag on Sunday in the afternoon.

The convoy participants brought water bottles with a patriotic message to hand to park employees: “Our flag does not fly because the wind moves it. It flies with the last breath of each soldier who died protecting it.”

Water bottles with a patriotic message were bought along to hand out on Sunday to park staff.
National Park Service, in careful statement, denies claim that superintendent banned American flag from bridge workers’ vehicles

Stars and bars: Denali National Park staff called Alaska State Troopers for protection from American flag convoy
Alaskans with trucks, cars, and flags flying high are organizing a convoy to Denali National Park entrance

National Park Service, in careful statement, denies claim that superintendent banned American flag from bridge workers’ vehicles

Suzanne Downing
-
91
National Park Service, in careful statement, denies claim that superintendent banned American flag from bridge workers’ vehicles

As drivers gather in Fairbanks and Big Lake, Alaska to convoy to the entrance of Denali National Park, the National Park Service has responded to the accusation that the superintendent at Denali National Park ordered construction workers to not fly the flag in the park.

The National Park Service’s statement in full:

“Reports that a National Park Service (NPS) official ordered the removal of an American flag from a Denali bridge construction worker’s vehicle at Denali National Park are false. At no time did an NPS official seek to ban the American flag from the project site or associated vehicles. The NPS neither administers the bridge project contract, nor has the authority to enforce terms or policies related to the contract or contractors performing the work. The American flag can be seen at various locations within Denali National Park – at park facilities and campsites, on public and private vehicles, and at employee residences – and we welcome its display this Memorial Day weekend and every day.”

The statement is carefully worded. The order to not fly the flag was reportedly not on the job site itself, which is under the purview of the Federal Highway Administration, but when vehicles went to and from the job site on the Park Road, which goes through the park from the Parks Highway. Must Read Alaska has verified the claim being made by construction workers, who stand by their version of the events.

Update from Sen. Dan Sullivan’s spokesman:

“Senator Sullivan stands by his letter. There is no law or regulation that he could conceive of that prohibits the flying of the American flag in an American national park. The fact remains that one of his constituents called the senator’s office because he was informed that he had to remove his 3 x 5 American flag after the National Park Service received a complaint about him flying the American flag on his truck. In a conversation this morning, between the Senator and the National Park Service Director, the director committed to providing more details to respond to the questions in the senator’s letter.

“Senator Sullivan also strongly recommended to the director that any Alaskans heading to the park today should be allowed to fly their flags in a safe and honorable way without incident.”

Earlier stories:

Alaskans with trucks, cars, and flags flying high are organizing a convoy to Denali National Park entrance
Stars and bars: Denali National Park staff called Alaska State Troopers for protection from American flag convoy
Look, up in the sky! It’s an American flag over Denali!
On blast: Sen. Sullivan takes Park Service to task for banning American flags on construction trucks in Denali National Park

Stars and bars: Denali National Park staff called Alaska State Troopers for protection from American flag convoy

Suzanne Downing
-
60
Stars and bars: Denali National Park staff called Alaska State Troopers for protection from American flag convoy

While some Alaskans organize a Sunday convoy to the entrance of Denali National Park, where they plan to fly their American flags in protest of a park superintendent’s ban on the flag on the Park Road, sources tell Must Read Alaska that the park staff has called for protection from the Alaska State Troopers.

Alaskans with trucks, cars, and flags flying high are organizing a convoy to Denali National Park entrance

The official statement from the Troopers is that the Park Service has not called them for backup. Troopers were on site at the Fairbanks Walmart parking lot where the convoy group gathered at noon on Sunday. Must Read Alaska’s source confirms the account that the Troopers were called for traffic control at the entrance to the park.

The news about the flag ban on the road that goes through Denali National Park reached the national level, with a story on Fox News on Sunday morning, and the X/Twitter account LibsofTikTok posted stories about the decision by the park superintendent to keep American flags off of the work vehicles that are building a bridge to connect the Park Road past the Pretty Rocks Landslide, so visitors will next year be able to get to Wonder Lake, the Eielson Visitor Center, and Kantishna Roadhouse.

The flags on the worksite itself are not under the jurisdiction of the park superintendent, but rather of the Federal Highway Administration project manager. But once the work vehicles leave the job site, Park Superintendent Brooke Merrell wants those trucks to not be flying the American flag, according to numerous sources.

Drivers from Fairbanks will meet at the Fairbanks Walmart at noon and plan to be rolling by about 1 pm, with a stopped planned for the Three Bears store in Healy, before the group proceeds to the entrance of Denali National Park.

Another group has organized from the south, and will meet at the Fisher Fuel on the Parks Highway, a half-mile from the Big Lake intersection, and roll to Denali at about 10 am. The group hopes to have a burger-and-hot-dog picnic when they arrive.

“No matter, we should be able to fly the American flag, no matter where,” said Keith Fons, who is one of the key organizers of the convoy. Fons, who lives in North Pole, always flies an American flag and once receive a $1 fine for driving his truck while it was covered with Christmas lights.

Look, up in the sky! It’s an American flag over Denali!

U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan, a military veteran of the U.S. Marines, has written a letter of protest to National Park Service Director Charles Sams, and at least three Alaska legislators have also written letters to Sams as well — Rep. Ben Carpenter, Rep. Jamie Allard, and Rep. Kevin McCabe. All three are veterans.

Rep. Allard pointed out that the men and women working in the park “do not give up their First Amendment rights when they put on their helmets and go to work.”

Rep. McCabe wrote that Alaska boasts the highest percentage of veterans per capita of any state in the nation. “These veterans, and indeed all construction workers employed in our National Parks, take immense pride in their country and their contributions to it. The American flag represents their dedication, patriotism, and the freedoms they have fought to protect.

Rep. Carpenter wrote, “The facts as reported have yet to be disputed by the National Park Service and, if accurate, deeply concern me and the constituents I represent … No good justification was reported to be offered by Ms. Merrell. From the reports that I witnessed, the justification given was in response to complaints from other park visitors.”

On blast: Sen. Sullivan takes Park Service to task for banning American flags on construction trucks in Denali National Park

Look, up in the sky! It’s an American flag over Denali!

Suzanne Downing
-
32
Look, up in the sky! It’s an American flag over Denali!

Alaskans in the Denali Borough on Sunday might not only see convoys of trucks and cars with American flags flying, they may even catch glimpse of a plane towing an American flag over Denali National Park.

Matthew McKenna, of the McKenna Bros. company in Alaska, put out an inquiry to find someone who will tow that flag from a plane on Sunday, to send a message to Park Superintendent Brooke Merrell that she cannot limit the political speech of Americans. As of this writing, it’s unclear if he’s found a pilot and plane.

Last week, Denali National Park Superintendent Merrell reportedly told workers building the bridge at the Pretty Rocks Landslide that they must remove the American flag that was mounted on one of their vehicles.

The incident led to a letter from Sen. Dan Sullivan to the director of the National Park Service, Charles Sams, demanding an explanation about what many perceive as an infringement of Americans’ constitutional right to political speech.

On Sunday, a convoy of trucks and cars are heading to the park entrance with flags, with Alaskans road-tripping to the park in order to send a message to the National Park Service that America’s flag is not offensive on federal property.

Ironically, there is a large American flag that flies at the Eielson Visitor Center inside the park, as seen above, although it cannot be reached at the present time because the road is blocked by the landslide.

On blast: Sen. Sullivan takes Park Service to task for banning American flags on construction trucks in Denali National Park
Alaskans with trucks, cars, and flags flying high are organizing a convoy to Denali National Park entrance

Alaskans with trucks, cars, and flags flying high are organizing a convoy to Denali National Park entrance

Suzanne Downing
-
104
Alaskans with trucks, cars, and flags flying high are organizing a convoy to Denali National Park entrance

Alaskans offended by the Denali National Park Superintendent who banned the American flag from a private road construction vehicle inside the national park have decided to take a road trip on Sunday — to the park entrance, with their flags flying.

A convoy with patriotic flags will meet at the Fairbanks Walmart parking lot on Sunday starting at noon, and will be rolling toward the Denali Park entrance at around 1 pm, said Keith Fons of North Pole, who is organizing the convoy. The drive to the entrance usually takes about two hours. The goal is to take a break in Healy at the Three Bears parking lot, where people can attach, reattach or adjust their flags, and arrive around 2:30 or 3 p.m. at the park entrance visitor center.

Others are organizing to come from the south, with people in Wasilla, Palmer, and Anchorage now getting in the patriotic spirit for a Memorial Day ride. Organizers said if the parking lot is full at the visitors center, they will line the road as safely as possible.

Barbara Haney, a member of the Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly , intends to take part in the patriotic convoy. She noted that Hudson Stuck, the first person to make it to the top of Denali, planted a flag and a cross when he reached the top of North America’s highest peak.

A Facebook events page has been created to publicize the event.

“Memorial Day weekend is a perfect time to do such a act! Start Meeting at Walmart at Noon and then we will ride to Denali or you can meet up at Denali Come join do a BBQ or just hang out,” Fons said in his Facebook post.

The convoy is in response to a complaint made by a worker who is on the crew that is building the bridge at Pretty Rocks, which is after Mile 43 on the Denali Park Road. Park Superintendent Brooke Merrell told the road crew that American flags are not allowed on their trucks because they ruin the experience for visitors.

Currently, visitors cannot get past Mile 43 due to a severe rock slide that not only made the road impassable, but unrepairable without a bridge, which is being constructed by Granite Construction.

Sen. Dan Sullivan has written a letter to the National Park Service director, objecting to the banning of the 3×5 flag that was on one of the worker’s trucks.

On blast: Sen. Sullivan takes Park Service to task for banning American flags on construction trucks in Denali National Park

Also on Sunday, motorcyclists will be on the Parks Highway heading to Byers Lake Veterans Memorial to have a Memorial Day ceremony.

Memorial Day ceremonies this weekend: Fort Richardson Cemetery, motorcycle ride to memorial
National Parks Service asks for more time to respond to suit over cashless parks

On blast: Sen. Sullivan takes Park Service to task for banning American flags on construction trucks in Denali National Park

Suzanne Downing
-
99
On blast: Sen. Sullivan takes Park Service to task for banning American flags on construction trucks in Denali National Park

Construction workers blasting and building a bridge at the Pretty Rocks landslide area inside Denali National Park say the park’s superintendent has banned them from flying American flags on their vehicles because it degrades the ambiance of the park experience for visitors.

Workers from Granite Construction said Denali National Park Superintendent Brooke Merrell contacted a company foreman through an employee of the Federal Highway Administration, saying the Park Service had received complaints from someone driving through the park who reported that the 3×5 flags were detracting from their enjoyment.

Sen. Dan Sullivan sent letter to the director of the National Park Service Charles “Chuck” Sams III, expressing his strong disapproval to the demand that workers take the American flags off their trucks and heavy equipment. Sullivan also spoke about it on the Mike Porcaro Show on Friday, saying Sullivan’s State Director Adam Trombley was on the phone trying to reach Park Superintendent Merrell.

Sullivan said that the matter was especially concerning in that it came on the eve of Memorial Day weekend.

“As you know, a major construction project is underway in the Denali National Park and Preserve to build a bridge at mile 45 of the Park Road, an area known as Pretty Rocks. One of the vehicles involved in the construction had a 3 x 5 foot American flag affixed to it while working on this project. For reasons that remain unclear, someone at the National Park Service (NPS) caused the construction crew to remove the American flag from the vehicle,” Sullivan wrote to Sam’s.

“This is an outrage—particularly in the lead-up to our most solemn national holiday, Memorial Day, a time when Americans come together to honor those that gave their lives in service to our nation, while wearing our country’s flag. The American flag, especially on Memorial Day weekend, should be celebrated, not censored by federal government employees,” the letter said.

“There is no federal regulation or law that I can conceive of that would ban the flying of the American flag on public land – particularly in a national park the principal purpose of which is the enjoyment of American citizens,” Sullivan’s letter said.

Sullivan asked NPS Director Sams to investigate the incident and determine what transpired, including whether there was some kind of requirement in the contract with Granite Construction that would prohibit the display of an American flag, and the circumstances in which this incident was handled and by whom. “I also request you outline what concrete steps—be they increased training, clearer guidelines, updating policies—the NPS will take to ensure an incident like this does not happen again in American national parks.”

In the Stampede area of the Denali Borough, a man who owns property next to Merrell’s homesite and who shares a driveway with her told Must Read Alaska that he lined the driveway with American flags on Friday, so that she can enjoy them when she comes and goes.

Reaction: A Stampede-area man in the Denali Borough who shares a driveway with the Denali National Park superintendent lined it with American flags on Friday so she can enjoy them as she goes to work.

Merrell took over management of the park in 2022, and was celebrated as the first woman to serve at the park’s superintendent. According to the National Park Service, Merrell grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and received a Master of Urban Planning degree from the University of Utah and a law degree from Lewis and Clark Law School. Prior to moving to Alaska, she worked for DNA People’s Legal Services on the Navajo Nation, the City of Portland, Columbia Riverkeeper, and Gulf Islands National Seashore.

Summer access to facilities and services in Denali are limited due to the Pretty Rocks Landslide and the associated closure of the Park Road at Mile 43; the landslide occurred on and off between 2021 and 2022. Transit buses and tour buses travel only as far as the East Fork Bridge (Mile 43 of the Denali Park Road). Eielson Visitor Center and Wonder Lake Campground are closed.

Seattle’s Wing Luke Museum closes after staff walks off job to protest pro-Israel tone in new ‘confronting hate’ exhibit

Suzanne Downing
-
22
Seattle’s Wing Luke Museum closes after staff walks off job to protest pro-Israel tone in new ‘confronting hate’ exhibit

It will be several days or even weeks before the Wing Luke Museum can reopen, after 26 staff member walked off the job on Wednesday, protesting an exhibit because it was too pro-Israel and anti-Hamas for their taste. The exhibit, “Confronting Hate Together,” promotes the concept that anti-Zionism is the same as antisemitism, according to the group’s post on Instagram.

“A collective of Wing Luke Museum workers participated in a walkout on Wednesday, May 22, and have been withholding labor in protest of Zionist language in the new exhibit ‘Confronting Hate Together,'” the walk-out workers wrote.

“We love the Wing Luke Museum and are consistently honored to steward the stories of our community members, many of whom have experienced the destructive harm of white supremacy, genocide, and violence that parallels the experience of Palestinians today. Our solidarity with Palestine should be reflected in our AA/NHPI institutions. It sets a dangerous precedent of platforming colonial, white supremacist perspectives and goes against the Museum’s mission as a community-based museum advancing racial and social equity,” the group wrote, inviting people to send emails to the museum’s executives to “show support for our cause, to emphasize the significant negative impact that platforming Zionist ideology has on our communities, and the Wing Luke Museum’s credibility as a museum representing marginalized communities,” the group wrote.

The group’s Instagram account is called “wlm4palestine,” an indication that it is opposed to the security of Israel and is instead supportive of the Hamas terrorists who attacked Israel on Oct. 7 in the worst attack on Jewish people since the Holocaust.

The Nazi Holocaust ended the lives of millions of Jews in Europe and led to the international decision to allow the creation of a Jewish state where all Jews could feel safe. Today, anti-Israel sentiments have arisen among those who don’t believe the nation has a right to defend itself against terrorists.

Since half of the museum staff has walked out and said they won’t return until their demands are met, it is unclear when the public will be able to see the exhibit and judge for themselves if it is too pro-Israel.

WLM4Palestine demands.

“Staff saw the panel with Zionist language during the May 14 media preview for the exhibit … Despite making a revision after learning of staff’s concerns, the edits made still conveyed Zionist perspectives. On May 19, 26 staff members signed a letter to Executive leadership asking for the removal at the text panel as well as other demands,” the group wrote.

“What is happening in Palestine directly reflects violent colonization and imperialism that has and continues to impact Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AA/NHPI) diaspora for generations. Our Museum’s exhibits, education, and programs have brought together communities, shared hard histories and conversations, and helped create joy and light among
the darkness of what AA/NHPI diaspora often feel and experience. Zionism has no place in our communities and being anti-Zionist goes hand in hand with our own liberation as AA/NHPI. Our solidarity with Palestine should be reflected in our AA/NHPI institutions,” the employees said.

“White supremacy, colonialism, and imperialism are wide, interconnected systems of power that each ot us‘ either uphold or actively work to dismant|e. Every day we aim for the work we do at the Museum to be a space to provide tools, conversations, and inspiration in fostering connected learning in our collective struggles and solidarity with AA/NHPI and beyond, and our mission in doing so shouldn’t stop with just our immediate communities.”

The group was especially offended by a portion of the exhibit provided by the Jewish Historical Society, which states, “Today, antisemitism is often disguised as anti-Zionism.” One photo shows the Mercer Island synagogue spray painted with the words, “Stop the killing.”

The Wing Luke 26 have four demands: Remove language that frames Palestinian liberation and anti-Zionism as antisemitism, have a “community review” before the exhibit goes live, confess the sin of having a limited perspective presented in the exhibit (not enough Palestinian, Arab, or Muslim perspectives, and put in the center of the exhibit “voices that align with the museum’s mission & values.”

The museum posted a note on its website that said it hoped to open soon:

“The Wing Luke Museum is and will continue to be committed to addressing challenging issues in our work. We expected Confronting Hate Together, an exhibit that explores anti-Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander hate, Black hate and anti-Jewish hate, to be a learning opportunity that invites us to seek out and understand others’ perspectives. As an organization rooted in dialogue, we acknowledge and support the right of our staff to express their beliefs and personal truths and to this end, we are holding space for a careful and thoughtful process of listening with intent to hear multiple perspectives in pursuit of a mutual way forward,” the museum wrote.

“After closing the Museum this week to listen and earnestly engage in dialog with our staff, the Museum looks forward to opening our doors at a future date so that we can continue serving our community in other needed capacities during this time. Please look for updates from us,” the note from the museum continued.

“We welcome the public to come and engage with the exhibit for themselves, when we do open, and we will offer free admission for the community to experience this powerful exhibition. We look forward to continuing to serve our mission to advance racial and social equity together with our staff and welcome them to join us as the dialogue around this important exhibit continues,” the management of the museum wrote, an indication that it may concede to the demands of the Wing Luke 26.

The Wing Luke Museum is an art and history museum founded in 1967, which focuses on the culture, art and history of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders. Located in Seattle’s Chinatown-International District, it is Smithsonian Institution affiliate and the only pan-Asian Pacific American community-based museum in the United States.

The exhibit was to run through June 30.

Alexander Dolitsky: It’s pretty simple — Hamas must surrender, get out of the tunnels, return hostages
1...319320321...1,691Page 320 of 1,691

About us

Must Read Alaska is news of people, politics, policy, culture, and happenings in Alaska.

Contact
4021 West Hill Road,
Homer, AK 99603
[email protected]

The latest

Trump trade agreement with Europe: ‘We’ve had decades of bad deals — those days are over’

This Just In 0
President Donald Trump on Sunday unveiled a trade agreement...

Court reloads Second Amendment, shoots down California’s ammo background requirement

The 907 4
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday ruled...

Video: Drone footage reveals sprawling vagrant occupation expanding in S. Anchorage greenbelt

The 907 21
Must Read Alaska revisited a wooded area in South...

© Must Read Alaska