Goodlatte: Leave Stalin bust's pedestal empty at D-Day Memorial

BEDFORD - U.S. Rep Bob Goodlatte, R-6th, says he has a solution for the controversy over a bust of Joseph Stalin at National D-Day Memorial in Bedford.

Goodlatte added his voice to the growing list of those calling for the National D-Day Foundation to remove the bust of Stalin in a news release on Thursday. Goodlatte's district covers part of Bedford County, but not the part of Bedford City that the D-Day Memorial is located in.

However, Goodlatte is a co-sponsor of a bill being considered in the U.S. House of Representatives that would ask the U.S. Department of the Interior to conduct a feasibility study to see whether the D-Day Memorial should become part of the National Parks Service. Goodlatte agrees with 5th District Congressman Tom Perriello (D), whose district covers the land that the D-Day Memorial is on, that the Stalin bust "has added an unneeded controversy to the effort to save the Memorial" from its current money troubles.

Goodlatte points to the example set by the Saratoga National Historical Park in New York, which honors the heroes of the Battle of Saratoga during the Revolutionary War. One of the heroes in that battle was General Benedict Arnold. However, Arnold was later found to be a traitor, deserted the Continental Army, joined British forces and led them into Virginia.

In 1877, on the 100th anniversary of the Continental Army's victory at Saratoga, a monument was built in honor of the American heroes. The monument has four niches:

1. General Horatio Gates

2. General Philip Schuyler

3. Colonel Daniel Morgan

4. An empty slot that would been for General Benedict Arnold

Rep. Goodlatte argues the D-Day Foundation should follow Saratoga's lead, remove Stalin's bust, and leave the pedestal empty.

"While I have heard the argument that Josef Stalin's bust should be placed at the D-Day Memorial because of his role in supporting the Allied countries during World War II, making the Communist dictator a prominent part of the D-Day Memorial is inconsistent with our veterans' fight against the horrors perpetuated by his rule. The commissioning of a bust and public display of one's likeness is a traditional symbol of tribute and honor which is unbefitting a violent dictator such as Josef Stalin. The National D-Day Memorial Foundation should follow the lead of the Saratoga National Historical Park and remove the bust of Stalin from its pedestal, leaving the empty pedestal. His contributions to the Allied victory along with the atrocities that he committed against his own people are well documented in the plaque that currently hangs at the Memorial," Goodlatte said in the release.

Goodlatte adds that he has heard from numerous constituents opposed to the Stalin bust, and in response, the Congressman wrote the D-Day Foundation multiple letters requesting that the bust be removed.

"Josef Stalin was a paranoid megalomaniac responsible for the slaughter of millions of his citizens and others. As leader of the Soviet Union, he led a campaign of terror including mass executions and forced labor in work camps at home in the Soviet Union and he oversaw the spread of communism throughout eastern Europe and is responsible for the Cold War. The appropriate location for the bust of such a dark and sinister man is off in a dark closet but the empty pedestal and telling plaque should remain as a reminder of this aspect of World War II history," Goodlatte added.