A dog tag chain is placed around the statue on the Fallen Warrior Memorial May 24, 2012, at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska. JEFF W. GATES/U.S. AIR FORCE
VIA: Stars and Stripes

January 8, 2020 - On Tuesday, January 7, 2020, the President Donald J. Trump signed into law: H.R. 1424, the “Fallen Warrior Battlefield Cross Memorial Act,” which requires VA to permit the display of the “Fallen Soldier Display” in national cemeteries.

The bill was introduced by U.S. Rep. Anthony Gonzalez:

U.S. Rep. Anthony Gonzalez, R-Rocky River, is working to keep a promise he made to a constituent before he took office.

Gonzalez has put forth the Fallen Warrior Battlefield Cross Memorial Act, a law that would prohibit the Department of Veterans Affairs from removing memorials from national cemeteries.

“It’s the first bill that I admitted myself. I’m excited about it,” said Gonzales, whose 16th District includes a portion of Stark County. “This came directly from members of the community who noticed something that didn’t make sense to them: battlefield crosses being removed.”

Battlefield crosses are erected to honor a deceased member of the military who has died in action. It consists of an inverted rifle, dog tags and a pair of the soldier’s combat boots. The tradition goes back for more than a century.



Source: Office of the White House and U.S. Rep. Anthony Gonzalez