A faceless mannequin dressed as an airman standing next to a Christian chaplain flag at the Air Force Enlisted Heritage Research Institute at Maxwell Air Force Base has caused concern with an organization that focuses on military members and religious freedom.
The institute posted photos on its Facebook page last month of an exhibit at its Heritage Enlisted Hall, a museum showcasing the history of service, accomplishments and sacrifices of enlisted airmen through the decades.
The photo posted on Oct. 17 were of an exhibit in the museum's Korean War section, and included a mannequin of an airman standing next to a Christian chapel flag with a framed sign explaining the significance of the flag. The sign in part read "The flag was retrieved from the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) in 1960, after having been left outside, leaning against the corner of an alleged chapel, when the DMZ was created."
First, it was the explanation that caught the attention of the head of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, a group. And now, it is that the explanation has been taken down and that the airman stands alone with the Christian flag.
Mikey Weinstein, president and founder of the foundation, explained in an email to "imagine if that was an Islamic, Jewish, satanic or atheistic flag left in that exhibit.
[...]