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» Hatrack River Forum » Active Forums » Books, Films, Food and Culture » Slain Soldier's Mom Rejected by Gold Star

   
Author Topic: Slain Soldier's Mom Rejected by Gold Star
Wowbagger the Infinitely Prolonged
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I am shocked by this.
quote:
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. - Everyone agrees that Ligaya Lagman is a Gold Star mother, part of the long line of mournful women whose sons or daughters gave their lives for their country. Her 27-year-old son, Army Staff Sgt. Anthony Lagman, was killed last year in Afghanistan, but the largest organization of these women, the American Gold Star Mothers Inc., has rejected Lagman, a Filipino, for membership because — though a permanent resident and a taxpayer — she is not a U.S. citizen.

"There's nothing we can do because that's what our organization says: You have to be an American citizen," national President Ann Herd said Thursday. "We can't go changing the rules every time the wind blows."

That explanation isn't satisfying the war veterans who sponsored Lagman's application, some other members of the mothers' group or several members of Congress.

"It is disheartening that any mother of a soldier, sailor, airman or Marine who has died in the line of duty would be denied membership in an organization that honors the memory of fallen service men and women," said Rep. Nita Lowey (news, bio, voting record), whose district includes Lagman's home in Yonkers.

Rep. Eliot Engel (news, bio, voting record), who represents an adjoining district, said the group should change its rules immediately.

"Whatever the excuse, American Gold Star Mothers' decision smacks of xenophobia and is in stark contrast to what Mrs. Lagman's son fought and died for," Engel said.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton said, "We now have many noncitizens serving honorably in our armed services, and I hope that this can be satisfactorily resolved."

A past president of the mothers' group, Dorothy Oxendine, of Farmingdale, said, "There's no discrimination in a national cemetery. There's no discrimination when they get killed side by side. So how can we discriminate against a mother?"

Another past president, Ann Wolcott, of York, Pa., said, "Times have changed since this organization was started, and there are a lot of men and women serving today whose parents are not citizens. I think they deserve every honor and privilege that we have as Gold Star mothers."

Oxendine and Wolcott said they believe that given the increasing diversity of the armed forces there have been noncitizens in the 1,200-member organization who overlooked or ignored the citizenship question on the application.

Lagman has lived in the United States for more than 20 years. She was not at home Thursday, apparently tending to her husband, who is hospitalized. But her other son, Chris Lagman, said in Thursday's The Journal News that all she wants "is recognition as the mother of this fallen soldier."

Lagman's application was initiated by Ben Spadaro, a veteran from Yonkers, who said he learned about the citizenship rules of the American Gold Star Mothers while working on a national cemetery committee of the Veterans Administration. When he learned of Anthony Lagman's death and saw Lagman was a citizen but his mother was not, he thought, "He's buried in a military cemetery, with full honors. She should be able to join."

"We decided to tell the absolute truth on the application," he said. "We put down, `I am not an American citizen.' It was a ploy to get them to reject her, and then we said they should change the rules."

But the organization's 12-member executive board voted against any change.

"We can't go changing the rules every time we turn around," said Herd, the national president. "When we have problems within our organization with people not abiding by the rules, we just get it straightened out, we don't change the rules."

Oxendine, the former president, said she is sure the general membership would approve a rules change if the board did.

"I can't believe that 12 intelligent women would ever not have it in their hearts to think about another Gold Star mother," Oxendine said. "You pay a high price to join the American Gold Star Mothers. I figure her dues were paid."

Spadaro isn't giving up. He had his brother, a Florida lawyer, write to the Department of Justice, noting the mothers' organization has received federal assistance and demanding an investigation.

And on Monday, during Memorial Day observances at Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2285 in Eastchester, Lagman will be presented with a gold necklace bearing a simple gold star.


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Her son paid the ultimate sacrifice and this is the thanks she gets? When I served in the Air Force I knew a few people whose parents were not citizens and it make me sick to think this situation could have happened to their mothers. I also served with several non-citizens, they are just as much an American as I am, maybe even more. Because they value the things Americans take for granted.

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Kwea
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I can see both sides of this issue, to be honest, although I feel that the rules should be changed at this pint. When the organization was founded, perhaps those rules made more sense, as you had to be a citizen to be i the armed services.


These days that sort of rule is outdated, to say the least.


Still, the only reason the government should have any sort of say in it is the possibility of government funds accepted by the organization. Otherwise it really is none of their business. Private organizations have the right to have whatever membership rules they want, as long as they are not government funded.


Kwea

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Rakeesh
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This sort of ironclad adherence to rules in an organization like this defeats the purpose of the organization itself.

It's moronic. She is not an American citizen, and still raised a child who would want to serve his nation. Give her a goddamn Gold Star, and an apology. Bunch of freaking small-minded bureaucrats.

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1lobo1
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Um...I don't see the board's side, not even a little bit. There is no reasonable (KEY WORD) explanation for their decision.
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Belle
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I agree - there is an explanation - "That's our rule and we just don't go around changing the rules," but that doesn't make it reasonable.

The rule is outdated, it should be abolished.

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