Backlash in the Netherlands after US war cemetery removes panels honouring Black WWII soldiers

The removal of informative panels honouring Black American soldiers at a U.S. military cemetery in the Netherlands has sparked backlash from Dutch officials, local residents and families of fallen troops. The displays highlighted racial segregation in the U.S. military during the Second World War and the story of a Black soldier buried at the site, but were removed without public explanation. “Everybody in the south of the Netherlands is angry about the situation now that they put the panels away,” said Cor Linssen, whose father was a Black American soldier buried at the cemetery. Visitors have since filled the cemetery’s guestbook with objections, while local leaders are demanding the panels be reinstated.