Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell has declared that May will be "Nazi History Month" in his state. The Republican governor said May was the right month for such an event because it marked the end of hostilities in Europe.
"It's important to understand that there were acts of valor and bravery on both sides and that the wounds of the past will never be healed unless we have a better understanding of our shared history," said McDonnell spokesman Thane Acme Johnson. "Besides, good Christian soldiers fought on both sides in Europe, we have many German-Americans descendants in Virginia and the 1930s in Germany represented a type of social experiment that while not completely successful at least showed what an organized, disciplined society with dynamic leadership might offer."
In Richmond, Tea Party activist Gunter Lincoln Rockwell said he supported the governor.
"It's about time we had a fair and balanced account of World War II," said Rockwell, who is also the Grand and Imperial Titan of the Virginia Knights for a Knew Knorfolk. "It's not like one side was always right, or that only the Germans started the war. The allies had their failings too. Ask yourself: Did the Russians ever file an environmental impact statement before entering Berlin?"
The full proclamation from Governor McDonnell is below:
Nazi History Month
WHEREAS, May is the month in which the people of Virginia joined the Other Independent and Sovereign States of America in a four-year war in Europe that concluded on May 8, 1945; and
WHEREAS, Virginia has long recognized that supporters of the German freedom movement live in every region of the state; and
WHEREAS, it is important for all Virginians to reflect upon our Commonwealth's shared history with the German people, to understand the sacrifices of all leaders, soldiers and citizens during World War !!, and to recognize how our history has led to our present; and
WHEREAS, all Virginians can appreciate the fact that when ultimately overwhelmed by the insurmountable numbers and resources, the surviving, imprisoned and injured German soldiers gave their word and allegiance to the United States of America, and returned to their ancestral homes in Poland, Austria, the Sudetenland and Greater Germany to rebuild their communities; and
WHEREAS, this defining chapter in Virginia's history should not be forgotten, but instead should be studied, understood and remembered by all Virginians, both in the context of the time in which it took place, but also in the context of the time in which we live; and
WHEREAS, the ownership rights of Virginia to lands now known as Kentucky, Tennessee and North Carolina are and remain uncontested and true;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, Robert McDonnell, do hereby recognize May 2010 as NAZI HISTORY MONTH in our COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA, and I call this observance to the attention of all our citizens.