The Lafayette hillside memorial is a collection of religious symbols, accompanied by a large sign, in Lafayette, California. The memorial commemorates soldiers killed in the Iraq War and War in Afghanistan, with the sign containing a running total of the death count as recorded by the US Department of Defense. The monument began to raise controversy in November 2006.[1][2][3][4]
The hillside, overlooking State Route 24 and Lafayette BART station, was owned by 81-year-old Louise Clark, widow of Johnson Clark, until she died. Johnson Clark was a local developer and World War II veteran. The monument was erected in late 2006 by Jeffrey Heaton, a long-time anti-war protester, and Louise Clark. Their first 19 crosses were quickly removed by vandals. In November 2006 Heaton and Clark re-added the crosses onto Clark's property, this time with 300 crosses and a large sign that read: "In Memory of 2839 U.S. Troops Killed In Iraq".[5] By February 26, 2007, the number of crosses, mixed with Stars of David, Islamic crescents, and other religious symbols, had passed 2,500.[6] Crosses have been added by volunteers and some paid for by the Lamorinda Peace Group and Grandmothers for Peace.[7] Protests of the memorial have been led by Lafayette Flag Brigade[8][9] which organizes a competing, remembrance[8] flag display annually on September 11.[10]
The city ordinance allowed a 32-square-foot (3.0 m2) sign on the property and did not limit the number of crosses.[11] The organizers initially had an approximately 64-square-foot (5.9 m2) sign, but reduced it to 32 square feet (3.0 m2) to comply with the city ordinance. The sign is updated every week to show the new official death toll for soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.[12]
As of 2014[update], a permanent memorial has been proposed on the site although the original intent was for the display to come down when U.S. troops came home from Iraq and Afghanistan.[13]
View of the memorial from the Lafayette BART station parking lot
^McKinley, Jesse (2006-12-03). "Homemade Memorial Is Stirring Passions on Iraq (Published 2006)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-02-04.
^Johnson, Jason B. (2006-11-28). "LAFAYETTE / Emotions run high over Iraq memorial / Highly visible hill of crosses lauded, slammed at meeting". SFGATE. Retrieved 2021-02-04.
^"War memorial stirs tensions in California". UPI. Retrieved 2021-02-04.
^"East Bay Community Bands Together To Protect, Maintain 'Lafayette Crosses'". 2019-04-16. Retrieved 2021-02-04.
^Jason B. Johnson (November 20, 2006). "Iraq war memorial sets tempers ablaze". San Francisco Chronicle. p. A-1. Retrieved November 26, 2006.
The sign has been defaced twice. It was first knocked down by a Marine sergeant, enraged by perceived antiwar bias. On another occasion, the sign was painted over with black tar. Both times the sign was returned to its original condition.
The memorial, with its similarity to a graveyard, was constructed after the Clark's application to develop a large assisted living facility on the property was rejected as not meeting the zoning requirements for the residential area.
^Doug Sovern (February 26, 2007). "More Crosses Erected at Lafayette Memorial". KCBS. Retrieved February 26, 2007.[permanent dead link]
^"Lafayette War Memorial reminds us of war's cost". East Bay Times. May 20, 2007. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
^ abSupporters of the Iraq War descend on Lafayette memorial Katherine Tam, CONTRA COSTA TIMES Oakland Tribune, March 8, 2007.
^Emotions Run High At Lafayette War Memorial Archived July 25, 2008, at the Wayback Machine FoxReno.com, March 8, 2007
^NEVER FORGET: 911 Rally being organized by Lafayette Flag Brigade Archived January 24, 2009, at the Wayback Machine Move America Forward
^"Guild Lawyer Defends Iraq War Memorial". National Lawyers Guild SF Bay Area Chapter. Contra Costa Lawyer. April 5, 2007. Archived from the original on June 30, 2007. Retrieved November 23, 2020.
^Delfin Vigil (November 13, 2006). "300 crosses raised on hill near BART station". San Francisco Chronicle. p. B-2. Retrieved November 26, 2006.
^Kevin Fagan (May 27, 2014). "Lafayette war memorial searches for its future". SF Gate. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
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