Delivered at Abraham Lincoln’s second inaugural address, the quote has been VA’s motto for the past 59 years and appears throughout the state
The Department of Veterans Affairs is under pressure from female veterans to change its motto as they claim that the Abraham Lincoln quote is exclusionary to women.
Delivered at Lincoln’s second inaugural address, the quote has been VA’s motto for the past 59 years and appears throughout the state.
‘To care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow, and his orphan,’ the quote reads.
But the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America asked Virginia Secretary David Shulkin, back in November, if he could change the motto.
They claimed that Lincoln’s quote was exclusionary to women service members and represented complications they faced in the VA’s health system, according to Stars and Stripes.
‘They’re missing the point that women don’t feel comfortable at the VA,’ said IAVA Executive Director Allison Jaslow, a former U.S. Army captain who served in Iraq.
‘To care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow, and his orphan,’ the quote reads
‘We want to be respected and appreciated as much as male veterans are, and the motto is symbolic of overall challenges.’
An altered version of the quote has been introduced, gradually, according to Kayla Williams the director of the VA Center for Women Veterans.
It reads: ‘To care for those who shall have borne the battle and their families and survivors.’
But Jaslow asserts that there is a precedent for making changes.
The Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America asked Virginia Secretary David Shulkin (pictured), back in November, if he could change the motto
‘I get it. The VA was designed for a male population, and culture change is hard,’ Jaslow said.
‘But we’re talking 16 years we’ve been at war in Afghanistan. Women veterans are still feeling invisible and articulating they don’t feel comfortable at the VA. At what point are we going to get serious about addressing this?’
The Air Force Academy replaced its ‘Bring Me Men’ sign to ‘Integrity First. Service Before Self. Excellence in All We Do’ in 2004.
That same year the U.S. Naval Academy changed its school song to include gender-specific lyrics. West Point followed suit in 2008.
Gender-neutral job titles were introduced at the Navy and Marine Corps, in 2016.
An altered version of the quote has been introduced, gradually, according to Kayla Williams the director of the VA Center for Women Veterans. It reads: ‘To care for those who shall have borne the battle and their families and survivors
.