National Hispanic Veterans Group disappointed with PBS proposal on ‘The War’ documentary.

A broad coalition within the Latino community demanded that PBS not broadcast “The War” documentary until the 14-hour series itself is re-opened and re-edited with new footage to accurately reflect Hispanic military service in WWII. In its original form, the 14-hour series did not include the valiant and precious contributions made by the tens of thousands of Hispanic soldiers who fought in the war; the proposal by PBS does not offer editing new, unseen, and original footage about Latino WWII veterans and their experiences into the original 14-hour series.

Mr. Antonio Gil Morales, national commander of the American GI Forum of the Unites States, a congressionally-chartered Veterans organization, has responded to the proposal: “While we believe that this first step by PBS is a positive one in the right direction, it appears that our original and foremost concern has not been addressed satisfactorily. The community has PBS’s attention and looks forward to working with them to address the exclusion of Latinos and the Latino experience in ‘THE WAR’.”

The challenge to PBS to correct the Burns documentary is supported by a broad coalition which includes thirty (30) national policy organizations, including the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, The National Hispanic Bar Association, The National Hispanic Leadership Agenda, the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility, and elected officials, including the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, the Congressional Hispanic Conference and the Senate Democratic Hispanic Task Force. The National GI Forum had advised PBS to avoid proposals that would involve alternatives to incorporating original research and footage into the existing documentary, stating that any transactional arrangements that do not accomplish this are “too little, too late” for the men and women who served in the Second World War.

The coalition will issue a collective response to PBS’s official reaction to the coalition’s demands after it has thoroughly reviewed the proposal with all of the organizations and members of Congress that have been involved in advocating on this issue. The Coalition’s goal is to ensure that this documentary reflects American history. The War must include Hispanic experiences to make it a historically accurate documentary.

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