Thousands of name errors possible in new Korean War remembrance wall, advocates fear – By Davis Winkie (Military Times) / April 6 2021
Next month, the Korean War Veterans Memorial on the National Mall will have a new focal point — a remembrance wall featuring the names of approximately 36,574 Americans who died supporting the war and more than 7,200 Koreans who died while augmenting the Army. Their names will be organized by rank and respective branch of service, demonstrating how the war’s burden fell unevenly across the military.
According to the National Park Service, work began in early March on the addition and additional renovations, which will cost approximately $22 million. The groundbreaking marks the completion of a years-long fundraising process that began when Congress passed the Korean War Veterans Memorial Wall of Remembrance Act in 2016. The non-profit Korean War Veterans Memorial Foundation successfully raised the money through private donations from American and South Korean citizens and corporations.
“The Korean War Veterans Memorial is one of the most visited monuments on the National Mall, with over four million visitors annually.” said KWVMF executive director James Fischer in an email to Military Times. “Completing the Wall of Remembrance will help educate these visitors about the costs of war and honor those who paid the ultimate price for freedom.”
Getting the money was step one. Now getting the names right is the task at hand. And advocates are questioning the accuracy of the Defense Casualty Analysis System database that the Defense Department used to provide the initial list of names to KWVMF.
