70th Infantry Division Association January, 1986

Protesters fail to mar ''Return''Honorable warriors can extend the handof friendship to old foes and heal thewounds of war. Members of the 70th Divisiondemonstrated that by a dignified demeanorthat ignored rude and crude attemptsto cancel the Trailblazers' 1985" Return to Europe ."Only one change of plans was made andone schedule changed. German veteransdid not take part in a ceremony of homageto the dead at St. A void military cemetery.And American participation was movedfrom afternoon to midmorning and thusavoided a group of demonstrators whoapparentl y had been bussed in from Paristo disrupt the solemn rites.Why the 70th has been si ngled out forcriticism because it has exchanged friendshipwith members of their wartime enemies,the 6th SS M o untain Divis io nNord-why a series of harrassments thatdate back al most two decades-why allthe vituperation, is not clear.Some unnamed group learned that the 70thparty was planning the customary ceremoniesat St. Avo id, some 20 miles south west ofForbach, where a group of the Di vision's wardead li es buried. Complaints made to theAmerican embassy in Pari s were channeled tothe Army's public relations department. (Therewas li tt le official fra nkness so there is muchsurmis ing.)" The New York Times" contacted De LyleOmholt , Association president, and EdmundArnold, ·'Trai lblazer" editor, and in a Sundayedition devoted a whole column in Section A tothe proposed visit. The next day, and on severalsucceeding days, the Associated Press andUnited Press International put stories on thewire and newspapers throughout the countryran them in various lengths.Television joined the coverage both in theStates and in Europe.Simon Wiesenthal, the relentless " Nazihunter," cabled Omholt , demandi ng that ameeting be cancelled at Bad Windsheim,where the 6th Nord was to hold their reun ion.He called it " A provocation. "Omholt told AP, ' 'This is the only year that afuss has been raised (in Europe. At the PhiladelphiaReunion, letters to the editor of the" Inquirer" complained because a small groupof Germans attended the affair as they had since1976.) Maybe it's because this is the 40thanniversary (of the end of the war.) ."The war is 40 years old; it's time to put itinto history. We're here to check out old battlefields and meet friends. We do respect criticismand that's why we' re now going to the cemeteryalone. "The national commander of the Jewish WarVeterans of America said this was the first timehe had heard of reunions between American12and veterans of the Waffen SS . But such reunionsare not rare. In fact, within two weeks ofthe 70th trip, at least two American divisionassociations had met with SS veterans; theyphoned to support the 70th .Arnold told the " Times: " " The idea thatthese people are political criminals is rediculous.Most of them were mere boys whenHitler carne into power. They are no moreresponsible fo r Nazi actions than I or my GIbuddies are fo r the decisions at Yalta thatturned all of Eastern Europe over to the Russians." We believe in letting bygones be bygones .If soldiers who fo ught in the war want to kissand make up, why should people who are twosteps removed have the right to criticize?' 'Floyd Freeman, who arranged the tripthrough his Californ ia travel agency, recalledthat when contact was first made with the 6thMountain , the U.S. govern me nt was askedabout that unit's credentials. " Our governmentThe "SS"There are two groups identified as"SS."The original was the Schutzstaffel,protective echelon, of the Nazi party.They were Hitler's personal bodyguard and a special police force. Theybegan as the original Brown Shirt bullyboys, and illegal "private army," beforeHitler was voted to legitimatepower.The Waffen SS was the fightinggroup, given the SS designation becausetheirs were elite divisions. The6th Mountain (also called Alpine) Divisionspent much of the war in Finland,Norway and Denmark before beingrecalled home to fight the last-standbattles against the Trail blazers.Hal Deutch of the U.S. Army WarCollege said: "There was somescorched earth as the 6th retreatedacross northern Norway but therewere no basic atrocities against thepopulation.The cadre of the 6th, formed in1941, two years before the Trailblazers,was from the hated Totenkopf (Death'sHead) Division. That unit, which hadbeen created in 1939, took its namefrom the skull-shaped badges worn byguards at concentration camps. SomeAlpine troops were accused of theslaying of 12 U.S. prisoners-of-war inthe village of Baldensberg (not in the70th sector) on Easter, 1945. Severalsenior officers were jailed after the warfor war crimes.made a check and came back saying they werecleared (of any war atrocities)."This was the Waffen SS- the fighting SS,regular soldiers and not involved in any warcrimes."A spokesman for the Union of Nazi PersecutionVictims (VVN) agreed that " The 6thSS Division Nord was never accused of warcrimes." VVN was blamed by Wi lli Gottenstroeter,spokesman fo r the German veteransand a regular visitor to 70th Reunions here, forstarting the campaign. The charge was notdenied.Although pressed by reporters and cameramenat several places en route, the Trailblazercontingent stayed cool. " ! was proud of thegroup," said Omholt. " Their dignity kept thesituation cool and they were a cred it to all. "The only contact they had with protesterswas with a group of about 20 at Bad Windheim.As it was continually emphasized , meetingsbetween Americans and Germans were on anindividual basis.There was no evidence of hostility on thepart of French municipal officials. As hadhappened reg ul arly in the past, the city ofForbach-which the 70th liberated and whichwas named a street for the 276th Regime ntextendeda warm official welcome at a city ha llreception.One benefit of the flap was the exposure thatthe Association received. Many phone callsresulted as former Trailblazers who had neverheard of the Association asked fo r more information.Omholt estimates that at least 30 newmembers were enro lled as a result.*Most membersreject critics ...Reaction of Trailblazers throughoutthe country were mostly favorable tothe 70th " Return to Europe" and tostatements of people interviewed byprint and broadcast journalists."The poison pen publicity has not affectedour visit in any way," wroteFrank Moran, HQ Co. 275th andformer "Trail blazer'' editor. On a cardposted at Bad Windhein, scene of the6th Mountain reunion, he said: "Youmay quote me as saying 'Proud to behere!' despite all the cheap-shot newsreleases."Edward Hawes, Co. B, 275th,sent clippings from the Portland "Oregonian"and comments: "I can't understandwhy some keep pouring oil ontothe fire of hate which, if left to run itscourse, will consume all of us. I haveread and re-read your well-composed70th Division Assn. TRAILBLAZER