Even though Chicago is the site of many world-class museums, the city currently prohibits some firearms from being displayed, even as historical artifacts. One city alderman however introduced an ordinance on Wednesday to lift that ban, allowing museums to properly display these pieces of history.[My emphasis.] Sorry, the embedded links didn't copy. The full story is here.
Edward Burke, one of Chicago’s most powerful city alderman and a history buff himself, explained that he recently discovered an anomaly in the city’s code. “Museums are caught in a dilemma that if they have in their collections artifacts that can be defined as firearms, even though there’s historical significance to the memento, they can’t be registered in the city and can’t be displayed.”
If passed, according to Burke, the ordinance will allow “institutions to display unloaded firearms that often accompany uniforms and other historical artifacts.”
CEO and President of the Pritzker Military Library in Chicago, Kenneth Clarke points out that although the city is allowed to display firearms that are pre-circa 1898, that leaves out a significant amount – over 100 years – of valuable history, history that both Chicago residents and other visitors to the museum are missing out on.
Clarke explains, “It’s about preserving the stories of citizen soldiers from World War II, World War I … who have served our country.”
Alderman Burke agrees and uses the example of a World War II soldier’s family who donated his gun to the museum in March. Major General William P. Levine was one of the first American soldiers to liberate the concentration camp of Dachau during World War II. Following Levine’s death, his family donated his gun to the museum, a German Walther PP which was given to him during the war. Only under the current laws, the museum is not allowed to display such a piece of history.
Mr. Big Food and I once went to Dachau. Once was enough to last a lifetime.
A United States citizen soldier used his gun to help end this. His gun-- and the free lives it represents-- is not welcome in Chicago.
Shameful.
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And now... to fix another simply delicious supper and then sort through some Zane Grey novels.
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