{"id":17267,"date":"2022-08-01T19:21:48","date_gmt":"2022-08-01T19:21:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2022\/08\/01\/the-29th-infantry-division-gets-to-keep-its-confederacy-themed-patch\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T06:00:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T06:00:17","slug":"the-29th-infantry-division-gets-to-keep-its-confederacy-themed-patch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2022\/08\/01\/the-29th-infantry-division-gets-to-keep-its-confederacy-themed-patch\/","title":{"rendered":"The 29th Infantry Division gets to keep its Confederacy-themed patch"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As part of an effort to strip commemorative nods to the Confederacy from the military, an independent naming commission<\/a> has determined that the 29th Infantry Division should keep its unit patch, but that the language used to describe it in the Army\u2019s heraldic listings<\/a> should get an update, according to a Monday release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The insignia, a blue and gray take on the yin-yang, has been around since World War I, when the division activated with troops from as far north as Maryland and down to South Carolina. The blue and gray are meant to symbolize the joining of formerly Union and Confederate states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe description language should be modified to reflect the rich history of the 29th, with focus on the unification of American citizens through service in the 29th,\u201d Retired Adm. Michelle Howard, the commission\u2019s chair, wrote in a July letter to members of the House and Senate armed services committees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Howard added, \u201cthe Community of the 29th ID indicates that they view the symbol as a unifying symbol for America and is imbued with the sacrifices and service of past 29th ID members.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The 29th Infantry Division’s “Blue and Gray Division” patch. (Army)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Today, the unit is a National Guard command based at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, with soldiers from Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina and South Carolina.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The commission also recommended that the service secretaries look across their heraldic insignias for other nods to the Confederacy and either update or replace them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor heraldry or symbols that unmistakably honor the Confederacy, or honor individuals who voluntarily served with the Confederacy through image or motto, the Commission recommends that Confederate symbols, images, and mottos be removed, or the items be redesigned in their entirety,\u201d the letter reads. \u201cFor heraldry or symbols, where the determination concerning commemoration rests primarily in the descriptive text, the Commission recommends the text be modified to remove references to the Confederacy or individuals who served voluntarily with the Confederacy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t