According to a Fox News report, Assistant Under Secretary for Health Operations RimaAnn Nelson, who tried to ban an iconic WW2 celebration photograph of a Navy sailor kissing a woman in Times Square on V-J Day in 1945, has a controversial work history.
Nelson sent a memo explaining she wanted the picture removed from all VA medical buildings because it does not fit with the department’s “no-tolerance policy towards sexual harassment and assault.
The memo was quickly rescinded after severe backlash — and Nelson’s rocky history has come to light.
From Fox News:
Nelson was appointed to be head of the Phoenix VA in 2016, which prompted outrage from then-Democratic Rep. and now Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, along with former Republican Rep. Matt Salmon, who wrote a letter to then-President Obama calling for a reconsideration of Nelson’s appointment due to her previous tenure at the St. Louis VA hospital.
“When I first heard of the VA’s latest appointment in Phoenix, I immediately felt it must be some sort of a cruel joke,” Salmon wrote at the time. “After working with the Phoenix veteran community for years, I know they deserve better.”
“To think that Ms. Nelson, with her less-than-impressive past, is the best possible candidate to provide crucial leadership for the facility equated to ‘ground zero’ of the VA scandal is unequivocally offensive to us and each of the veterans we represent.”
Nelson served as the director of the St. Louis VA hospital from 2009 to 2013, during a time when veterans were reportedly exposed to HIV and hepatitis. CNN reported that an investigation found that “staff in St. Louis had not been trained to sterilize equipment, and according to a whistleblower, the poor sanitation contributed to infections.”
According to a report from AZ Central, investigators followed up to see if the problem had been addressed at the facility, and they had not. The Daily Caller reported that conditions were so bad that veterans were left sitting in feces for “days.”
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VA Secretary Denis McDonough overrode the memo in a statement Tuesday.
“Let me be clear: This image is not banned from VA facilities, and we will keep it in VA facilities,” McDonough said.
Full report over at Fox News:
VA official who tried to ban iconic WWII kissing photo has controversial history: ‘Unequivocally offensive’ https://t.co/RrBdGbBtto
— Fox News (@FoxNews) March 7, 2024