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THE HISTORY OF THE POW/MIA FLAG

In 1971,
Mrs. Mary Hoff, an MIA wife and member of the National League of
American Prisoners and Missing in Southeast Asia, recognized the need
for a symbol of our POW/MIAs. Prompted by an article in the
Jacksonville, Florida TIMES-UNION, Mrs. Hoff contacted Norman Rivkees,
Vice-President of Annin & Company which had made a banner for the
newest member of the United Nations, the People's Republic of China, as a
part of their policy to provide flags to all UN member nations. Mrs.
Hoff found Mr. Rivkees very sympathetic to the POW/MIA issue, and he,
along with Annin's advertising agency, designed a flag to represent our
missing men. Following League approval, the flags were manufactured for
distribution.
The
flag is black, bearing in the center, in black and white, the emblem of
the League. The emblem is a white disk bearing in black silhouette the
bust of a man, watch tower with a guard holding a rifle, and a strand of
barbed wire; above the disk are the white letters POW and MIA framing a
white 5-pointed star; below the disk is a black and white wreath above
the white motto YOU ARE NOT FORGOTTEN.
Concerned groups and
individuals have altered the original POW/MIA Flag many times; the
colors have been switched from black with white - to red, white and
blue, -to white with black; the POW/MIA has at times been revised to
MIA/POW. Such changes, however, are insignificant. The importance lies
in the continued visibility of the symbol, a constant reminder of the
plight of America's POW/MIA's.
On March 9,1989, a POW/MIA
Flag, which flew over the White House on the 1988 National POW/MIA
Recognition Day, was installed in the United States Capitol Rotunda as a
result of legislation passed overwhelmingly during the 100th session of
Congress. The leadership of both Houses hosted the installation
ceremony in a demonstration of bipartisan congressional support. This
POW/MIA Flag, the only flag displayed in the United States Capitol
Rotunda, stands as a powerful symbol of our national commitment to our
POW/MIAs until the fullest possible accounting for Americans still
missing in Southeast Asia has been achieved.
RED IS FOR THE BLOOD SHED........BLACK IS FOR THE MOURNING
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