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Foundation that runs museum’s re-enactment responds to incident involving diners dressed as Nazis
Wearing the German uniforms in a public space is “repugnant,” the foundation said.
A restaurant in Hudson closed its doors on Tuesday after issuing an apology for allowing a group of WWII re-enactors, some dressed as Nazis, to dine.
On Saturday, eight re-enactors from the American Heritage Museum ate at Kith and Kin Hudson. Four were dressed as U.S. soldiers, one as a military nurse, and two as German SS soldiers.
Following the incident, the Collings Foundation, which runs the American Heritage Museum, issued a statement saying that wearing the German uniforms in a public space is “repugnant.”
“These uniforms were meant to be used in the context of an historical reenactment designed to educate a new generation as to what American GIs confronted and defeated some 80 years ago,” the foundation said. “In the wake of this incident we are undertaking a thorough review of how our strict presentation protocols are understood and followed by the living historians who participate in our programs and the consequences when they are ignored.”
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Over 350 re-enactors representing several branches of the Allied and Axis forces took part in the re-enactment, according to an event posting.
Kith and Kin announced its decision to close the restaurant on Oct. 15, citing “increased harassment and threats,” following its apology posted to Facebook on Sunday.
“In hindsight, they should have been asked to change before being seated,” the restaurant wrote. “At a time when acts of anti-Semitic violence continue to rise, we should have realized other diners might not be aware of the local WWII re-enactment.”
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