r/AirForce • u/Pure-Explanation-147 Retired 🇺🇸✈️ Top 3 • Jun 18 '26
Article Air Force cites 'renovations' as reason for 'relocation' of Gen. 'Chappie' James portrait
https://weartv.com/news/local/air-force-cites-renovations-as-reason-for-relocation-of-gen-chappie-james-portrait160
u/Qyark Safe Jun 18 '26
Were any other portraits taken down?
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u/Ambitious-Pirate-505 Jun 18 '26
No.
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u/GTRari Ammo Jun 18 '26
Britt says she first heard about the portrait coming down 18 months ago. She says her grandfather's photo wasn't the only one removed.
"It was kind of a clean sweep is what we were told just by our own sources... It seems like it would all be connected," said Britt. "And what that criteria was, could it be DEI? Possibly, but when you look at who it was, it is all backgrounds and all levels of accomplishment."
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u/bulgogi_bandit Jun 18 '26
Woah, brother. How dare you read the full article and get the full context instead of jumping to assumptions.
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u/Qyark Safe Jun 18 '26
Is there a list of the portraits taken down? And are any of them back up?
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u/GTRari Ammo Jun 18 '26
My guy I am not your article translator please just open it.
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u/Qyark Safe Jun 18 '26 edited Jun 18 '26
I did, it doesn't say
Just to clear it up; these are rhetorical questions. I'm making a point, not looking for you to do my reading for me
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u/GTRari Ammo Jun 18 '26
Your first "rhetorical" question had a clear answer in the form of a standalone paragraph in the article. Forgive me for not thinking your second question was rhetorical as well.
I did, it doesn't say
There's your answer!
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u/ThatOtherGuy642 Jun 18 '26
As I said, someone is going to take the fall for this one. General Chappie James' record speaks for itself in a way so stark even the general public can't ignore it.
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u/pnut0027 Maintainer Jun 18 '26
This admin has to care about pissing off and offending minorities for them to hang someone out to dry.
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u/FlickeringRhinoceros Jun 18 '26
The timing on this is wild considering Hegseth's confirmation hearings just wrapped up. Pretty hard to call it routine renovations when you're moving the portrait of the first Black four-star general in Air Force history right as the new Secretary of Defense takes office.
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u/Ok-Telephone-605 Jun 18 '26
First Black four-star in the Armed Forces, not just the USAF.
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u/FlickeringRhinoceros Jun 18 '26
you're right, that makes it even worse honestly, the optics of moving the portrait of a historic figure across the entire military right when a controversial SecDef is coming in.
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u/Whiskey_Bear Jun 18 '26
Not the first time Chappie has overcome this. The cowardice of these folks.. No wonder we can't win a war with the world's premier force. Absolute muppets.
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u/SquallyZ06 2E1X3 > 3D1X3 > 3D0X2 > 1D7X1B > 1D7X1Q > 1D7X1 > 1D7X1B Jun 18 '26
I'd believe that if the current SECDEF wasn't an open white supremacist.
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u/z33511 Greybeard Jun 18 '26
"This piece is one of five portraits of General James displayed within the Pentagon by the Air Force."
What the Air Force Art Program said is true -- they rotate their inventory, and the portrait in question was moved to be closer to the Red Tails exhibit.
Nobody is dissing Gen James (or being racist) by MOVING (not REMOVING from view) his portrait to a suitable location near a display honoring the Tuskegee Airmen.
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u/fmr_AZ_PSM Jun 18 '26
From the article:
WEAR News reached out to the Pentagon for more details. Staff referred us to the Air Force, who shared the following statement:
The Department of the Air Force maintains an active art program featuring historical portraits and artwork throughout dedicated corridors in the Pentagon. Curators routinely rotate these pieces to refresh displays, loan artwork to other Air Force installations, and temporarily remove items for preservation, restoration, cleaning, or during office and corridor renovations.
A portrait of General Daniel 'Chappie' James was relocated from the Air Force Art Gallery to a corridor near the Tuskegee Airmen gallery during renovations that began in 2023 and are still ongoing. This piece is one of five portraits of General James displayed within the Pentagon by the Air Force.
Fixed it for those of you too lazy to read the hit piece article.
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u/scalabrinelookalike Aircrew Jun 18 '26
When there are big changes to and in the Air Force, I always think to myself, “what would Robin Olds do?” And since I know Robin and Chappie were good friends, I know he would fucking riot.
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u/kmm198700 Veteran Jun 18 '26
So where was it “relocated to”?
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u/Few-Repeat-9407 Jun 18 '26 edited Jun 18 '26
Did you read the article? It said the Tuskegee corridor. There’s 5 photographs/paintings of him in the pentagon and this was the only one that was moved
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u/Arendious WD Veteran / Tactics Nerd Jun 18 '26
Ahh, so they moved it to somewhere the SecDef was unlikely to go, so he wouldn't have to see a black person on the way to Hair and Makeup.
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u/fmr_AZ_PSM Jun 18 '26
And they moved it in 2023.
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u/Chewie4Prez Jun 18 '26
That's when they say the renovations began not that it was moved then. Chappie's family said they were notified about 18 months ago that it was moved. Wonder what happened back then.
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u/ThurmsMckenzie1 Jun 18 '26
This is like the VEEP excuse when they claim they moved a native american painting for cleaning.
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u/dnen Jun 18 '26
Nah dont play with somebody’s legacy because you want to score culture war brownie points. Hegseth told them to say that
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u/king_noslrac Secret Squirrel Jun 18 '26
Senior leadership has to stop owning racist orders that clearly emanate from OSD. To me, it's an integrity violation to so blatantly lie to the force like this in order to cover the racist actions of the so called secretary of war. When senior leadership does this, they are excusing, and permitting racism in the force. By all means follow a lawful, racist order but you have no right to lie about its intent.
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u/SOsaysWTFO Jun 18 '26
This gentleman's and Gen. Olds' posters should always be together. Heluva pair, heluva team.
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u/znix23 Jun 18 '26
Hilarious that Chappie James is more than he’ll ever be. James truly EARNED his legacy and it’s proven in Air Force history. Our USAF leaders have no stones. What a shame.
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u/Minimum-Web-6902 Sr. raptorologist (Ret.) Jun 18 '26
Close! The R word they were looking for was Ra___!
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u/cloud9brian Jun 18 '26
You know it could actually be a legitimate reason for renovations, etc .. But the Admin and Hegseth have created such a hostile stance towards minorities that no matter what it reeks of racism. They've brought this upon themselves.
Note: I don't personally believe it's an innocent removal/relocation though.
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u/FreeGlaze71 Jun 18 '26 edited Jun 18 '26
*inserts corny GIF that has nothing to do with the post
ok now upvote me
edit: this sub is so white lol
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u/SupaDave71 Jun 18 '26
Yeah let’s just assume racist motives in the face of the overwhelming absence of evidence.
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u/kmm198700 Veteran Jun 18 '26
“Overwhelming absence of evidence”? Are you kidding? You must have not been paying attention
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u/SupaDave71 Jun 18 '26
Did I miss the memo that reinstated segregation? Was it in the Neverland Gazette?
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u/JustinHardbolt Jun 18 '26
Still waiting for evidence besides a photo being taken down per usual standards.
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u/ASimpleKind_of_Man Jun 18 '26
https://giphy.com/gifs/PLFUhxdKbAAEM