New Mexico group opposes Marine “Crusaders” name

BEAUFORT, S.C. (AP) — A New Mexico foundation is objecting to the use of the name Crusaders for a flight squadron based at the Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort.

The Beaufort Gazette reports (http://bit.ly/JRrhZT ) an attorney for the Military Religious Freedom Foundation in Albuquerque wrote Navy Secretary Ray Mabus and Marine Commandant Gen. James Amos this week demanding the name be dropped.

The group says the name blurs the line between church and state and will stir anti-American sentiment in the Middle East.

Flight Attack Squadron 122 has announced it’s returning to the name the unit used from 1958 until 2008 before a combat deployment to Iraq.

Lt. Sharon Hyland says changing the name back honors the unit’s heritage and the name references the Crusader aircraft the unit started flying in 1957.

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Information from: The Beaufort Gazette, http://www.beaufortgazette.com