Vietnam veterans in Tennessee are demanding the reversal of a controversial highway renaming that replaced their 40-year memorial with one honoring assassinated conservative activist Charlie Kirk, creating a heated confrontation between elderly veterans and state lawmakers who approved the change without consulting them.
Veterans Blindsided by Memorial Replacement
Tennessee State Route 386 north of Nashville carried the name Vietnam Veterans Boulevard since 1987. In June, green and white signs appeared declaring it the Charlie Kirk Memorial Highway. The Tennessee General Assembly approved the renaming in May. Veterans say they received no advance notice. Barry Rice, 80, president of the Tennessee State Council of the Vietnam Veterans of America, expressed his frustration bluntly. Many veterans support memorializing Kirk somewhere, Rice said, but not by erasing their boulevard.
State Assemblyman Johnny Garrett, representing Sumner County, championed the name change after constituents approached him. Garrett told local media that voters wanted to honor Kirk for defending freedom of speech and inspiring young people to embrace Christian values and constitutional freedoms. He selected the location because it serves as the main entrance to Sumner County from Nashville, ensuring maximum visibility for the memorial.
Scrambling for Solutions After Backlash
The backlash forced Garrett into damage control. He promised veterans would receive new roadside signs bearing their names and military branches. After hearing veteran concerns about adding Kirk memorial signs to the existing Vietnam Veterans Parkway, Garrett said he immediately searched for a location honoring both the veterans who fought for rights and Kirk, who died exercising those rights. Veterans remain unconvinced. Rice and fellow veteran Black claim officials promised the Kirk signs would be relocated entirely, not supplemented with additional veteran markers.
A Tennessee Department of Transportation spokesperson added confusion by stating the agency received no orders to remove the Kirk memorial signs. This contradicts what veterans say they were told about relocating the markers. The conflicting messages have intensified frustration among the veteran community, who feel their concerns are being dismissed or mishandled by state officials.
Legacy Concerns and Generational Memory
Veteran Black worries younger Americans will associate the highway solely with Kirk, forgetting the Vietnam veterans whose service the road honored for nearly four decades. Kirk commanded strong name recognition among young conservatives before his assassination at Utah Valley University on September 10, 2025. Tyler Robinson, the alleged gunman, shot Kirk from a rooftop during a speaking engagement launching Turning Point USA’s fall college tour. Most of Kirk’s supporters were born after the Vietnam War ended in 1975 and lack personal connection to that conflict.
The controversy highlights tensions between honoring recent political figures and preserving memorials to military service. Vietnam veterans already faced hostility upon returning home from an unpopular war. Losing their memorial recognition to a political activist, however sympathetic to conservative causes, strikes many as a final insult to their sacrifice and service.
Charlie Kirk was a good man that meant well but sorry – he couldn’t hold a candle to THE VIETNAM VETERANS – It’s a slap in the face to change the name of the street – find something else to name it after Kirk
Larry cornrump
Give me a call Alan Crow
Garrett championed the name change at the expense of the Vietnam Vets, how pathetic.
I don’t blame the veteran for upset. My brother was in Vietnam war and when he discharged he got spit on call a baby killer. He wouldn’t even wear his uniform. Have some respect for our veterans
I am a disabled Vietnam era veteran and believe Kirk should have a memorial but NOT by discarding Vietnam veterans just because we are aging out of this life. Disgusting politics
I agree. I didn’t serve, but my father was a Vietnam veteran. Honoring someone shouldn’t come at the expense of others.
Charlie would NOT want this !!!
Why not both Charlie would never have wanted that he honored our veterans.
WTF !!!!!!! my father was a vietnam vet and I am a 21 year army vet myself, I did even know who this chrlue Kirk was until he got shot. Why would he deserve a memorial let alone be honored by taking away a veterans memorial ????? What did he ever do for this country but start controversy F@#$K him !!!!!!
My Father was a World War 2 Veteran and served in the Navy Aircorp. He was a machinist mate. Charlie Kirk did something no one else would do and that was honoring God, and straightening out College age kids who were being brainwashed to hate our country.
Charlie never asked for a Memorial but people loved him, including myself. Someone goofed on the project, but don’t shoot the messenger, because of an error on the part of Government.
Charlie Kirk didn’t start controversy. I would advise you to lookup his conversations with college students on YouTube. You might just become ashamed of yourself for calling him a name. If you aren’t then maybe you hate Veterans too, because they had to kick up controversy defending America and saving others from Communism.
There are a lot of things that should be renamed, but changing the name of a memorial that honors our veterans is not one of them. Who’s brilliant idea was this?
Hmmm… Erasing/replacing history… I wish this was novel but it’s not. Charlie will not see the road signs, and luckily neither will the 58, 220 Vietnam veterans who did not make it home alive, and just a brushing aside of those who DID make it home alive. Is the Einstein that came up with this idea of veteran?
I’ve never understood the “renaming” process anywhere for any reason. it makes zero sense. it’s a big country and if you’d like to honor a memory, then find a place that has not been already dedicated to a group, cause or person. our Veterans, no matter which branch, group or conflict deserve to have much named in their honor. Charlie Kirk also deserves some recognition and memory for his work. There is no need to “share space”. Leave the Veteran’s designation alone and find some other way to honor Charlie’s memory. Another highway, a main street, a park, etc. Problem solved.
Shame on every member of the Tennessee General Assembly who voted to rename the Tennessee Veterans Boulevard north of Nashville to honor Charlie Kirk. It was an ignorant move on your part. Many Vietnam Nam veterans fought and gave their lives for our country. Some enlisted rather than be drafted. Some did not return. For those who did return, it has been a long road. I just cannot imagine anyone ignorant enough to rename a veterans memorial after someone else! Shame, shame, shame on you!!!
I am glad there are a few of us left to staid up for something that should stay in place! God help us!~~~