After a long struggle and an act of Congress, the ashes of WWII pilot Elaine Harmon were, on Wednesday, placed at Arlington National Cemetery.
After a long struggle and an act of Congress, the ashes of WWII pilot Elaine Harmon were, on Wednesday, placed at Arlington National Cemetery, reports the Washington Post.
Harmon was one of the Women Airforce Service Pilots, or WASP, who flew non-combat missions between 1942 and 1944.
According to the Baltimore Sun, the women were granted status as veterans in 1977, but their right to have their ashes kept at Arlington was taken away in early 2015.
Harmon passed away in April of that year, just one month after the recognition was rescinded.
Her family has since been working to have that decision reversed.
In May of this year, President Obama signed legislation that again allowed WASPs access to the military honor, reports the Associated Press.
While Harmon’s family fought for roughly a year, the WASPs themselves struggled to gain military recognition for decades.
Even when they were actively serving, they were not fully acknowledged as members of the armed services, according to the Washington Post.
