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San Diegans

for the Mt. Soledad National War Memorial

"As it is, where it is!"

History

In 1954, a cross was erected on Mount Soledad to honor veterans of the Korean War. In 1991, a federal court ruled the presence of the cross on City property violated the California Constitution. To correct the violation, the City sold a portion of parkland surrounding the cross to the Mount Soledad Memorial Association. The San Diego City Charter requires the sale of parkland be authorized by a two-thirds vote of the electorate. The citizens of San Diego provided this authority in 1992 when 76% of voters approved Proposition F, thereby authorizing the City to sell a portion of Mount Soledad to preserve this historic veteran’s memorial.

A federal court subsequently found the sale of the property to the Association violated provisions of the California Constitution prohibiting government support of religion.  As a result, the City conducted a second sale of the parkland around the cross, this time through a competitive bid process. The Association was the highest bidder, and, after taking possession of the property, constructed a memorial comprised of granite plaques in honor of our nation’s veterans. In a recent decision, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the conduct of the second sale to the Association also violated the California Constitution. The decision voided the second sale, and indicated that constitutional issues associated the previous passage of Proposition F in 1992 may actually invalidate the proposition.

Last November’s Proposition K was supposed to settle the matter.  However, arguably misleading ballot statements resulted in mass voter confusion.  Consequently, Proposition K failed to muster a two-thirds majority, thus leaving the integrity of the memorial in jeopardy.  In December 2004, President Bush signed into law H.R. 4818 (P.L. 108-447), which contained language authored by San Diego Congressmen Duncan Hunter and Randy ‘Duke’ Cunningham, authorizing the federal government to take over control and protection of the entire veteran’s memorial should the City of San Diego donate the property to the Federal Government.

On March 8, 2005, the City Council voted 5-3 to reject the offer of the federal government.  In direct response to that vote, “San Diegans for the Mount Soledad National War Memorial” conducted the most successful petition drive in San Diego history and submitted a record-shattering 89,000 signatures demanding that City Council rescind and reverse its March 8th decision.  On May 17, the Council agreed to let the people decide the fate of the Mount Soledad Memorial by placing the issue on the July 26 special mayoral election ballot. 

San Diegans for the Mount Soledad National War Memorial led the massive citywide Proposition A campaign to protect Mount Soledad by transferring the site of the memorial to the federal government as a national monument protected under the Constitution of the United States.