D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton introduced legislation Tuesday that would rename a Ward 8 post office in honor of District members of the military and veterans.
The bill would rechristen the facility at 400 Southern Ave. SE as the District of Columbia Service members and Veterans Post Office. Members of Congress usually rename post offices in their districts without controversy.
Norton, the second-highest-ranking Democrat on the Committee on Oversight and Reform, which manages the Postal Service, said the District’s service members and veterans deserve the honor.
“We must recognize the special debt of gratitude our country owes to D.C. service members and veterans, who serve or have served their country without voting representation in Congress or full local self-government,” she said. “It is remarkable that they serve a country that denies them basic democratic rights — rights they have often been sent to defend overseas. There are approximately 30,000 veterans who live in D.C. and almost 200,000 D.C. residents have served in the military since World War I. This bill is one way to recognize their service and sacrifice.”