Johnny Cash's children condemn association with Charlottesville far-right protestor
The family of Johnny Cash has joined the long line of public figures to disavow neo-Nazis in Charlottesville, stating that they are “sickened by the association” with a protestor wearing a Johnny Cash t-shirt during this weekend’s far-right marches.
Rosanne Cash, the daughter of Johnny, used a Facebook post to publicly denounce the “white supremacists and neo-Nazis who marched in Charlottesville”, describing them as “poison in our society, and an insult to every American hero who wore a uniform to fight the Nazis in WWII.”
The letter, which was signed by all five of Cash’s children, added that several men in the extended Cash family undertook military service to fight the Nazis in WWII and that Johnny Cash “would be horrified at even a casual use of his name of image for an idea or a cause founded in persecution and hatred.”
“We ask that the Cash name be kept far away from destructive and hateful ideology,” the letter said.
Rosanne Cash, who is also a musician, highlighted humanitarian awards Cash has received, from the Jewish National Fund, B’nai Brith and United Nations, and stated that he “championed the rights of Native Americans, protested the war in Vietnam, was a voice for the poor, the struggling and the disenfranchised, and an advocate for the rights of prisoners.”
“His pacifism and inclusive patriotism were two of his most defining characteristics,” the letter continued.
Rosanne Cash’s remarks follow US President Donald Trump’s ambiguous response to the violent white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, which killed three people and injured about 35. Trump initially failed to disavow the alt-right groups behind the protests, inviting widespread criticism.
Johnny Cash enlisted in the US Air Force at the age of 21 and served as a morse intercept operator in West Germany, where he intercepted Russian military operations.
He bought his first guitar while in the Air Force, and wrote in his memoirs about his time as a signals intelligence (SIGINT) intercept operator.
“The Air Force taught me the things every military service imparts to its enlisted men,” wrote Cash. “How to cuss, how to look for women, how to drink and fight - plus one skill that’s pretty unusual: if you ever need to know what one Russian is signaling to another in Morse code, I’m your man.”
He was honorably discharged in July 1954.
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