In 1946, the Nuremberg Tribunal declared the Waffen-SS to be a criminal organization, making an exception of people who were forcibly conscripted. Throughout the post-war years, the Allies would apply this exception to the soldiers of the Latvian Legion and the Estonian Legion. The US Displaced Persons Commission in September 1950 declared that:

"The Baltic Waffen SS Units (Baltic Legions) are to be considered as separate and distinct in purpose, ideology, activities, and qualifications for membership from the German SS, and therefore the Commission holds them not to be a movement hostile to the Government of the United States."

Even before this decision, around 1,000 former Latvian Legion soldiers had served as guards at the Nuremberg Tribunal, guarding Nazi war criminals. Afterwards, during the Berlin Blockade, they took part in securing Allied facilities involved in the Berlin Airlift and later also were guarding USA Army headquarters.

#953: Guy from Latvia -

A third voluntarily joined the Latvian legion, prior to joining some of them had been in the Arajs team and been auxiliary police.  They joined ther 15 and 19 divisions, the 15 became the most decorated division.

Why do you want to honour men who have such bloody connections?  Why do you wish to have as role models men who collaborated with the Nazis?

Finally, why on earth would anyone in their right mind pay remembrance for an atrocity that would have ended with the ultimate extermination of an entire people?  Historians know very well of the Nazis’ plans to do away with the Latvian (among Baltic) peoples after the planned-for victory. There would have been no Latvia to become independent in 1991.

 

Don't you have better role-models for young Latvians?