At the moment, however, the two sides are united in their antipathy toward a recent move by the Kansas State Historical Society to solidify its ban against violent reenactments on state property. The society argues that its policy is no more stringent than that of the National Park Service, and points out that there are valuable reasons for limiting on-site battle reenactments, including "public safety, and potential damage to the archeological evidence in the battlefield," according to Ramon Powers, who recently retired as the society's executive director.
Many local reenactment organizations have vocally opposed the ban, noting that it will hurt Kansas' tourism, and charging the society with attempting to whitewash history. "We're not called Bleeding Kansas for nothing," says David Cosloy, president of the Kansas First Volunteer Infantry, Company D. "As one of the groups involved, we want to be as accurate as possible, and that includes taking casualties."
A large number of reenactments across the state already take place on private or locally controlled land not affected by the ban, but Cosloy points to at least three sites that his group has used in the past that are now off limits.
Despite the reenactors' argument that state land should be available for these educational, if violent, re-creations, Powers maintains that, "no public institution should be moving in the direction where we sanction those types of displays."
