Cherokee: "Aniyosgi Dotsigusdaa. ~ Unelanvhi Wigadoligi Ama Ayetli"
Lakota: "Nahan Akicita unkitawapi ki Owicikiunyapi kte. ~ Wakan Tanka makoce ki la waste kte"

English: We support our warriors. ~ God Bless Our Country!

In spite of my vociferous dislike of Dubya, Commander in Chimp, and because it is Thanksgiving in America, I think we should have a look at the contributions of Native Americans, after all they were invaded and occupied too. That first American Thanksgiving this is Edward Winslow's account,

"Our corn [i.e. wheat] did prove well, and God be praised, we had a good increase of Indian corn, and our barley indifferent good, but our peas not worth the gathering, for we feared they were too late sown. They came up very well, and blossomed, but the sun parched them in the blossom. Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together after we had gathered the fruit of our labors. They four in one day killed as much fowl as, with a little help beside, served the company almost a week. At which time, amongst other recreations, we exercised our arms, many of the Indians coming amongst us, and among the rest their greatest king Massasoit, with some ninety men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted, and they went out and killed five deer, which they brought to the plantation and bestowed on our governor, and upon the captain and others. And although it be not always so plentiful as it was at this time with us, yet by the goodness of God, we are so far from want that we often wish you partakers of our plenty."

America's treatment of it's native peoples wasn't always so benevolent, and in time broken treaties, atrocities, and eventual disenfranchisement, and the reservation sytem was implemented. Their lands appropriated, relegated to isolated reservation, alcohol, depression, poverty and suicide. This became part of the legacy the government has handed on to America's native people.

There was one legacy the government could not take away, and that is the legacy of service to the greater community,it is called, "the Warrior's Way." 17,000 Native Americans served in WW1, for a country that refused to offer them citizenship (Native Americans had not been American citizens before the American Indian Citizenship Act of 1924).

In 1917, at his own accord, Chief Red Fox went to Washington to see Secretary of War Newton D. Baker. He wanted to offer the services of the Indians in the Great War:

"From all over the West we now stand ready­ 50,000 Indians between the ages of seventeen and fifty-five. We beg of you, to give us the right to fight. We guarantee to you, sir, our hearts could be for no better cause than to fight for the land we love, and for the freedom we share."

WW2 saw the Native American, involved once again, read here about the true story of the Navajo peoples and the development of the Code Talkers. It should be mentioned that other American Indians, the Sioux, Choctaw, and Commanche, also used their native languages as a code during World War 2, for the U.S. Army, and yet have not so far been honored with any type of medal recognition. More than 44,000 American Indians out of a population numbering less than 350,000 at the time, served during World War II. The same Department of Defense sponsored study counts more than 42,000 American Indians involved in the Vietnam War. In all, more than 200,000 American Indians are veterans of military service. On a per capita basis, American Indians have been among the most active of all peoples within in the U.S. military.



It was not only their sons, Native Americans sent, but their daughters, too. Read here about Native American Women in the Military.

American & Canadian Indians
In The Military
US/Canadian Indian Tribes
Serving as of April 1, 2003
Source: Immigration Policy Center
and U.S. Defense Department

Army - 2,985 Eskimo - 98 Aleut - 79 = 3,162
Navy - 7,068 Eskimo - 116 Aleut - 199 = 7,383
USMC - 1,111 Eskimo - 30 Aleut - 31 = 1,172
USAF - 1,696 Eskimo - 30 Aleut - 22 = 1,748
US/Canadian Indians total = 12,860, plus
Eskimo - 274 & Aleut - 291 Total = 13, 425
Grand Total All Serving = 1,401,128

You may very well ask yourself why, after all that has happened to the Native American why they are still so keen to fight.

From the Chicago Tribune, William Hageman, Dec. 13, 2002

"How in the world can you defend a country after what has been done to you?

Ron Jordan, a Korean War veteran who says supporting America - even with its less than shining record when it comes to American Indians - is a tradition among his people.

"Nobody ever backs down," said Jordan, a retired instrument-controls designer from Chicago, speaking of fellow American Indians. "Because, see, among Native American people, long before the white man came, warriors were revered among the tribe. It was the men who went out to protect … their families. They were the hunters, and they were the providers for the families. So veterans are pretty highly thought of in the Native American community."

"This is what has been shared with me: This is our land. Although it's under others' control - the government or whatever - it's still our land. We were raised on it, and it's important to protect it.

"This is the land our great-grandparents were raised on, land that provided for all of us. So it's not a matter of what has been done to us; we have to protect the land, the country that was once all Indian land."

And as Jordan said, "Even today, I get a lump in my throat when I see the flag. Because I've been to other countries and seen how they live. … There's a lot of inequities around this country, but it's still the best around."