For the 2023 Veterans Day, the National Museum of the American Indian has selected several online virtual options for you to connect to our Native veteran's publications.
National Veterans of Foreign Wars Day, September 29, acknowledges the men and women who have served honorably in the U.S. military overseas in war or other imminent danger. The VFW traces its roots to the late 19th century and efforts to secure rights and benefits for veterans of the Spanish–American and Philippine–American wars. Its establishment, however, dates to 1914. A few years later, the participation of American Indians in the U.S. military during World War I helped bring down the last obstacles to their recognition as American citizens. Here, the museum looks at the mission and vision of the VFW and Native Americans' extraordinary record of service in combat.
Capt. Cody Ayon (Tsistsistas [Southern Cheyenne]) enlisted in both the U.S. Navy and the New Mexico Army National Guard. In this interview, he describes his reasons for joining the military, including family and tribal traditions and his wish to know people and cultures around the world. He retired in 2016 after 24 years of service, including a tour of duty in Iraq during the Iraq War. Looking forward to the completion of the National Native American Veterans Memorial this fall, Capt. Ayon says, “I believe this memorial will serve as reminder and a beacon, not only to Natives but to all who see it, that we are still here, we are still keeping our way of life alive, and our warrior traditions are not forgotten. Even after facing atrocities at the hands of our government earlier in the country’s history, we still stand as the keepers of our homeland.”
On National Korean War Veterans Armistice Day, Kiowa tribal member Dennis Zotigh pays respect to the veterans who served during the Korean conflict, and especially to the three Kiowa soldiers who gave their lives there. Dennis, whose uncle served in Korea, also shares memories of performing with a Kiowa cultural group in Seoul nearly 20 years ago and his impressions from that trip.
How do Native Americans observe the 4th of July? This year, many people’s plans reflect their concerns about the coronavirus pandemic. But the answer has always been as complicated as America’s history.
Perhaps the best-known passage of the Declaration of Independence is the statement that all men are created equal. Many Native Americans remember another one of the signers’ grievances against the king: “He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.”
The call to serve in the U.S. armed forces has resonated for Native American, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian men and women from the country's founding to the present day. Veterans are honored at Native gatherings of all kinds, where they are often asked to perform flag-raisings, blessings, and traditional acknowledgements. In powwows, veterans lead the grand entry carrying eagle staffs and national, state, tribal, and military flags, important reminders that the roots of the modern powwow lie in warrior societies. Here, Native friends share the meaning of Memorial Day for their families.
Misty Dawn Lakota (Oglala Lakota) has been a member of the National Guard and a special agent with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Office of Justice Services. She currently serves as a Chief Warrant Officer Two in the U.S. Army Reserves, awaiting deployment to Afghanistan, and a supervisory special agent with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of Law Enforcement. As the museum looks ahead to the dedication of the National Native American Veterans Memorial, Chief Lakota talks to us about the women in her family who have inspired her and the people for whom she serves.
Sgt. Woodrow Wilson Roach (Cherokee, 1912–1984) served with the Fifth Army during the Italian Campaign, the longest continuous combat and some of the fiercest fighting of World War II. Here, his granddaughter tells the museum about his life and the Cherokee language prayer card he carried as a soldier in Europe, then as a combat engineer in the Philippines. We're especially proud to share Sgt. Roach's story this weekend, during the groundbreaking for the National Native Veterans Memorial. The memorial—to be dedicated on November 11, 2020, on the grounds of the museum on the National Mall—honors the Native American, Native Hawaiian, and Alaska Native men and women who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces since the country was founded.
This year, 80 Native delegates have been asked to take part in the official commemoration of D-Day. Their responsibilities include offering ceremonies at American cemeteries and memorials in Normandy to honor the men and women who served during World War II—part a growing movement to acknowledge the historic service of Native Americans, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians in the U.S. Armed Forces.
The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts has unanimously accepted the most recent phase of design work for the National Native American Veterans Memorial. The commission praised the concept as “beautiful in its physical design and symbolism,” singling out the memorial’s layered meanings and the contemplative character of its setting within the museum's native landscape.
Col. Wayne Don, a citizen of the Cupig and Yupik tribes, talks about his service in the Regular Army and the Alaska Army National Guard. Col. Don, who has been deployed to Bosnia, Afghanistan, and other overseas posts, is a member of the Advisory Committee helping to build the National Native American Veterans Memorial on the grounds of the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C.
S. Joe Crittenden, deputy principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, talks briefly about his service in the U.S. Navy in the mid-1960s and what it has meant to his life. Five years ago, Deputy Chief Crittenden testified in support of the Act of Congress creating the National Native American Veterans Memorial. Now he is a member of the advisory committee seeing the memorial through to its dedication in 2020.
Daniel Kahikina Akaka, who died today at the age of 93, was the first Native Hawaiian to serve in the U.S. Senate. In 2013, shortly after he retired, he spoke with the museum about his determination to protect the languages, cultures, and traditions of the world's Indigenous peoples; support for Hawaiian self-determination; and hopes for Native Hawaiian young people. We're republishing Sen. Akaka's interview tonight in remembrance of his life of service.
The competition to design the National Native American Veterans Memorial received more than 120 submissions, from artists across the world. Five concepts were unanimously chosen as finalists by a jury of Native and non-Native artists, designers, and scholars. Today, the designers shared their concept drawings for the memorial and the ideas and experiences that shaped them.
Captain Jefferson Keel (U.S. Army retired), Lieutenant Governor of the Chickasaw Nation and co-chairman of the National Native American Veterans Memorial Advisory Committee, talks about his experiences in the U.S. military. The design competition for the memorial begins November 11, 2017. Entries will be accepted through January 9, 2018. Information about the competition is available at https://nmai.us.fluidreview.com/.
Specialist Allen Kale‘iolani Hoe (U.S. Army retired), a member of the National Native American Veterans Memorial Advisory Committee, talks about his experiences as a Native Hawaiian in the U.S. military and his belief in the importance of national service. The design competition for the memorial begins November 11, 2017. Entries will be accepted through January 9, 2018.
Master Sergeant and Lipan Apache War Chief Chuck Boers (U.S. Army retired), a member of the National Native American Veterans Memorial Advisory Committee, talks about his experiences as a Native American in the U.S. military and the traditions that inspired his service. The design competition for the memorial begins November 11, 2017. Entries will be accepted through January 9, 2018. All information about the competition is available at https://nmai.si.edu/nnavm/memorial/.
![Cody Ayon (Tsistsistas [Southern Cheyenne]) enlisted in both the U.S. Navy and the New Mexico Army National Guard. The Native community of Albuquerque welcomed then-Lieutenant Ayon home with a Soldier Dance after his service during the Iraq War. (Steven Clevenger [Osage], courtesy of Cody Ayon)](https://th-thumbnailer.cdn-si-edu.com/kgUu4eGyUlEs3vdLKw5yGToVQbk=/150x150/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/blogging/featured/Cody_Ayon_ceremony.jpg)
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