Honor American Indian veterans

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Remember all veterans as part of National Native American Month

November is National Native American Month.
Join NARF as we celebrate and remember the heritage of Native Americans who have laid down their lives to help defend and preserve America's democratic ideals. They have proudly and courageously served in every major conflict from the Revolutionary War to the Iraq War, so it is appropriate that National Native American Month is celebrated during November, the same month in which Veterans Day is observed.

Today NARF especially remembers our American Indian Military Veterans and honors all Modern Day Warriors and Heros, past, present and future. Native Americans have served their country with honor for generations, and we salute them.

Dr. Joe Medicine Crow (Crow) was presented earlier this year with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the United States by President Barack Obama. He added that to his collection: a Congressional Gold Medal, a Bronze Star and Legion d'honneur, the highest decoration given in France. During his military service, Medicine Crow completed all four tasks to become a Crow war chief, including touching a living enemy soldier, disarming an enemy, leading a successful war party and stealing an enemy horse.

Army Spc. Lori Piestewa (Hopi) was aware of Indian women who served America before her. This 23-year-old soldier became the first service woman killed in action in Iraq, and the first American Indian woman killed in combat. Her death, on March 23, 2003, touched a grateful nation and changed the name of the most prominent mountain near Phoenix to Piestewa Peak.

MSGT. Woodrow Wilson Keeble who was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Bush on March 3, 2008, a proud member of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Sioux Tribe of South Dakota.

In the 20th century, five American Indians have been among those soldiers to be distinguished by receiving the United States' highest military honor: the Medal of Honor. Given for military heroism "above and beyond the call of duty," these warriors exhibited extraordinary bravery in the face of the enemy and, in two cases, made the ultimate sacrifice for their country. - Jack C. Montgomery (Cherokee), Ernest Childers (Creek), Van Barfoot (Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians), Mitchell Red Cloud Jr. (Ho-Chunk), and Charles George (Eastern Band of Cherokee).

You can honor American Indian veterans by acknowledging their sacrifice to your friends and family members and learning more about the history of their service by visiting your local library, bookstore or veterans hospital.

Join NARF in honoring all Native Americans who are fighting for justice in their communities across the USA by making your donation today.
http://www.narf.org

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Statement by NCAI President Jefferson Keel on Veteran’s Day

Today, the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) joins all Americans in honoring the men and women who have served in the United States Armed Forces.

For over twenty years I served alongside men and women from every walk of life and from every corner of this country, to protect our freedom. It is my privilege as the President of NCAI to recognize the sacrifice and selfless contributions of our nation’s service members, of both Native and non-Native heritage. Our unified purpose to defend our constitution, our people, and our sovereignty, is the greatest equalizer and American Indian and Alaska Native people are proud of our contribution to the United States.

American Indians and Alaska Natives serve at the highest rate per capita and we honor the place of warriors in our communities and in our culture on a daily basis. In Indian country we always recognize our veterans first, they open our ceremonies, and they carry the flags of our nations. Our veterans are our most valiant warriors. And yet, we as a country and as tribal nations can always do more on a daily basis to honor and serve our veterans. In the days and months to come it will be imperative that we continue to improve our services for our returning veterans.

According to the federal government, there are over 137,000 American Indian and Alaska Native veterans living in the United States and ten percent of these veterans are women. The Pentagon estimates that nearly 24,000 American Indian and Alaska Native active duty personnel currently serve across the Armed Forces. On a daily basis active duty members become veterans and too many times our veterans return home to find that their greatest challenges still lie ahead.

At the National Congress of American Indians, we remain committed to finding the path for our veterans to become tribal leaders, teachers, business owners, active citizens, and successful parents. NCAI continues to be fully dedicated to serving veterans when they return to civilian life. We’ll continue to work with the US Department of Veterans Affairs and the agency’s Office of Tribal Government Relations to remember our veterans with the greatest honor; reciprocating their service with an equal or greater dedication to serve them.

I extend NCAI’s deepest gratitude to our nation’s veterans today and to their families. Thank you for your service.

Jefferson Keel, Lt. Governor of the Chickasaw Nation and President of NCAI, served over twenty years in the United States Army. He served as a Platoon Sergeant and Platoon Leader, both in peacetime and in combat. President Keel also served two extended tours of duty in the 1st Cavalry Division and the 101st Airborne Division in Vietnam and received numerous awards and decorations for heroism, including two Purple Hearts.