WOUNDED KNEE WAS NOT A PROUD MOMENT IN AMERICA

History truly repeats itself. But instead of learning from the past and the mistakes made, we instead see our leaders take the wrong lesson and elevate it to heroism. Such it is with the current defense of the events surrounding the massacre at Wounded Knee. And a massacre is what it was, and always will be. Pete Hegseth announced that twenty men who were awarded the Medal of Honor for their participation in the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre would keep their medals, despite more than a century of controversy over them. Instead of acknowledging the ongoing review of the awarding of those medals to “ensure no awardees were recognized for conduct inconsistent with the nation’s highest military honor,” Hegseth has called the men “brave soldiers” and said: “We’re making it clear that [the soldiers] deserve those medals.” It’s fitting that Hegseth, a political appointee whose tenure in the history books will be famous for incompetence, would defend the awarding of those particular Medals of Honor, because they were awarded to cover up the incompetence of political appointees that led to the deaths of at least 230 peaceful Lakotas, as well as about twenty-five soldiers who were caught in their own crossfire. Awarded by an unpopular Republican administration who created the issues, and accompanying hysteria, that led to the events at Wounded Knee. Hegseth and his defenders on this issue should read some history. There was little bravery accompanying the slaughter of women and children. His view is a corrupted vision of ‘the warrior ethos.’ If anyone serving the country or in the military is proud of this event in our history and thinks it should be regarded as heroic they are not deserving of the positions they hold. And an ignorance of actual events will not rewrite the history of a well-known, well-studied, and disgraceful moment in American history. Secretary Hegseth should be made to justify and explain why we should be proud of the participants who received the Medal of Honor for slaughter. This ‘might makes right’ attitude cheapens the bravery of true warriors. And taints the Medal of Honor as just another political reward. Or coverup. Read some history.