The Defense Department will review the Medals of Honor that were given to 20 U.S. soldiers for their actions in the 1890 battle at Wounded Knee to make sure their conduct merits such an honorable award. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the review by a special panel of experts after consultation with the White House and the Department of the Interior. Congress recommended such a review in the 2022 defense bill, reflecting a push by some lawmakers to rescind the awards for those who participated in the massacre on South Dakota’s Pine Ridge Indian Reservation near Wounded Knee Creek.
Quick Read
- The Defense Department will review the Medals of Honor awarded to 20 U.S. soldiers for their actions in the 1890 battle at Wounded Knee.
- Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the review after consultations with the White House and the Department of the Interior.
- The review follows a recommendation from Congress in the 2022 defense bill.
- The 1890 massacre at Wounded Knee resulted in the deaths of an estimated 250 Native Americans and at least 100 wounded.
- The medals were awarded to soldiers from the 7th Cavalry Regiment for various actions, including bravery and rescuing fellow troops.
- Native American groups, advocates, state lawmakers, and Congress members have called for the medals to be revoked.
- In 1990, Congress apologized to the descendants of those killed but did not revoke the medals.
- The review will determine if any soldier’s actions disqualify them from the honor, such as committing rape, murder, or attacking non-combatants.
- Army Secretary Christine Wormuth must provide historical records of the awards to the review panel by Friday.
- The panel must submit a written report by Oct. 15, recommending whether to revoke or retain each medal.
- The review will consider the standards for awarding the Medal of Honor at the time of the massacre and the context of the overall incident.
- The Wounded Knee massacre was part of a long history of contentious relations between South Dakota tribes and the government, with federal troops killing Lakota men, women, and children during a campaign to stop the Ghost Dance religious practice.
The Associated Press has the story:
Pentagon panel to review Medals of Honor given to soldiers at Wounded Knee massacre
Newslooks- WASHINGTON (AP) —
The Defense Department will review the Medals of Honor that were given to 20 U.S. soldiers for their actions in the 1890 battle at Wounded Knee to make sure their conduct merits such an honorable award. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the review by a special panel of experts after consultation with the White House and the Department of the Interior. Congress recommended such a review in the 2022 defense bill, reflecting a push by some lawmakers to rescind the awards for those who participated in the massacre on South Dakota’s Pine Ridge Indian Reservation near Wounded Knee Creek.
An estimated 250 Native Americans, including women and children, were killed in the fight and at least another 100 were wounded. Medals of Honor were given to 20 soldiers from the 7th Cavalry Regiment, and their awards cite a range of actions including bravery, efforts to rescue fellow troops and actions to “dislodge Sioux Indians” who were concealed in a ravine.
Native American groups, advocates, state lawmakers from South Dakota and a number of Congress members have called for officials to revoke the awards. Congress apologized in 1990 to the descendants of those killed at Wounded Knee but did not revoke the medals.
In a memo signed last week, Austin said the panel will review each award “to ensure no soldier was recognized for conduct that did not merit recognition” and if their conduct demonstrated any disqualifying actions. Those could include rape or murder of a prisoner or attacking a non-combatant or someone who had surrendered.
Austin said Army Secretary Christine Wormuth must provide the historical records and documentation for the awards for each soldier to the panel by Friday. The panel must provide a written report no later than Oct. 15, recommending that each award be either revoked or retained.
The standards for awarding the Medal of Honor have evolved over time, but the review will evaluate the 20 soldiers’ actions based on the rules in place at the time. Austin said the panel of five experts can consider the context of the overall incident to assess each soldier’s actions.
The dispute continues a long history of contentious relations between the tribes in South Dakota and the government dating to the 1800s. The Wounded Knee massacre was the deadliest, as federal troops shot and killed Lakota men, women and children during a campaign to stop a religious practice known as the Ghost Dance.
