John L. Johnson had a reasonably good idea: build a museum in Rapid City to memorialize Medal of Honor recipients. Alas, he sunk it with one ill-considered statement to the press about the butchers of Wounded Knee who wrongly bear that medal:
“Irrespective of the political side, those men, despite what they did, acted heroically,” Johnson said. “I think that needs to be considered.”
But Johnson said he welcomes debate on the revocation issue.
“There is precedent for revocation of the Medal of Honor. It has been done several times in the past so there still may be a possibility of that. I doubt it, but it could happen,” he said. “I think we should have those kinds of questions, for sure” [Jim Holland, “Proposed Medal of Honor Museum a Labor of Love and Duty for Local Businessman,” Rapid City Journal, 2019.05.17].
Johnson is not insensitive to American history or minorities. He’s written Every Night and Every Morn, a book about minority recipients of the Medal of Honor, including Native Americans. He himself is African-American and lived on Pine Ridge.
But the U.S. Seventh Cavalry soldiers who murdered hundreds of Lakota men, women, and children at Wounded Knee on December 29, 1890, did nothing heroic. Seventh Cavalry commander General Nelson A. Miles testified to the Commission on Indian Affairs, “The action of the officer was more reprehensible… and I have regarded the whole affair as most unjustifiable and worthy of the severest condemnation.” Congressman Dusty Johnson said bestowing medals on “soldiers who massacred noncombatants at Wounded Knee… a grave mistake.”
Rapid City’s biggest Native newspaper offered stern criticism of Johnson’s comment and his museum plan:
Basil Brave Heart, a Lakota elder and Korean War Veteran, who is making an effort to have those medals rescinded said, “Would they have handed out Medals of Honor to the soldiers who slaughtered innocent men, women and children at Mai Lai in Vietnam?” And Brave Heart is right; since when is killing helpless women and children heroic? [staff, “Honoring the Medal of Honor Winners Who Killed Innocent Lakota at Wounded Knee,” Native Sun News Today, 2019.05.22]
After complaints, Johnson has changed course:
Amid a storm of protest, including threats to his personal well-being, John L. Johnson of Rapid City is scrapping plans to open a museum honoring recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor, which had been slated for Aug. 1 at the Rushmore Mall.
Instead, Johnson said Tuesday he plans to open an art gallery for Native American artists on that date in the same space planned for the museum [Jim Holland, “After Receiving Threats, Man Decides Not to Open Medal of Honor Museum,” Rapid City Journal, 2019.05.28].
Hey—physical threats? Not cool, people. We don’t need to resort to violence to make our point. Johnson heard criticism, and he responded reasonably to it with a significant change of plans… more significant than I might have asked of him. A Medal of Honor museum isn’t a bad idea, but a conscientious director of such a museum could easily exercise some historical judgment and create a section acknowledging errors in the history of the Medal of Honor. A museum addressing our history in its full factual and moral complexity would provide good education for visitors young and old.
But so will a venue featuring Native artists, especially, we can hope, lots of local artists.
[ can’t believe any one proposing this has any real understanding of american history.there is nothing noble or great about our guilt & mistakes as a nation.
wounded knee is certainly one of our greatest mistakes. it appears to me that maybe the 7th calvary was trying to get even for the foolishness and arrogance of Gen.Custer & the defeat of the 7th calvary at Greasy Grass in montana. the mayor of rapid city should have been on this immediately. maybe he is still feeling the jingle of federal coins in his pocket with sd. congressioanal announcement of the B-21 coming to Ellsworth air force base in the distant future !God what a mess !
Apparently Miles ordered just 15 days earlier the arrest of sitting bull at bull head, now on Standing Rock rez. Then he stayed in Rapid City to criticize the Wounded Knee murders. Indian agents snd Generals made intentional decisions. Medals of Honor? Only where we rewrite history and destroy anyone in our way. Genocide/racism/immigration/and militia-white supremacy laces our society today. e.g. COSTS OF THE CONFEDERACY, Smithsonian, Palmer, Wessler 12.2019; “Cubs bar white power gesturer for life,” Chicago Tribune today; Kristi’s riot boosters law; ect.
Sitting Bull was then murdered. Indian Agent McLaughlin feared him. Crazy Horse too was ordered arrested and then murdered after the Red Cloud indian agent feared him and called out the military.
The military used repeating artillary with explosive rounds on the 300 largely unarmed Lakota at Wounded Knee.
Criticism of genocide is met with repeated cries of political correctness ad nauseum from the right wing propoganda media. The billionaire media owner Murdoch talks with “bone-spur” Trump daily. Murdoch and his 5 generations have never seen military service either (his uncle was decorated in WWI and father was a WWII correspondent).
In the spirit of crazy horse
Should be a must read as well in all high schools
What a great way to use the space, wish all artists well.
Peter mathison book is what I’m referring to
Johnson should have educated himself before he spoke. Duh.
Why do great people admit their mistakes and move on, yet this country has never admitted to any mistakes/ atrocities/slavery/ genocide? At present to make this country great again, we start by moving trump from the presidency to obscurity.That would be the greatest punishment we could level on this deplorable human.(almost wrote man, but he will never measure to that standard)
Regarding a “South Dakota Museum of the Medal of Honor”: there are ongoing efforts to create a National Medal of Honor Museum, as well as multiple military-related museums across the United States.
Reference https://mohmuseum.org/.
Additionally, since 1968, within the Pentagon, is a large room called The Hall of Heroes, dedicated to all of our nation’s Medal of Honor Recipients.
https://www.defense.gov/explore/story/Article/1774933/
While the decision to not open a South Dakota Medal of Honor Museum may be disappointing, there are other venues available to learn about (and honor) the valor of American military men (and, so far, one woman).
When fraudulent trump has to demand a tarp to cover the USS John McCain, a Vietnam disabled veteran’s namesake, you know that the military is not a top priority for republicans. Oh they like the boom, but they hate the bust. Where are the three South Dakota frauds we call congressmen denouncing trump for this?
“The White House made it clear that Donald Trump was not to catch sight of a warship named after his Republican nemesis, the late Arizona senator John McCain, during his visit to a naval base in Japan this week, according to media reports.
Citing an email dated 15 May from an official at the US Indo-Pacific Command to US navy and air force officials, the Wall Street Journal said the USS John McCain “needs to be out of sight” during Trump’s Memorial Day visit to Yokosuka base on Tuesday, the final day of his state visit to Japan.
The email asked officials to “please confirm” that directive “will be satisfied”.” https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/may/30/out-of-sight-white-house-reportedly-steers-uss-john-mccain-away-from-trump
The world knows that trump wanted to pardon convicted American war criminals, and now they know the rest of the story. Tell the bankers to become patriotic Americans and release the farmers so they can have a vote of conscience.
Cory, it is ironic that the quote from General Nelson Miles’ 1920 testimony is used in this context.
In 1916, Congress established The Medal of Honor Review Board “for the purpose of investigating and reporting upon past awards or issue of the so-called Congressional Medal of Honor by or through the War Department; this with a view to ascertain what Medals of Honor, if any, had been awarded or issued for any cause other than distinguished conduct by an officer or enlisted man in action involving actual conflict with an enemy.”
A panel consisting of five former General officers was established, chaired by none other than the same General Nelson Miles.
In “the purge of 1917”, the medal was revoked from 911 previous recipients, nearly one third of all awarded up to that time.
In another irony, one of those l revocations in Feb 1917 was the medal awarded to William Frederick “Buffalo Bill” Cody for his “gallant” actions against the Sioux during the Indian Wars, and who was considered to negotiate peace and the willing surrender of weapons in that troubled time of Nov 1890-Jan1891. Bill Cody had just died, one month prior, in Jan 1917.
During our lifetimes, in June of 1989, the U.S. Army Board of Military Corrections restored the award of the Congressional Medal of Honor to William Cody, (and three other civilian scouts from that time period) posthumously.
https://www.everycrsreport.com/files/20150818_95-519_05e98203988005106bc44a943f783775a2184326.pdf
T, I’d love to see a South Dakota history curriculum including books like Matthiessen, Lazarus, Brown, Means… hey! How come we didn’t hear about curriculum reforms like that when Governor Noem got us all het up about civics education?
Interesting background, Korey. According to this WaPo article, Buffalo Bill got caught in that 1917 purge because he was only a scout, and Congress said only enlisted men and officers qualified for the medal.
(Speaking of civics, this blog post alone is doing more for civics education than Governor Noem and Secretary Jones have done since January. Carry on.)
CH
Thank u for correcting spelling of his last name, he should be given credit where credit is due, my apology as my hunt and pecking key boarding is terrible
It is my favorite book of all time
I purchased it on black market when it was “outlawed” in SD. I don’t even know if they allow it in SD libraries even though it’s freedom of speech
There is one place in rapid that sells it that I know of I think a professor finally got it into
Northerns library otherwise one has to go on line.
And to add to the civics library
Peltiers prison writings
Tim Giago ‘Children left behind ‘
You won’t see any government praises on these two authors, especially when there is boarding school in chamberlain still making
Millions off the “mission” schools.
All good reads
And you won’t see any teachers assigning
Any of this for homework.
I believe an art studio for all is a great start.
How about one east river now?
Or how about that civics library?
T, my search on WorldCat tells me we can get In the Spirit of Crazy Horse at the libraries of USF, Augie, DSU, Madison Public, USD, SDSU, Dakota Wesleyan, NSU, SD State Library, Oglala Lakota College, Mines, BHSU, and public libraries in Sioux Falls, Madison, Vermillion, Brookings, Mitchell, Watertown, Aberdeen, Rapid City, and Sturgis.
A civics library? Let me muse over that concept for a moment….
I could argue that every library is a civics library. Books of all sorts, fiction and nonfiction, help us be better citizens by broadening our minds and making us think. As we learn from the counterexample of Trumpism, empathy is a key component of effective civic spirit: we have to give a darn about our neighbors and pursue the common good at least avidly as we pursue our personal good. Reading good literature allows us to practice empathy, to experience the world as others might.
Practicing civics requires being a better human; civics education thus overlaps with, if not includes all of, the humanities.
But suppose we wanted a civics library to distinguish itself from regular public libraries (and it should, if we were going to create a whole separate public destination in the Rushmore Mall). Suppose we design a library with a focus on books and programs on civic affairs: law, lawmaking, courts, elections, politics, and public policy… with perhaps some supporting materials and activities on history, biographies of civic leaders, business and economics as they interact with public life and community decision-making. In that framework, we can see the obvious fit of the books T got me thinking about, books talking about South Dakota’s history with American Indians, as those books provide the history that explains how we’ve dealt with our Lakota neighbors and the mistakes and mistrust we must overcome as we craft current policy relating to Indian Country.
We can come up with a big and broad list of books to include in such a library. But key to a civics library would be the programming, the speakers we bring in and activities we host to attract and engage public participation. We can’t educate with engaging citizens in real action. What would happen at the civics library?
A civics library would be the perfect place to host petition drives for candidates and ballot questions. Once those candidates and ballot questions make the ballot, the civics library would regularly host representatives of those campaigns and independent experts who would talk about the pros and cons of whoever and whatever is on the ballot.
Serving as an educational space rather than a biased propaganda space will be a challenge, but conscientious librarians can rise to that challenge. Conscientious civics librarians would also have no problem establishing criteria for effective civics education and calling out or even banning campaigns that engage in uncivil, deceptive behavior. At the very least, librarians could preface, interrupt, and follow any presentation with fact-checks. Civics librarians would moderate any candidate appearance on the premises and state clearly when a candidate fails to directly answer a question.
A civics library would host lots of public informational meetings about current issues. It would also host recruitment meetings for civic organizations, offering people constant opportunities to learn about and get involved with groups working for the common good. A civics library could allow fundraising pitches, but perhaps it would never host just a straight fundraiser: for instance, SD Voice could host an informational meeting about ballot measures, and we’d be allowed to say that we take contributions to support our work, but the focus of the program would have to be education about ballot measures or recruitment and training of volunteers to carry petitions.
A general public library can do all of these things, too. But a civics library could focus on helping people learn about and participate in current events.
Cory said, “conscientious librarians can rise to that challenge.”
They already do and have, daily.
My friend was a librarian in conservative Rapid City and even there the head librarian, whose name escapes me, had to stand up to some one or group on a fairly regular basis because they wanted to coopt the library’s good name to their benefit.
I imagine that’s a fairly regular thing for most librarians. They are a far tougher lot than they are given credit for. I’ll bet Ethics is a required class for a Library Science degree.
CH, thanks for info. A few libraries short of you ask me. I know high schools or public libraries can get on loan from the state. however,
Because teachers aren’t suggesting any
Reads outside of curriculums , this book and other native authors need to be dusted off from time to time. A civics library, unless mandatory attendance for youth, would house only a few of us. We can blame teachers and governments but it starts with parents and grandparents. Unless we challenge kids and grandkids to read, or introduce them to various authors, we will continue to be stale in understanding anyone different from ourselves.
When there are prejudices learned they will be lived. And I do mean SD education systems
As far as teaching diversity and about SD.
Nelson Miles. Irony? Wounded four times on March 2, 1867, Miles was brevetted a brigadier general in the regular army in recognition of his actions at Chancellorsville…. He received the Medal of Honor on July 23, 1892.
1876 and 1877, [he] … scoured the Northern Plains after Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer’s defeat at the Battle of the Little Big Horn, and forced the Lakota and their allies onto reservations.
In the winter of 1877, he drove his troops on a forced march across eastern Montana to intercept the Chief Joseph.
In 1886, Miles replaced General George Crook fighting against Geronimo. Crook had relied heavily on Apache scouts…. Instead, Miles relied on white troops, and failed.
The 1890 Ghost Dance brought Miles back into the field. His efforts to subdue the Sioux led to Sitting Bull’s death and the massacre of about 300 Lakota Miles was not directly involved at Wounded Knee (he stayed in Rapid City) and was critical of the commanding officer. Two days after the Miles wrote to his wife, describing Wounded Knee as “the most abominable criminal military blunder and a horrible massacre of women and children”.[6] After retirement he fought for compensation payments to the survivors of the massacre. Wiki
C Hancellorsville was obviously1863.