KOREAN WAR

The years immediate following WWII were difficult ones for American Indians. During the 1950s, the U.S. Congress passed legislation intended to lure Native people to urban areas. However, Indians who relocated often found that the high- paying jobs and decent housing they were promised never materialized. Cut off from their traditional and cultural support systems, many urban Indians languished. To make matters worse, popular “Cowboys and Indians” movies vilified Native people. Imagine the indignation of returning Native Korean War vets who watched as the U.S. military they risked their life for fight their own people on the silver screen. Some found it easier to “pass” as Italians or other southern Europeans and deny their Indianness. The Cold War Era brought cold comfort to Native America.

Jim Northrup and WifeThe name “Mitchell Red Cloud” is known throughout the Ho-Chunk Nation in Wisconsin. Born into the Thunderbird Clan, Red Cloud was a decorated WWII marine who reenlisted in the army during the Korean War and was assigned to Company E of the 19th Infantry Regiment. On November 5, 1950, Corporal Red Cloud was walking the perimeter of his unit’s camp near Chonhyon, Korea when Chinese troops attacked. Although he was severely wounded, he refused to leave his position, allowing Company E to evacuate the injured and retreat. He sacrificed himself so that others could escape. In 1951, for “dauntless courage and gallant self-sacrifice,” Congress posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor to Red Cloud. In 1957, the Army renamed the headquarters of the 2nd Infantry Division in Uijeongbu, Korea “Camp Red Cloud. In 1999, the U.S. Navy launched a ship bearing his name.