On Veteran's Day in the year 2000, I listened to a radio essay about the heroic military service of Native American men and women. Reporter Brian Bull described these warriors as America's "forgotten" veterans. He also stated that Native people had the highest enlistment rate of any minority group. I was immediately struck by the irony of the brave military service performed by a people whose ancestors had been ravaged by the ancestors of the same government that they were now choosing to honorably serve.
I was intrigued. Why would more than 8,000 American Indian men and women enlist in World War I? Enlist before they were granted United States citizenship and the right to vote? Their patriotism would be demonstrated again in World War II, where over 12,000 enlisted. Why were these courageous men and women being overlooked by Americans for their service to protect all Americans?
After Documenting Native veterans for five years I am fortunate to have an invaluable partner, Gayle Yamasaki, join me in this work. Gayle contributes a reconciliation to these stories. It is our hope that through these photographs and stories, recognition and appreciation will result for the military service of America's First People.
I have heartfelt gratitude to the veterans who have shared with me their stories and the stories of their ancestors. In the time I spent with each vereran, there were sacred moments of laughter and tears. Many still carry their combat stories close to their hearts. For some, this is the first time their stories have been told. I hold this as a revered moment and feel privileged to be entrusted to safeguard them. Care for them, these are stories of courage, of hope, and will. These are stories to be remembered. Their ancestor's are to be remembered.
Jeffery A. Mitchell
I cannot begin to express my gratitude to the Native American WWII men and women veterans who invite me to enter into a sacred space. A place of courage, of hope, of healing, of loneliness, stories about spirit and about God. As I listen to these warriors I trust that they not only long to be remembered, but that the telling of their story is a part of their healing as well as our own.
These are also stories of reconciliation. If reconciliation is bringing back into harmony that which has been broken, these stories are opportunities for healing for the storyteller as well as the story listener. We respond to their experiences in ways as unique as their fingerprints. Their stories are inspiring, moving, and important. In time the truth in them began to heal me.
I, as a storycatcher have been honored to begin this journey with Jeffery Mitchell that allows me to put these lives into words. It is a journey when those who understand the value of story and practice the art of connection have an essential role to play. I am invited to be a storycatcher, to hold the space for story. Full of uniqueness these stories mix fact with meaning; this is the root of their power. It is also an invitation to you, to listen, to join these stories that touch us in a common humanness, awakens us and weaves us together as a family.
Gayle Yamasaki
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