Trump admin strikes blow to Native American communities

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00:00Trump Admin Strikes Blow to Native American Communities

00:04Native American communities hoping to see military honors revoked from soldiers involved

00:08in the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre were dealt a major blow by President Donald Trump's Defense

00:14Secretary, Pete Hegseth. In a push against what he calls woke culture in the military,

00:20Hegseth confirmed the medals will remain. The era of politically correct,

00:25overly sensitive, don't hurt anyone's feelings leadership ends right now at every level,

00:30Hegseth told hundreds of military officials during a ceremony. He also announced new directives for

00:36the armed forces including gender neutral or male level standards for physical fitness.

00:42Indigenous leaders and historians call it part of the Trump administration's culture war.

00:47In December 1890, US soldiers killed an estimated 250 men, women and children at Wounded Knee on

00:53the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Some historians believe the death toll exceeded 300,

01:00with more than half comprised of women and children. The actions at Wounded Knee were not

01:05acts of bravery and valor deserving of the Medal of Honor, Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Chairwoman Janet

01:10Alkire said. There is nothing Hegseth can do to rewrite the truth of that day, Janet said. Senator

01:17Elizabeth Warren pledged to keep pushing legislation that would revoke the medals.

01:21We cannot be a country that celebrates and rewards horrifying acts of violence,

01:26Warren said. Hegseth referred to the massacre as a battle in a social media post, but most historians

01:32reject that framing. Hegseth's proclamation on this reflects the way that this administration

01:38thinks of history. As something that one person can somehow determine through a magical proclamation,

01:44said Philip Deloria, a Harvard history professor. Congress formally recognized Wounded Knee as a

01:50massacre and expressed deep regret to the Sioux people and survivors' descendants in 1990.

01:56In 2024, the then Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin launched a medal review led by appointees from

02:02the Interior and Defense Departments. Hegseth said the panel did not recommend rescinding them.

02:07He was more interested in being politically correct than historically correct.

02:12Hegseth said he was more interested in being politically correct than historically

02:23correct.