Why We Serve: Native Americans in the United States Armed Forces
"We are doing our best to win the war to be free from danger as much as the white man. We are fighting with Uncle Sam's army to defend the right of our people to live our own life in our own way."
- Lewis Naranjo (Santa Clara Pueblo)
Why We Serve honors the Native Americans who have served in the U.S. military, often in extraordinary numbers, since the American Revolution. The exhibition asks, “Why would Indians serve a country that overran their homelands, suppressed their cultures, and confined them to reservations?” What is revealed is that Native people have served for many of the same reasons as others: to demonstrate patriotism, pursue employment, education, or adventure. Yet tribal warrior traditions, treaty commitments, and responsibility for defending Native homelands have also inspired military service.
Why We Serve is a comprehensive look at Native military involvement and explores Native American military service from its origins to the modern day. Through compelling, free-standing displays and video content, visitors will discover the little-known but outsized contributions Native Americans have made to the U.S. military throughout our country's history.
Upcoming Stops
- Why We Serve honors the Native Americans who have served in the U.S. military, often in extraordinary numbers, since the American Revolution.St. Louis, MO–
- Why We Serve honors the Native Americans who have served in the U.S. military, often in extraordinary numbers, since the American Revolution.Lancaster, SC–
- Why We Serve honors the Native Americans who have served in the U.S. military, often in extraordinary numbers, since the American Revolution.Farmington, NM–
- Why We Serve honors the Native Americans who have served in the U.S. military, often in extraordinary numbers, since the American Revolution.Waconia, MN–
- Why We Serve honors the Native Americans who have served in the U.S. military, often in extraordinary numbers, since the American Revolution.Urbandale, IA–
- Why We Serve honors the Native Americans who have served in the U.S. military, often in extraordinary numbers, since the American Revolution.Safford, AZ–
- Why We Serve honors the Native Americans who have served in the U.S. military, often in extraordinary numbers, since the American Revolution.Chandler, AZ–
- Why We Serve honors the Native Americans who have served in the U.S. military, often in extraordinary numbers, since the American Revolution.Rugby, ND–
- Why We Serve honors the Native Americans who have served in the U.S. military, often in extraordinary numbers, since the American Revolution.Coeur d'Alene, ID–
- Why We Serve honors the Native Americans who have served in the U.S. military, often in extraordinary numbers, since the American Revolution.Greeley, CO–
