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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced, in September 2025, that the Medals of Honor awarded to U.S. soldiers at the Wounded Knee battle on Dec. 29, 1890 would not be revoked. This announcement has been met with stiff resistance from Native American tribal leaders and citizens nationwide. Further, tribal leaders and citizens insist that this was not a battle, but a massacre of more than 300 unarmed women, men, and children at Wounded Knee.
This is far from over, and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, advocates, state lawmakers from South Dakota, and some members of Congress want the awards to be rescinded. Congress did apologize in 1990 to the descendants of the people killed at Wounded Knee, but they did not revoke the awards. And in 2019, then-Rep. Deb Haaland, D-New Mexico, co-sponsored the Remove the Stain Act to rescind the awards. But so far, revoking these medals remains challenging.
The truth is, there is little debate here. On Dec. 29, 1890 U.S. servicemen shot as many as 300 unarmed Lakota people. Pete Hegseth is standing up for these murderous actions. Perhaps Hegseth missed out on lessons in fairness, conflict resolution, and respect for others.
However, Hegseth can still do the right thing here. If he wants to believe in patriotism, he can release the full Defense Department review, meet with tribal leaders, and recommend revocation. The Lakota people deserve respect, liberty, and justice.
Melissa Buxton
Verona