WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. Department of War Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that the federal government will not revoke Medals of Honor awarded to soldiers involved in the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre, maintaining that the event should be recorded as a “battle.” The decision reignites long-standing controversy surrounding the killing of between 200 and 300 Lakota men, women, and children on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota.
Historians widely describe Wounded Knee as a massacre, not a battle, as U.S. troops fired indiscriminately after attempting to disarm a Lakota group led by Chief Big Foot. Hegseth’s stance has drawn sharp criticism from lawmakers and Native leaders. “We cannot be a country that celebrates and rewards horrifying acts of violence,” said Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA). Former Interior Secretary Deb Haaland called the move “cruelty, not justice.”
Under President Biden, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered a review of the medals in 2024, but no action was taken. Meanwhile, South Dakota Rep. Dusty Johnson introduced bipartisan legislation to protect the Wounded Knee site as a sacred memorial.
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