Avery Sun Week #12: War Shaping Societies
Avery Sun
Week #12
War Shaping Societies
In history class today, we learned about how the Native American tribes, especially the Navajos, were especially important in World War II. Their language has no written component and is extremely localized with only existing members of the tribe knowing how to speak it, allowing them to pass on languages in their native tongue that are physically impossible for other countries to decipher. This concept intrigued me as I found it unexpected that Native Americans were even willing to involve themselves in the war considering how they were treated by the colonists. In fact, the last time Navajos were mentioned in our history textbook was back when they were forced off their land and onto reservations where the soil wasn’t suited to their main food crop and they had to live among their enemies.
After some research, I found that more Native Americans have served in the army than any other ethnic group (proportional to their population size). A fourth of all American Indian men served in World War I, and 40,000 served in both WWII and the Vietnam War. The reasons for their enlistment are all actually pretty straightforward. Some joined for the thrill of the experience, others joined to learn some new skills or to escape poverty. Many also felt an attachment to their homeland, America, and felt the obligation to defend it, even after it had been colonized.
The work of the American Indians greatly changed the course of wars through their work as "code talkers." However, the war had an arguably greater influence on the lifestyle of the Native Americans. Enthusiastic to serve in the military, Native Americans avidly tried to learn English and many left their reservations for the first time to integrate into the defense industry. Native women took over the roles of men on the reservations to support the war effort. They became “mechanics, lumberjacks, and farmers,” sewed uniforms for the army, and volunteered at organizations like the Red Cross. After the war, many Native Americans decided to “remain in the mainstream” and had an easier time assimilating into American society with the vocational skills they learned during service.
In the 20th century, war was extremely powerful in shaping societies as it gave minorities the opportunity to extend to areas they had limited access to before. Nowadays, the job market has seen improvement in opening up to women and people of color, but so has the military. If the conflict between Russia and Ukraine worsens, it would be interesting to see how it will shape our modern society (provided that we don’t die).
Hi Avery! I find it extremely fascinating that there is an indigenous group of people who do not have a written component to their language, however, the main power that's withheld is within its ability to make it completely localized. Since only the people of the tribe can converse with each other in that secret language, the colonization of America took a faster route as the home country did not face any opposition. The war was very important in shaping the society because it established the threshold for how secretive they can be. Thank you so much for your blog and I hope to read more in the future!
ReplyDeleteHi Avery! When I first learned that some Native American tribes had no written component of their language, I was surprised about the fact that they may have had perceived having written language as a foreign concept. Although I suppose it does explain how Native American code talkers were so effective because countries attempting to decode their message would have a much harder time. Native American definitely played an important role in aiding the United States during the second World War. However, it's tragic to see that American exclusion of ethnic minorities during the 20th century was so bad that they had to fight in war to just to gain a better position in society.
ReplyDeleteHi Avery, your blog post interests me because it is very relevant to today's society with the possible war. I wonder how marginalized groups are going to react to the war, and whether or not they will even receive the credit they deserve if they help out. There was a time when African Americans fought hard at war and Americans hardly recognized them. Based on your blog post, history tells us that minority groups will still support the war, but they will not receive credit.
ReplyDeleteHi Avery, we learnt about the same thing in my history class as well this week. I find it so honorable that Navajo groups still contributed to the American war effort even when they were facing prejudice from their own government. It's sad that their service in the war was also a step further in their assimilation into white society since the New Deal had just implemented Indian Reorganization Act which restored land to American Indians and increased educational opportunities without direct assimilation. As we look at history, it is important to remember their significance and the key role they played in our victory in World War II. Thank you for your post, and I look forward to hearing more from you.
ReplyDeleteHi Avery, I learned about the Navajo code breakers in history class this week as well! I think it is pretty cool that the Navajos had such a secretive and localized language, that Japan would not break this code, even when Japanese code breakers were able to crack most other American codes. I was definitely surprised to hear the large ratio in which Native Americans actually enlisted in the war. I would definitely expect that number to be far lower, especially considering how unfairly the government had previously treated Native Americans. I really would not expect that group to be willing to risk their lives to protect the US government. I think one reason why many minorities enlisted in the war during World War II was to prove to everyone that they were American too, and to dispel myths of racial inferiority. While the war did give minorities a lot of opportunities that they would not have otherwise had, I think that during World War II, the US also exploited minorities for their own gain. For example, the efforts of these Navajo code breakers basically go unnoticed, and only the “American” soldiers' sacrifices are truly appreciated. In many cases, it can be argued that the government simply used minorities for increased manpower, because even after the war nothing really changed for many of the minority groups. Native Americans were still forced to live in reservations and proper reparations are yet to be made. In any case, it is clear that if another World War was to break out, it would certainly reshape society.
ReplyDeleteThe history of these "code talkers" is so immense and complicated. They were essential to the war effort in the Pacific: nobody could crack them. Better yet, even those that had a passing understanding of Navajo could not decrypt the messages. In a history novel detailing the island-hopping of Admiral Halsey and General MacArthur, it was said that they would describe bombs and their targets as eggs on a pan, with specific targets being represented by how the eggs were cooked. Even when the Japanese managed to capture a Navajo code talker, when he told them the code was describing breakfast they shot him on the spot. This code would never be broken during WWII, something the Japanese PURPLE and the German ENIGMA could not do. Navajo Indians and their participation in WWII are just extremely interesting topics, and further research onto their accomplishments has yielded much information.
ReplyDeleteHey Avery, I finally actually learned about these Navajo code breakers in my history class, though it was a bit after reading this blog post. The complex and nuanced understanding that facilitated the strength of this code is so interesting to consider, as it indicates that only truly fluent speakers could really decrypt or encrypt the messages. Despite their heavy and significant involvement in the war efforts and the success of many operations, their community and Native Americans as a whole have still been marginalized and suppressed throughout the years, which only highlights that their credits have long been overshadowed by the impacts of colonization and decades of repression. Their involvement in the war is thus so inspiring, especially since they utilize such an essential part of their culture and made it an essential and even highly desired facet of the war.
ReplyDeleteHi Avery! I did not know about the Navajo code breakers before reading your blog post. It's so inspiring to hear how the Navajo, a people that has been here long before any of us, played such an integral part in the war. It's so sad how its often overshadowed by the European codebreakers who they are just as influential as. So much goes on behind the scenes of war. Behind the bloodshed and the force that makes the headlines of war these codebreakers worked vigilantly changing the course of the warfare much of the time. It's fascinating how their background culturally helped them break codes.
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