Published on May 27, 2011
NCAI President Jefferson Keel and American Indian Veterans to Honor Warriors at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Following President Obama’s Memorial Day speech at Arlington National Cemetery, President Jefferson Keel of the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) will place an American Indian wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. President of the nation’s oldest and largest American Indian and Alaska Native advocacy organization, Jefferson Keel will accompany Don Loudner, National Commander of the National American Indian Veterans, to lay a multi-colored tribal wreath at the tomb.
“Over a hundred thousand Native men and women have served to protect this land and this country. Some who will never be named or honored. The commitment of American Indians and Alaska Natives to protecting our homeland is unquestionable,” said Keel, President of NCAI and a veteran with over 20 years of active duty service in the United States Army. “On Memorial Day we honor those who gave their lives for our safety and those veterans alive today, all of whom deserve to be cared for as heroes.”
The Pentagon estimates that since 2001, 61 American Indians and Alaskan Natives have died fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq; close to 450 have been wounded. It is also estimated that nearly 24,000 American Indian and Alaska Native active duty personnel serve across the Armed Forces. Hundreds of thousands of tribal members have served in the U.S. military in the last century, making vital contributions to the defense of the nation.
The most recent AI/AN service member to be killed in the line of duty was U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. Joe Michael Jackson from the Gila River Indian Community and the Yakama Reservation. He died April 24, 2011; killed by an improvised explosive device while helping to clear a trail of mines on a steep slope in Afghanistan’s Helmand Province’s Sangin District.
The following data was released and updated by the Pentagon in May 2011:
- American Indian/Alaska Native military deaths in Iraq (Operation Iraqi Freedom, or OIF) from March 2003 through May 2, 2011: 42
- American Indian/Alaska Native military wounded in action in Iraq (OIF) from March 2003 through May 2, 2011: 336
- American Indian/Alaska Native military deaths in Afghanistan (Operation Enduring Freedom, or OEF) from October 2001 through May 2, 2011: 19
- American Indian/Alaska Native military wounded in action in Afghanistan (OEF) from October 2001 through May 2, 2011: 109
President Keel is a retired U.S. Army officer with over 20 years active duty service. He served two extended tours of combat duty as an Infantryman in Vietnam, and received numerous awards and decorations for heroism, including two Purple Hearts, the Bronze Star with "V" for valor, and the Army Commendation Medal with valor. He is a former Airborne Ranger, infantry platoon sergeant and platoon leader, and served as an instructor in the elite U.S. Army Rangers. In June 2011, Jefferson Keel will be one of this year’s three former service members inducted into the Military Memorial Museum Hall of Honor.
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