Codetalkers finally recognized
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) �?Tewanna Edwards remembers her late great-uncle as a gentle old man who fed her raisins and laughed as she grimaced while eating them.
She had no idea as a child that the 6-foot-3-inch Choctaw Indian was one of the first American Indian code talkers.
He was among 18 original Choctaw code talkers who never lived to see public recognition of their war deeds. Legislation signed by President Bush in mid-October authorizes congressional medals to be issued to the Choctaw Nation and family members.
The law also recognizes members of Oklahoma’s Comanche Tribe and other code talkers of the world wars from tribes across the country.
Code talkers is a term given to Indians who used words from their Native languages to transmit strategic messages from the American military in the two world wars. Their work is credited with saving hundreds of thousands of lives and shortening both wars.
The Choctaws used words like tali, the word for “stone,�?to describe a grenade; ittibbi, for “fight,�?when they needed to warn of an attack; and iti tanamp, the word for “bow,�?to describe a “company.�?/SPAN>
The enemy never deciphered the code and the Choctaws laid the groundwork for the U.S. military using Indians for communications in other conflicts.
They include the Navajos of the southwestern part of the country, whose actions during World War II were portrayed in the 2002 movie, “Windtalkers,�?starring Nicolas Cage. They were authorized to be recognized through congressional medals in 2001.
For descendants of the original Choctaw code talkers, also being honored by congressional medals is recognition long overdue.
They point out that the young Choctaws enlisted in the military to fight for their country in 1918, even though they had yet to be given the right to become U.S. citizens.
After the war, they were told to keep their communication techniques secret, so they could be used again.
Edwards, who lives in Shawnee, Okla., about 35 miles west of Oklahoma City, did not find out her uncle was a code talker until she was in her 20s.
“I was shocked. He never talked about it. They were sworn to secrecy. He wrote a diary when he was in the trenches in World War I and never mentioned being a code talker using the Choctaw language.�?/SPAN>
At the time, she said, she could not mentally link the cruel war with her jovial uncle, the large man in his 70s who liked to sit in his rocking chair, watch Tarzan movies with her when she was 8 years old and laugh when she choked down raisins.
“To me, he was kind of like Santa Claus. He just radiated warmth.�?/SPAN>
Nuchi Nashoba, who lives in Blanchard, about 40 miles south of Oklahoma City, never met her great-grandfather, Choctaw code talker Ben Carterby, who died two weeks before she was born.
“But granny always kept a picture of grandpa in the house. He was in military uniform.�?/SPAN>
She said she researched history of the code talkers as a young adult and came to realize the significance of their war effort.
“I have a lot of pride, knowing my grandfather was in the war and helped fight for this country.�?/SPAN>
Under the Code Talkers Recognition Act, a congressional gold medal will be designed in honor of the 18 original Choctaws and their families will get duplicate silver medals. Also, bronze duplicates will be sold by the U.S. Mint.
Besides Leader and Carterby, other Choctaw original code talkers were Albert Billy, Mitchell Bobb, Victor Brown, George Davenport, Joseph Davenport, James Edwards, Tobias Frazier, Benjamin Hampton, Noel Johnson, Solomon Louis, Pete Maytubby, Jeff Nelson, Joseph Oklahombi, Robert Taylor, Walter Veach and Calvin Wilson.
The legislation honoring them was introduced in the House in 2007 by Rep. Dan Boren, D-Okla., who gathered up 300 co-sponsors. Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., sponsored a Senate companion measure. Both passed the Senate with ease.
The Choctaws, members of the Army’s 142nd Infantry Regiment, 36th Division, have been deceased a long time, but their war acts have become a part of the consciousness of their descendants and tribal members.
“Our people, they are very quiet, but the honor is so important, to have their heroes finally recognized,�?said Gregory Pyle, chief of the Choctaw Nation.
Allen, who has done extensive research on code talkers, said the Choctaw code talkers came into existence during World War I in 1918 at a time U.S. forces were in France and suffering a string of defeats at the hands of enemy forces.
“The Germans were tapping into our phone lines and were experts at decoding our messages. They knew where our ammunition dumps were; they knew where our troops were. We couldn’t make a move without the German Army knowing about it.
“A commanding officer happened to walk by two Choctaw men speaking in our Native language. It was as if a light bulb went off in his head,�?Allen said.
What was unique about the Choctaw code talkers, Pyle said, is that “they died with secrets that were never really revealed�?in their lifetime so that Indian code talkers could be used in future wars, such as WWII.
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