AMERICAN 'GURKHAS'?
There have
been, lately, numerous examinations of and articles about the suicide epidemic
among Native American (NA) young people on their Reservations. The hopelessness
created by Reservation poverty and its accompanying drug and alcohol abuse are
the root cause of these deaths. Efforts to deal with the crisis have met with
limited success, and something drastic, new and different needs to be tried.
In a previous Blog post (An American ‘Foreign Legion’?), I
suggested a military-related partial remedy for urban gun deaths growing out of
the drug/gang/gun culture so prevalent in large cities. I have another
‘military’ option to suggest as a partial remedy for the NA suicide problem.
This program (let’s call it FA for ‘First Americans’), like the ‘Legion’, would
physically remove the young people at risk from the environment generating
their despair. But, unlike the color-blind ‘Legion’, this one would be purely
for Native American youth, male and female. Why? Because NAs have chosen to
retain their Reservations and resist amalgamation into greater American society
and culture. They have voluntarily chosen to maintain tribal separation and
cohesion, regardless of the social, cultural and financial costs. The ‘First
Americans’ program merely builds upon the NA’s wish to maintain unique identity.
The suggestion borrows from a time-honored program of the
British Army; that being its inclusion for over 100 years of a Regiment of
Nepalese soldiers known as ‘Gurkhas’. While the story of the Gurkhas is
fascinating, for the sake of brevity, suffice it to say that a racial and
cultural subgroup can work with great effectiveness in concert with a more
traditional organization.
So, I propose forming a modified US Army Infantry ‘Brigade’
of around 3500 members made up solely of NA men from established tribes, most
of whom reside on Reservations. Non-combat support functions would be performed
by both male and female NAs, thus giving women a place in the extended unit.
Forget how Politically Incorrect this concept is (at this writing, February
2016, ‘PC’ may be losing its grip on our society), and remember that the
foundation of such a unit is the NA’s own wish to retain separate cultural
identity. Any NA wishing to join the US military as a regular recruit would
still be able to do so.
Initially, a special training facility would be established to
deal with the special needs of the first batches of recruits, e.g. to assess
deficits in physical ability, overall health and learning skills and identify
cultural stresses that require special focus in the training regimen. Over
time, however, the NAs would, as they do now, train as usual with non-NA
enlistees, at Ft. Benning, Georgia’s Infantry training facility. Upon
completion, they’d head to the ‘First Americans’ Brigade.
‘Warrior Societies’ have been part of NA culture at least as
far back as their tribal oral traditions go. Such societies truly flourished
when the plains tribes became horse-mounted in the late 18th and
early 19th centuries. The Cheyenne had ‘Dog Soldiers’, the Sioux
their ‘Strong Hearts’, etc. and membership in such ‘fraternities’ was hugely
important to the tribe’s young men, giving them status and a pathway to tribal
leadership. Fast forward to our 21st Century crisis on Native American
reservations where a sense of ‘belonging’ is sadly lacking and nothing seems to
be on the horizon to reduce the scale of the tragedy.
NA populations are as diverse as their histories, and blending,
for instance, Sioux and Crow, Navaho and Hopi, etc. might not be good for unit
cohesion. That’s where the ‘Brigade’ structure would be utilized internally to
enhance its effectiveness and ‘esprit de corps’. The Brigade would be made up
of, say, three or four Battalions, and each Battalion would include three or
four Companies. So, depending on the available recruits from the various
tribes, the Army could build a Battalion with, for example, one Company of
Sioux, another of Crow, yet another of Arapaho, etc. Another Battalion might be
three Companies of Cherokee. The combinations are countless. But imagine these
various units competing with each other for effectiveness in the usual Army
skills of marksmanship, physical endurance tests, training exercises, etc. All
soldiers benefit from this competition, but tribal pride could add a degree of
intensity that their leaders would marvel at.
Who would be the leaders? Taking a step back, a Brigade is
typically attached to an existing Infantry Division, for instance, 10th
Mountain, 101st Airborne, etc., and a Division could include three
or more Brigades. So, initially, the ‘First Americans’ leadership would be Field
and Company-grade officers from the Division. Eventually, NA officers who’ve
graduated from West Point, Officer Candidate School, or an ROTC program from a
university would meld in. This would take time, but in five or six years from
inception, the FAs would have 100% NA leadership.
How would the Army utilize the FAs? Just the same as any
other highly trained Infantry Brigade. The only difference would be that the
members are all Native American. No special treatment, no special
considerations. Nothing complicated or tricky. How they perform as a unit
within that Army structure would be the basis for the ‘story’ and traditions
that grow from their service to their country.
Now, imagine an annual event where recruiters from the ‘First
Americans’ Brigade arrive on a given Reservation to interview, test, assess,
etc., local candidates to fill vacancies in the elite Army unit. Imagine that
kids, both boys and girls, have been dreaming of joining FA as long as they’ve
been aware of it, know many tribal members who have served in the unit and,
further, witness the respect the tribe bestows on those current and former
members. Consider how these kids have been preparing for this day by staying in
school, staying in shape, abstaining from alcohol and drugs, avoiding
pregnancies, volunteering in their community, all in hopes of ‘making the cut’
and winning a slot in the FA. Those coveted slots mean that the recruit has
joined a Warrior Society that will eventually become an integral part of tribal
custom and history. How could any job on a Reservation compete for prestige
with being a member of the ‘First Americans’, much less languishing without job
or other prospects?
A ‘First Americans’ Brigade suggestion is way outside-the-box,
and, to some, it might bring comparisons to segregated African-American units such
as the ‘Triple Nickles’ Parachute Infantry Battalion of the 1940s and 50s, or
even the ‘Tuskegee Airmen’ of WWII. But, those units were outgrowths of our
segregated military, and the members had no option to serve in similar
capacities outside those organizations. The FA would be an option available
only to Native Americans if they found a normal enlistment less appealing;
nothing more or less.
Somehow, America needs to break through the cloud of despair and
dysfunction that hangs over many Native American Reservations. The ‘First
Americans’ Brigade will give many NAs a way out and off those Reservations via
a new opportunity that harkens back to their storied warrior history. When
their enlistments are up, they’d return (if they wish) and infuse their
discipline, organizational skills and experience to their communities. Positive
improvements in overall Reservation life and governance are all but assured.
What’s the first step? I suggest a simple series of focus
groups of young NAs at problematic Reservations. I’ve no doubt the results
would be positive and the enthusiasm exceptional. Then it’s just a matter of
the next President calling in the Army Chief of Staff and saying, “General,
thanks for coming. I’ve got an idea I want to run by you. Have a seat. Coffee?
OK, now what would you say if……..?”
Bill Gritzbaugh
February 20, 2016