John Thune: “my State of South Dakota has had a long history that extends back before the founding of our country by western…”

“my State of South Dakota has had a long history that extends back before the founding of our country by western explorers, back to a time when buffalo roamed the land and Native American culture was the way of life. Regrettably, the important and revered culture of these great people was nearly erased from American history. However, at a time when Sioux Indians were discouraged from practicing their native culture, a few brave men used their language to help change the course of our Nation's history. These men are known as the Sioux code talkers. They served our country with distinction in both the Pacific and European theaters of World War II. These code talkers used their Lakota, Dakota and Nakota dialects to send coded communications that the enemy was unable to crack. They were often sent out on their own to communicate with headquarters regarding enemy location and strength without protection from the enemy. Sometimes they spent over 24 hours in headphones without sleep or food, in terrible conditions. Today, military commanders credit the code talkers with saving the lives of countless American soldiers and being instrumental to the success of the United States military during World War II. Two of these Sioux code talkers are still alive today: Clarence Wolf Guts of the Oglala Sioux Tribe and Charles Whitepipe, Sr., of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe.”