He took it with him.

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Source: https://dornsife.usc.edu/news/stories/the-war-chief-who-became-a-peace-chief/
Image search keyword: Joseph Medicine Crow USC archive young portrait

War Paint Beneath The Uniform

The image of Joseph Medicine Crow in the U.S.

Army is easy to simplify into symbolism: Native warrior becomes American soldier.

The reality was more personal.

Before combat, Medicine Crow wore traditional war paint beneath his uniform.

He also carried a yellow eagle feather beneath his helmet.

To people around him who did not know its significance, the feather might have appeared fragile beside steel, bullets, grenades, and artillery.

To Medicine Crow, it connected him to home and to the spiritual preparation he had received.