He became a teacher, public speaker, church participant, father, mentor, and community organizer.

His life therefore resists the habit of treating Native men primarily through warfare.

The irony is that Medicine Crow earned one of the most prestigious warrior titles in his community and then spent the rest of his life talking about the cost of conflict and the importance of understanding.

That was not a rejection of the title.

It was an expression of what the title meant to him.

A war chief was not someone who remained permanently at war.

Leadership mattered most in what happened after danger passed.

Medicine Crow returned from Europe to a reservation where Native people still faced discrimination from surrounding communities.

Businesses could be hostile.

Public institutions often treated Native residents as outsiders in their own region.