Ira Hayes: The Akimel O’odham Warrior, World War II, and the Price of Heroism
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Released: August 1, 2023
Publisher: Twelve (Hachette Book Group, Inc.)
Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal’s photo of the Marines raising the United States flag on Mount Suribachi during the battle of Iwo Jima is the most iconic photograph taken on an American battlefield. The photo was published on the front page of most U.S. newspapers and mustered America’s sagging support for World War II. Who raised the flag on Iwo Jima has twice been disputed. However, one name was always on the list of six Marines, Ira Hayes. Often, Hayes is recognized only from country singer Johnny Cash’s song, where he describes Ira Hayes as the “drunken Pima Indian that went to war and is buried in a shallow grave on the reservation.”
Author Tom Holm has written several nonfiction books on Native Americans and their service in the U.S. military, including Vietnam and the Navajo Cold Talkers. In his latest book, Ira Hayes: The O’odham Warrior, World War II, and the Price of Heroism, he writes not only about the life and service of Ira Hayes but also examines the culture and traditions of the Akimel O’odham tribe, the correct name for his tribe, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and alcoholism in America’s native tribes.
Holm points out early in his book that the narrative about Ira’s life is “too linear and based on a few pre-conceived ideas that stem from American cultural references. The heart of Ira’s story, taken from the perspective of American culture, is that he was a shy young man who joined the Marines to better serve the nation.”
For decades, Hayes' story was fit into the American portrayal of Native Americans to explain the issues that emerged in the last months of Hayes’s service in the Marine Corps and after the war. He was the drunken Indian, in and out of jail, and jobless. All of this was caused by his alcoholism, without any consideration given to his cultural differences, experiences in combat, and the resulting PTSD. Holm argues that most biographers and movie directors focused on “alcoholism is the main feature eclipsing Ira’s mental health. The ‘drunken Indian’ stereotype remains even today a way of denigrating Native peoples to promote a particular ideology.”
Hayes joined the Marine Corps in 1942, first trained as a parachutist, and was assigned to the 3rd Parachute Battalion, an elite unit where he was dubbed with the nickname Chief Falling Cloud. Holm points out that it was an example of the racism of the time.
His platoon first experienced combat in Bougainville during the Solomon Island campaign. Holm describes how the sounds of incoming artillery assaulted Hayes’s senses, the screams of the wounded, and the heat and smell of the jungle was alien to Hayes and his background growing up on a desert reservation. During the night, with rain pouring and the unfamiliar sounds of the jungle, a Japanese soldier slipped into the foxhole. Hayes used his fixed bayonet to kill the soldier; his buddy awoke in the foxhole with blood splattered throughout and the dead soldier. Holm asserts this incident would affect Hayes for the rest of his life. Hayes never spoke of the experience, but his buddy told a historian about the event.
Holm writes about a 1949 study of combat stress, The American Soldier. In it, the authors discuss the many aspects of PTSD, including the impact on a soldier of “killing and seeing the dead.” This would correlate to the fact that not only did Hayes kill the Japanese soldier at a range of fewer than 10 feet, but also had the soldier’s remains in the foxhole with him until the following day: “… Hayes’ Bougainville experience was perhaps the impetus underlying severe emotional crisis…”.
Holm’s discussion of Bougainville and his further discussion of the tribal culture and PTSD make it easier for the reader to understand the issues that Hayes would be plagued with post-World War II until his death in 1955.
From 1945 to 1955, Hayes held several jobs and was involved in the civil rights struggle for the American Natives. This dispels the notion that all he did was return to the reservation, drink, and become an in-and-out resident of the local jails.
Holm’s story is very enlightening and provides many facts and arguments that help the reader understand not only Hayes’ life after serving as a Marine but also the hardships of many Native American veterans, including the infamous Navajo Code Talkers. The book is well researched, and Holm has documented the book thoroughly with footnotes and an extensive bibliography of sources for his research. I would recommend this book to readers of World War II history, the Marine Corps, and Native Americans.
Author: Tom Holm
Reviewer: David A. Mattingly, Deputy Commander of the National Capital Commandery. David Mattingly retired from the Navy as a Master Chief Intelligence Specialist after nearly 33 years of service. He continued to serve as a Senior Intelligence Officer and Senior Research Analyst with the Departments of Defense and Justice. He is retired and volunteers as a Docent at the National Museum of the Marine Corps.