Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has dashed the hopes of Native American communities that long sought the removal of military honors for the soldiers involved in the Wounded Knee Massacre. Hegseth announced last week that the soldiers will keep their Medals of Honor. Indigenous leaders on Tuesday called the move part of a culture war against racial and ethnic minorities and women’s rights. U.S. soldiers killed an estimated 250 men, women and children in the 1890 massacre on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Many were fleeing the violence. Native leaders, historians, and lawmakers called Hegseth’s decision not to strip the medals an act of violence against their people.