SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) – A South Dakota lawmaker and member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe shared critical comments after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Thursday he has decided that the 19 soldiers who received the Medal of Honor for their actions in 1890 at Wounded Knee will keep their awards in a video posted to social media.

In a Facebook post, Democratic Rep. Eric Emery said “Hegseth says those medals will stay, calling them deserved. That decision celebrates violence instead of condemning it.”

“For the Oceti Sakowin, it keeps a wound open, turning their suffering into someone else’s ‘glory,’” Emery said. “Removing the medals wouldn’t erase history, it would finally separate honor from injustice and show our country values truth over false pride.”

Wounded Knee is located in

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