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- By Levi Rickert
Opinion. Each May in Holland, Michigan — about 30 miles from where I live — one of the largest annual public gatherings in the United States takes place. The Holland Tulip Festival attracts around 500,000 visitors from across the country, generating an economic impact of nearly $50 million annually.
Attendees can marvel at the breathtaking sight of millions of tulips in full bloom while witnessing Holland residents dressed in traditional Dutch attire, complete with wooden shoes known as klompen. As part of the festivities, these residents scrub the main street in downtown Holland before participating in a parade where Dutch descendants of all ages dance in celebration of their heritage.
When I was a child, my mother took my siblings and me to the Tulip Festival. Looking back, I never felt threatened by the Dutch celebration. Years later, however, a different experience gave me pause. While attending an open house for my then second-grader son in late September, I met his teacher and took a peek inside his desk to see how organized it was. As I turned around, my eyes landed on a plaque above the teacher’s desk that read: “God made the Dutch the best!”
I immediately found the plaque threatening—not for myself, but for my son. I didn’t want his impressionable young mind absorbing a message that elevated one group above others. Before leaving the classroom, I waited until the teacher finished speaking with other parents and then expressed my concern. I told her I didn’t think the plaque was appropriate, as it could subtly influence my son’s thinking in ways that promoted exclusion.
She giggled and explained that the plaque was a gift from her niece and nephew, meant to express pride in their Dutch heritage, not to offend others. I acknowledged her perspective, but insisted it sent the wrong message and should be removed.
Fast forward to today, where we’re witnessing a far more calculated form of cultural exclusion.
Reflecting on the Dutch celebration, I was reminded of it again this past week when news broke that articles recognizing the contributions of the Navajo Code Talkers during World War II were being scrubbed from Department of Defense websites.
During World War II, the Navajo Code Talkers played a crucial role in securing military communications in the South Pacific theater. Using their native language, they developed an unbreakable code that enabled the U.S. military to transmit vital battlefield information without interference from the Japanese. The original group of 29 Code Talkers was so effective that, by the end of the war, more than 400 Navajo servicemen had been called upon to carry out this critical task. Their contributions remained classified until 1968.
On Tuesday, the Washington Post reported a page on the Defense Department’s web page that celebrated Ira Hayes (Pima - Gila River Indian Community) was removed. Hayes is part of the iconic Pulitzer-winning photograph that captured six Marines planting a U.S. flag on Iwo Jima in 1945 during World War II.
Also, on Tuesday, 22 tribal flags representing Arizona tribes were removed from a Veterans Administration hospital in Phoenix. Why? Because of a new Trump directive to only display the U.S. flag and state flags.
Tribal leaders responded with outrage at the Native American erasure. Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren contacted the White House with his discontent.
Later in the week, the Pentagon restored the Navajo code talker pages and the one celebrating Ira Hayes.
“White House officials reached out to my office and confirmed that removal of 'Navajo' from the agency websites was a result of an error caused by the Artificial Intelligence (AI) automated-review process associated with diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives,” Nygren said in a statement.
The explanation is as insulting as the erasure itself. How laughable. Blame the disrespect for Native American contributions and heroism on AI. More likely, someone – some racist human – keyed in words that reflect diversity into some computer that searched for Native American pages and erased them.
The pattern is unmistakable. The hypocrisy of erasing the contributions of dark-skinned people becomes even clearer with the Trump administration’s decision to revert Fort Liberty in North Carolina back to Fort Bragg—a name that honors Confederate General Braxton Bragg, who fought against the nation during the Civil War.
If we are to honor heritage, let it be in a way that uplifts all people, ensuring that every culture’s contributions are recognized and valued, not erased.
Just as I respect Dutch culture being celebrated in Michigan, I opposed letting one group think God made them better.
Let’s be clear: We the People should celebrate all, not just white people. Native American war heroes pose no threat to white people.
Thayék gde nwéndëmen - We are all related.
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