The July 2, 1971 issue of Life Magazine carried a story by Alvin Josephy called “The Custer Myth.” In the late 1960s, during the filming of “Little Big Man,” for which Alvin was a technical advisor, he took some Indian friends to see the Custer Battlefield, While they looked at exhibits, the government “interpreters” went on about the battle, calling the Indians “savages,” and even intimating that some kind of plot to discredit the American military was sweeping the country (this was during the Vietnam War).
The Indians became increasingly uncomfortable, muttering that “Crazy Horse was no savage, he was a great man.” Alvin goes on to quote a Nez Perce friend about the importance of Custer to all American Indians:
“The white man’s knowledge of Indians is based on stereotypes and false, prejudiced history. Custer is the best known hero of that myth to the whites. Therefore, to every Indian in the country, it is the biggest and most
Read The Article