(Theme music plays) JENNIFER LOREN>> Coming up... PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN>> I'm grateful for all you have given to our country and that at long last your story's being honored as it should have been always.

JENNIFER>> Medal of Honor recipient Dwight Birdwell's heroism in Vietnam changed the course of the war and the lives of his comrades forever.

And Ryker Sixkiller takes us behind the scenes of his career as a filmmaker, actor, and stunt man.

RYKER SIX KILLER>> There's just somethin' about that first take, and it's like kick off on a football game.

JENNIFER>> And see how children's book author, Traci Sorell is using her gift of storytelling to teach the next generation.

TRACI SORELL>> If things are going to change for us, it has to start with young people.

Because if it's not, what's the cost?

(Theme music begins) MAN 1>> The Cherokees.

WOMAN 1>> A thriving American Indian tribe.

MAN 2>> Our history... WOMAN 2>> our culture... WOMAN 3>> our people... MAN 1>> our future.

MAN 3>> The principles of a historic nation MAN 1>> sewn into the fabric of the modern world.

WOMAN 2>> Hundreds of thousands strong... WOMAN 3>> learning... WOMAN 1>> growing... MAN 1>> succeeding... MAN 3>> and steadfast.

WOMAN 1>> In the past, we have persevered through struggle, WOMAN 2>> but the future is ours to write.

MAN 1>> Osiyo!

WOMAN 2>> Osiyo.

WOMAN 1>> Osiyo!

MAN 1>> These are the voices of the Cherokee people.

(Theme music fades out) CHUCK HOSKIN JR.>> Osiyo.

Welcome to the Cherokee Nation.

I'm Principal Chief, Chuck Hoskin, Jr.

For generations others have told the Cherokee story.

But now, through this groundbreaking series, we're taking ownership of our own story and telling it as authentically and beautifully as possible.

I hope you enjoy these profiles of Cherokee people, language, history, and culture.

Wado.

JENNIFER>> Osiyo.

It's how we say 'Hello' in Cherokee.

I'm your host, Jennifer Loren at the Cherokee National History Museum in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, where you can explore the history of our nation following the Civil War and what effects it had on our community and people.

In this episode, you'll learn about a critical figure in our post-Civil War history, Principal Chief, Louis Downing.

JACK BAKER>> Lewis Downing worked to bring all the Cherokees back together.

He welcomed them all back into the Cherokee Nation.

JENNIFER>> We'll have more on Louis Downing and his leadership a little bit later in our Cherokee Almanac.

But first, (Slow music fades out) a hero to countless people, Dwight Birdwell sees himself as a former strawberry picker from Stillwell, a Cherokee community in eastern Oklahoma, even while receiving the prestigious Medal of Honor.

We had the honor of accompanying Mr.

Birdwell to Washington, D.C., as he became the only Native American recipient for his heroic actions in the Vietnam War.

(Slow music begins) CHUCK HOSKIN, JR.

>> Dwight Birdwell is the only Native American to receive the Medal of Honor from the Vietnam Era.

He was a hero.

FRANK CUFF>> He saved many, many, many lives that day.

You just can't believe what he did that day.

It's, it's hard for me to believe it, and I saw it.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN>> I'm grateful for all you have given to our country and that at long last, long last your story's being honored as it should have been always.

DWIGHT BIRDWELL>> Well, I'm Dwight W. Birdwell.

I grew up in this community of Bell.

Bell community at that time was at least 90% Cherokee.

We didn't have, nobody really had that much from Bell.

And for a lot of people it was a very, very hard life.

And I, I knew when I was close to getting out of high school the only way out for me was the military.

I was so anxious to go that when I enlisted I told the recruiter, I want to go to Vietnam.

I felt like it was my duty to serve as my idea was that Cherokee people don't hide.

We'd go out on ambush patrol, come in like 5 in the morning.

Then we'd start on what they call search and destroy, searching for the enemy, or there'd be a big convoy coming through and it was our job to provide security for the convoy.

That was just round the clock.

Some people slept on ambush patrol.

I didn't.

I didn't wanna die sleepin'.

Tan Son Nhut at that time was the most active air base in the world, civilian or military.

We got a call early in the morning of the 31st saying, You need to go down to Tan Son Nhut.

There's a squad of VC breaking into the wire and we want you to stop 'em.

We just sent part of the unit down.

There were 60 or 80 people.

And when we got to Tan Son Nhut, we discovered there was like a regiment, and we drove right in the middle.

They remained quiet until we got into the middle of 'em.

Then everything cut loose.

(Sounds of bombs exploding and gunfire) FRANK>> Oh, boy, I was in the lead vehicles on that battle that day, and they, they just came to wipe us out in a few minutes.

TED BAGLEY>> They hit us from both sides and disabled most of our vehicles.

SPEAKER>> C Troop immediately came under heavy enemy fire from both sides of the road.

Specialist 5 Birdwell, upon seeing that his tank commander was wounded by enemy fire, immediately went to his aid.

TED>>Dwight had to evacuate him from the tank, which he did.

He got him off the tank, down into a place of safety.

FRANK>> So, they was actually shootin' at us from both directions, and we were in the middle.

And man, this ain't, this ain't good.

We gotta do somethin'.

And that's when third platoon come pullin' up.

And there's Dwight, like a knight in shining armor.

TED>> And they got back on the tank and started returning fire into the enemy force.

PRESIDENT BIDEN>> Birdwell stood, in his commander's hatch at times, half exposed, at times standing entirely out of the tank, fully exposed, laying down suppressive fire on the enemy.

DAVID YOUNG>> And Dwight had fired all the main gun ammunition on there.

His 50-caliber had overheated and jammed on him.

DWIGHT>> Eventually, I, I ran out of ammunition.

About that time, Lieutenant Colonel Otis was flying above, his helicopter for the fourth time was shot down and crashed behind my tank.

You know, I'm watching the helicopter come down, thinkin', This is not real.

LT.

COLONEL.

RAYMOND J. ROE>> When a U.S.

helicopter crashed nearby, Specialist 5 Birdwell under withering enemy fire dismounted and moved to the helicopter where he retrieved two M-60 machine guns and ammunition.

JERRY HEADLEY>> They gave a one 60-caliber to one of the troopers and with ammunition, and he took the other back with him and climbed back on the tank and commenced firing again.

SPEAKER>> Specialist 5 Birdwell continued to engage the enemy with complete disregard for his own safety until the M-60 he was firing was hit by enemy fire.

JERRY>> The shrapnel from it went all over, went into his face, arms, and chest, wounding him.

He kept fighting, but eventually they got an evacuation helicopter in later and he was ordered to leave.

So, he got on the chopper, but he then just slid out the other side of the chopper and returned to the battle.

SPEAKER>> Instead, Specialist 5 Birdwell under enemy fire rallied fellow soldiers to advance toward the front of the armored column where they set up a defensive position by a large tree.

DAVID>> He wasn't slowing down at all.

He just kept doing the job.

DWIGHT>> So, I just felt like I'm gonna fight just long as I can.

I wasn't gonna say die until I was dead.

SPEAKER>> His leadership and tenacity under fire inspired the other C-Troop soldiers to continue fighting against the superior enemy force, and directly contributed to the enemy's ultimate defeat.

JERRY>> Everybody talked about it all the time.

DAVID>> If it hadn't a been for these high-powered rounds going over my head the other way, I wouldn't be here today.

And it's not just that he pulled men to safety, he helped load 'em on helicopters.

He helped load 'em on a personnel carrier.

He had a lot of different things that day.

FRANK>> To me, he is my hero.

I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for Dwight.

(Soldier shouting in background) He saved us.

If he wouldn't a pulled up there, we'd all been gone.

TED>> We talk about Tan Son Nhut and the things he did to earn this medal.

But he did that the whole time we were in Vietnam.

It wasn't a one-time affair.

That's what people don't understand.

People think that people receive these kind of awards for just one incident, the Tan Son Nhut incident.

Birdie had at least ten Tan Son Nhuts where he led our troops in battle.

He helped everybody, you know.

He showed us how to do things.

BOBBY 'BING' BINGHAM>> God made him for a reason.

He put him here for a reason.

I believe that the Tan Son Nhut, his purpose was to save those people, save that air base.

If they hadn't a done that, they'd have taken over the air base.

(Slow music plays) DWIGHT>> The North Vietnamese paid a heavy price, so did we.

I just considered myself a tool or instrument of God.

And it was God that saved 'em and used me to do it.

For what reason, I don't know.

But I'm glad they got to live.

The war haunted me for years, particularly the thought of why did I survive and so many others perished.

In late '79, I had a reckoning.

I came to the conclusion that there was nothing I could do about the past; I could just live for the future.

And then when I did go up for judgment, if I had the courage, I would ask God, Why did You let me live?

Did I fulfill Your expectation?

I'm very appreciative of having survived, but I feel bad for those who, who didn't.

I feel bad for their families.

The awarding of the Medal of Honor ceremony itself conducted by President Biden, and President Biden made the comment that, This should have been awarded long ago.

And finally here today, we correct that mistake.

You know, I appreciated that.

But I hope Thomas Muskrat feels proud of me.

I believe he does, and other Cherokee men.

(Applause in background) If a man could bring pride to Native people, and tell the rest of the world that, Look here, here's a Cherokee Indian who did a good job.

We all do our best to do a good job, and you need to respect and honor us.

We're just as good as you are.

(Slow music ends) (Theme music) JENNIFER>> Ryker Sixkiller is an action-packed triple threat.

As an actor, stunt man, and filmmaker, he's doing his part to bring accurate Native representation to the screen, and paving the way for future Indigenous creators.

(Upbeat music plays) RYKER SIXKILLER>> Being a part of Native representation is very huge.

It's important to the community.

It's important to the Native youth.

It's important to even the elders, you know, to see that.

It's been a long time comin'.

And to be a part of that today, even though it might be a small part, it's just, it's a huge deal for me.

(Speaking in Cherokee) Siyo nigada, Ryker dawado'a.

Hello everyone.

My name is Ryker Sixkiller.

I am a stuntman, filmmaker, and actor.

I am from Wauhillau, Oklahoma.

It's a small like Cherokee community.

Being out in the woods with nothing to do, you know, when it got dark we weren't supposed to be playing in the dark.

And so, me and my brother would rent a movie.

We'd go to a special feature, the bonus features, and watch the whole thing over again with a commentary so we could learn just like what it was like to film it, and some different ways they filmed it.

Growing up without a dad, I always seeked some attention, and the way I got that was performing.

I did like musicals and school plays.

You know, I just used to love how the crowd would laugh at some of the funny stuffs in the plays, and they'd cheer at the end of it.

And then it carried over into high school when I got into media production.

And so, we started filming and I started getting more interested there, started diving a little bit more about how films are made.

And that's when I really decided that, oh, maybe I do have some sort of talent or some sort of, there's some sort of possibility for me to do this professionally.

So, my family, they've always like known that I've, you know, liked entertaining, I like performing.

They've always been really supportive.

If I made something, they'd watch it.

If I was in something, they'd go watch it.

And this is my wife.

This is Clarissa Sixkiller.

We've known each other since we were like three, four years old.

We've been together since I was 17, she was 16.

So, 13 years.

We got married four years ago in Iceland.

Because of her, I was able to, you know, pursue these, pursue the acting and stunts, and take some time off from, you know, a real job.

Everyone always tells you when you have a kid that, you know, your life changes.

And I just, I don't know, I guess you just have to experience it to really believe it.

Everything changed.

The way I look at everything changed; the way I think about things, you know.

Everything has to work around my family now for me.

(Fighting sounds in background) The production in whole, you know, is just completely satisfying to me.

I love everything about it because every position is important.

So, everyone has to come together and build this like, cohesive unit in order to, you know, make this art.

And I've been fortunate enough to, to work a few positions.

But I have to say my favorite one is stunts.

MAN IN BACKGROUND>> Alright, Hannah you can step back.

RYKER>> Thank you.

MAN IN BACKGROUND>> Camera pulls back.

Guys Step forward.

(Sounds of fighting) RYKER>> I just love it so much.

It's the most fun I ever have.

Of course, I wanna just continue being a stuntman and actor, but I also wanna continue makin' my own films.

I completed this short film called, Chris, is a film that I wrote, and directed, and acted in.

And I edited it as well.

Right now, more than ever, Native representation is important because we have this new platform that we never had before being able to tell our own stories.

So, it's very crucial that we tell it the right way.

It's just nice to know that my sons will grow up seeing the right representation.

I feel like in Indigenous communities, everyone just naturally loves working together, 'cause that's like embedded in us.

You know, that's how we live.

We live together.

We work together, and we thrive together.

I thing naturally that's just what you're gonna find on an Indigenous set.

And every Indigenous set that I've been on, that's what I found.

That's what I've experienced.

Being in this industry and to be Cherokee is, is an honor, but it's also a responsibility.

(Sounds of fighting) So, I'm extremely driven to continue the accurate portrayal of Native representation because of the people who came before me.

Everyone that I hold at the highest regard and respect and love wholeheartedly, I wanna make them proud.

I want them to see me surrounded with other Natives and just feel like we belong for the first time in several hundred years.

But now it's our time, and it's pretty cool.

I don't think anyone's gonna let up.

(Upbeat music fades) (Theme music) JENNIFER>> Principal Chief Lewis Downing served the Cherokee Nation during the critical period of Civil War reconstruction.

In this Cherokee Almanac, we explore his leadership and how the rifts between political factions within our Tribe began to heal and the Cherokee Nation became united.

(Slow music plays) The U.S.

Civil War left incredible devastation in its wake, not only in the United States, but also in Indian Territory.

DR.

BRAD AGNEW>> Cherokee Nation was far more damaged than most of the states of the South.

And it was because, not only did they fight a Civil War between the North and the South here, but there was all that internal division within the Tribe.

JENNIFER>> After the death of Principal Chief John Ross in August of 1866, the Cherokee Nation desperately needed a leader to spearhead reconstruction and unite the Northern and Southern Cherokees.

Initially, next in line to fill Chief Ross's vacancy was his Assistant Chief, Lewis Downing.

JACK BAKER>> So, Lewis Downing was a young man during the forced removal and had been educated in the Baptist Mission Schools in the East.

DR.

JULIE REED>> He had been a chaplain in the Confederacy.

And then at the moment that Cherokee's had the ability to side with the Union, he did so.

And then he served John Ross as Assistant Chief.

JENNIFER>> However, Downing served only a few months as Principal Chief before the Cherokee National Council voted to replace him by appointing William Potter Ross.

DR.

AGNEW>> William Potter Ross was the nephew of Chief John Ross.

He, at an early age, sort of came under the tutelage of John Ross.

He graduated first in his class at Princeton and came back to the Cherokee Nation, which was then in Indian Territory.

JENNIFER>> While Ross's qualifications were undeniable, he failed to be the unifying leader his uncle was.

In the next Tribal election in 1867, Lewis Downing ran a successful campaign against Ross, and returned to the office of Principal Chief.

In his first address to the Tribal Council, Chief Downing said... VOICE OF CHIEF DOWNING>> (Speaking in Cherokee language) JACK>> Lewis Downing worked to bring all the Cherokees back together, which meant bringing the Southern Cherokees back.

Some had actually moved into Texas during the Civil War, and some into the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations.

He welcomed them all back into the Cherokee Nation, and they could live wherever they wanted.

Back to their old homes, if they wanted.

JENNIFER>> With the nation physically re-united, Chief Downing turned his attention toward Washington, D.C., and treaty negotiations with the U. S. DR.

AGNEW>> He negotiated a treaty that he believed would really help them resolve all kind of outstanding difficulties, particularly financial difficulties.

It would give the Cherokees control in their Nation.

The President signed the treaty, submitted it to the Senate.

But they, they refused.

JENNIFER>> The denial of this treaty was a sign of the dismissive ways in which the U.S.

dealt with Tribal Nations for decades to come.

Despite the failed treaty, Chief Downing did not falter in his plans to rebuild the Cherokee Nation from the inside.

JACK>> Once the individuals were able to rebuild their homes and their farms, then they began to rebuild the government, the social structure, such as the schools.

Work began on our Cherokee Capitol Building, and it was completed in 1869, and opened at that time.

So, this was one of the main buildings that was constructed to reunite the Cherokee people.

JENNIFER>> The achievements of Chief Downing's leadership were evident, and he was re-elected in 1871.

Unfortunately, this second term would be cut short.

DR.

REED>> Chief Downing died in 1872.

And like many 19th century sicknesses, we don't always have a clear cause of death.

It might have been pneumonia.

It might have been something else.

So there isn't even a clear explanation of his, of his end.

JENNIFER>> While Chief Downing was unable to see all of his projects to completion, he accomplished much in a very short time, and left the state of our Nation stronger than he received it.

(Music ends) (Language segment music begins) ALI>> (Speaking Cherokee language) SINASD>> (Speaking Cherokee language) ALI>> (Speaking Cherokee language) SINASD>> (Speaking Cherokee language) ALI>> (Speaking Cherokee language) SINASD>> (Speaking Cherokee language) ALI> (Speaking Cherokee language) SINSD>> (Speaking Cherokee language) ALI> (Speaking Cherokee language) SINSD>> (Speaking Cherokee language) (Language segment music ends) (Theme music) JENNIFER>> Traci Sorell is an award-winning author, exploring Cherokee and Native stories for young minds.

Her inclusive writing allows new narratives to take shape and empowers Native children and families to see themselves on the page.

(Upbeat music plays) TRACI>> Storytelling is an integral part of being in a Cherokee community and in a Cherokee family.

I grew up with lots of colorful storytellers.

And so, I feel like the work that I do is in a continuation of that.

And we have so many gifted storytellers across the Cherokee Nation.

And I just hope that, you know, the books that I share reflect all of those things that have been given to me.

Osiyo.

I'm Traci Sorell, and I was born in Claremore, Oklahoma.

I also write books for children under the name Traci Sorell.

For me it is a calling.

Whether it's sharing a graphic novel, you know, fiction or non-fiction.

It can be a picture book about a day at a pow-wow.

It can be the celebration of just Cherokee people living their lives across the four season; stories that show us in our full humanity that help young people understand the sovereignty of Native nations.

In my early 30's, I went and lived in New Mexico.

I ended up meeting my husband out there, and we got married at Sandia Pueblo, and we had our son out there.

And once he was born, I started looking at the books that I had, you know, because I had collected picture books over the years.

That is what spurred me to start writing.

You know, I looked at where are the depictions of Cherokee people in the present?

Where are we post-1900?

I thought, what are other Cherokee families reading with children?

What are teachers pulling off the shelves and sharing?

What are librarians putting out for our young people?

I just was alarmed because I thought, nothing has changed.

How is this possible in the 21st century that we have not made any progress with the amount of information that we have access to?

If things are going to change for us, it has to start with young people.

Because if it's not, what's the cost?

So, once my son was born, I realized there was a lack of contemporary books.

My first book published was, We are Grateful Otsaliheliga.

That book came to me again as a way to just give my son and other Cherokee children a reflection of their daily lives, and really nestled in a core value which we're taught, and that's to be grateful, you know, regardless of what circumstances are; that life is not always wonderful.

There are wonderful things to celebrate, sure, but even in difficulties or even with losses, we are taught to be grateful.

So, I now have six books out in the world, and my seventh will be published in the fall of 2022.

Once a book comes out into the world, then you have to help share it with others.

(Talking in background) And I'm happy to be able to bring that to the community where kids can have an interactive story time.

One of the things that I never stop being grateful for and it can make me very emotional, is when I see a child who is hugging one of my books tightly, or has opened it up, you know, and is reading it, and just absolutely delighted.

Whether that's writing fiction or non-fiction, I see that as something certainly I enjoy and I love the creative part of it.

But I also see it as a larger calling and mission to help right a wrong, you know.

Our young people should be able to see themselves.

They should see stories that reflect their reality.

When I think about what it means to be a Cherokee woman in the 21st century, I definitely see myself as the modern, you know, contemporary manifestation of all the Cherokee women that have come before me.

And so, I carry that sense of responsibility.

I think that often times our history has not always been a joyous one, you know, the things that we've experienced through colonization in this country.

And yet, we have so much to, to celebrate and to enjoy.

That's what being Cherokee means to me.

We have been prayed, and loved, and dreamed into being now.

And so, for the short span of our lives, you know, however many seasons that we're here, I truly feel like it's incumbent upon me as, as a Cherokee woman to take the gifts that I, I've been given and be in good relation with others, and encourage them to develop whatever gifts and abilities they've been given to help our, our nation and our people continue into the future, because that's certainly what our ancestors have done for us.

(Music fades out) JENNIFER LOREN>> We hope you enjoyed our show and remember, you can always watch entire episodes and share your favorite stories online at Osiyo.tv.

There is no Cherokee word for goodbye because we know we'll see you again.

We say, Dodadagohvi, Wado (Theme music)