American Indians have eagerly served a government which did not always keep its word to their ancestors. All of the Native Americans featured here volunteered to serve in conflicts from World War II to Iraq. Few encountered any overt prejudice while in uniform, though Navajo Code Talkers were sometimes mistaken by their own men for Japanese soldiers. But as one code talker recalled, Navajos had a chance to prove wrong the bigots back home; the military prized them for speaking their own language. For all American Indian veterans, the honor of defending their country overrode all other considerations.