A Medal for a Massacre

A medal for a massacre,

A medal for doing wrong—

Killing 300 Sioux Americans

As if they didn't belong.

It was 1890 when the Army herded them together

Near Wounded Knee,

Took away their weapons,

Then shot them all with glee.

The Congressional Medal of Honor

Was awarded to twenty soldiers who shot them down.

Yes, for massacring the 300 Natives,

They were given honor and renown.

Trump’s Secretary of Defense—

That would be Pete Hegseth—

Praised the twenty soldiers

For administering such death.

“We salute their memory.

We honor their service,”

Hegseth lauded them.

It didn’t make him nervous.

What does this say?

What does it mean?

It speaks to the values

Of a despot ruling like a king.