Chester Nez Interview Reflection
Maria Y.
Period 2
Chester Nez grew up on a small farm in New Mexico, herding sheep by age five. Every day, he would walk 15 to 20 miles to find enough green foliage for his herd to eat. At school, he was hit and kicked for speaking his native language, Navajo. But then, World War 2 rolled around and Chester was asked to join the marines for a secret mission. Him and a group of other Navajo Indians were to create a secret code using their native language so that no one, not even the Japanese, could crack it. The men agreed, and in 13 weeks, the U.S. Marines had an unbreakable code, This was a turning point in history because the creation of this code helped the Americans win World War 2. Without it, we surely would have lost. But, the most astonishing part of Chester's experience was the fact the he decided to fight for the same country that had discriminated him because of his race. Nevertheless, he chose to forgive those that had mistreated him, similar to how Louis Zamperini forgave his captors from World War 2 after he was released. Being one of the few people to create the unbreakable code that helped America win the war turned out very well for the Navajo Indian. As Chester puts it ," I am very proud to have been able to serve my country."
Maria - you bring up a really interesting point when you stated, " But, the most astonishing part of Chester's experience was the fact the he decided to fight for the same country that had discriminated him because of his race. " Can you think of other examples of situations like this in American History?
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