Unbreakable Codes, Silenced Tongues: The Native Code Talkers

Описание: During both World Wars, Choctaw, Navajo, Comanche, and Cherokee Code Talkers played a crucial role by using their native languages to create unbreakable codes, ensuring secure communication and contributing significantly to military success. The Code Talker program was pioneered by nineteen Choctaw soldiers during the final months of World War I, who proved their language could be a successful battlefield tool. This laid the groundwork for the more extensive program in WWII, where Navajo Code Talkers became famous for their work in the Pacific. The first class of 29 Navajo recruits developed a complex and incredibly fast code that was never broken by Japanese intelligence. The bitter irony is that while their languages were a vital military asset, the US government was concurrently enforcing policies through boarding schools aimed at eradicating these same native languages and cultures. For decades after their service, their critical contributions remained classified and largely unknown.