Marcella (Ryan) LeBeau
Army Nurse Corps, World War II

Title

Marcella (Ryan) LeBeau
Army Nurse Corps, World War II

Description

Marcella (Ryan) LeBeau, a member of the Two Kettle Band of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, served in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps during World War II, treating D-Day battle casualties. While stationed in Liege, Belgium, LeBeau remembers a German plane strafing the nurses’ area and a buzz bomb hitting a tent near her quarters, killing 25 military policemen. Proud of her Lakota heritage, LeBeau credits the military for not discriminating against her during her service.  In 2019, she attended a Native American Presidential Forum to ask the Democratic presidential candidates to support the “Remove the Stain” Act. This act would revoke Medals of Honor given to American soldiers who injured and killed approximately 300 indigenous men, women and children in the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre. LeBeau argues, "to compound the horror of murder, the federal government awarded 20 Medals of Honor to the 7th Cavalry soldiers for bravery.” Recently, LeBeau has spoken out about COVID-19 response efforts on reservations, proving at age 100, one is never too old to fight for change.

Files

Marcella Ryan LeBeau.JPG

Citation

“Marcella (Ryan) LeBeau
Army Nurse Corps, World War II,” The Military Women's Memorial - Exhibits , accessed March 28, 2024, https://mwm.omeka.net/items/show/27.