New evidence shows that Native American activist Nathan Phillips has been identifying himself as a Vietnam War veteran, when in fact, he was never deployed overseas.
Phillips was described as a Vietnam veteran in interviews with media after his confrontation with Covington Catholic students at the Lincoln memorial. In reality, Phillips served in the Marine Corps Reserve, but never set foot in Vietnam and many newspapers had to issue corrections. Videos and photos posted on Facebook provide new evidence of Phillips’ stolen valor.
“I’m a Vietnam Vet. I served in Marine Corps ’72 to ’76. I got discharged May 5, 1976,” Phillips said in a video recorded on Jan. 3, 2018. “I got honorable discharge and one of the boxes in there shows if it was peacetime or, what my box says is that I was in theater. I don’t talk much about my Vietnam times.”
🚨Nathan Phillips, January 3, 2018🚨
“I’m a Vietnam Vet. I served in Marine Corps 72 to 76. I got discharged May 5, 1976. I got honorable discharge and one of the boxes shows peacetime or, what my box says is that I was **in theater**. I don’t talk much about my Vietnam times.” pic.twitter.com/nIoYxGoPqM
— Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) January 24, 2019
On NBC’s “The Today Show” Thursday morning Phillips told Savannah Guthrie that he was in the reserves while the Vietnam War was going on, but never went overseas.
“What I’ve always said is that I never stepped foot in South Vietnam. That’s- how much clear can I be?”
“There has also been some question about the nature of your military service… What exactly is the nature of your service?” @savannahguthrie asks Nathan Phillips pic.twitter.com/PSeS1oTYGh
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) January 24, 2019
In another video posted on Facebook by Native Youth Alliance, Phillips discusses his life as veteran and interactions with other veterans.
“I’m a Marine, you know. Semper Fidelis like that, you know.” Phillips said starting at the 7:16 minute mark. “I don’t wear my veteran stuff here…I got the flag and I showed a couple pictures. I got other things too. I got some medallions and medals that were given to me, and I had a lot more stolen from me.”
“Letters from…well without them being here I can’t say I got letters from who or what, you know?” he said. “Be jealous. I can’t stand that nobody be recognized some how.”
“I got a relation. A sister, or a niece, she gave me that Vietnam colors flag. You know the yellow, red, black one with some tobacco on there. She wanted me to carry it around because you know her dad, a Vietnam vet too like that,” he said in the video below.
More Phillips:
“I got a relation. A sister, or a niece, she gave me that Vietnam colors flag. You know the yellow, red, black one with some tobacco on there. She wanted me to carry it around because you know her dad, a Vietnam vet too like that.” pic.twitter.com/aZGuVAiHwx— Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) January 24, 2019
This photo posted on the Native Youth Alliance Facebook page shows a “Warriors Medal of Valor” certificate awarded to Nathan Phillips by the Nation American Nations.
It’s evident that Phillips’ record of service is inaccurate and that he would not have been “in theater” as he says, since he was never actually deployed.