Interview, Percy Patterson, USA

Percy Patterson (b. 1946) was born on the Tuscarora Indian Reservation in New York. He attended the Tuscarora Indian School, a one-room schoolhouse on the reservation, and went on to attend Niagara-Wheatfield High School. Without having graduated from high school, Patterson enlisted in the United States Army in 1964. He completed basic training and advanced training as a clerk-typist at Fort Dix, New Jersey, and was then stationed in Germany, where he guarded crypto machines. Patterson was eventually made a Military Policeman (MP) and worked security for buildings that housed military computers. He spent one year driving trucks in Vietnam and then completed his service as an MP at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Patterson was honorably discharged from the Army on December 15, 1967.

Patterson reports that this interview is the first time that he has ever shared his Vietnam War experience with anyone. He discusses what it was like being the only Native American in his company, noting that he was generally treated better than African American soldiers. He says that the Vietnamese people accepted him more easily than other soldiers because his skin and hair color resembled that of the French-Vietnamese, and he notes that he, in turn, identified with the Vietnamese people, whose living conditions were similar to those he experienced on the Tuscarora Indian Reservation. Patterson shares that he is a recovering alcoholic and that he has experienced some psychological problems as a result of serving in Vietnam. He notes that he is proud of being a Native American veteran and enjoys the support and camaraderie he gets from spending time with others who served.