It turns out the Native American man at the center of the viral video standoff involving MAGA hat wearing catholic students is not a Vietnam Veteran.
64-year-old Nathan Phillips did spend four years in the U.S. Marine Corps as a “refrigerator technician and anti-tank missileman”, but was never actually deployed.
As the media covers the many angles of the standoff, Phillips has always been at the center of it all, and is being referred to as a Vietnam veteran.
In interviews, Phillips does not refer to himself as a Vietnam veteran, but rather a “Recon ranger” that was in the U.S. Marine Corps during “Vietnam times”.
Source: https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2019/01/23/tribal-elder-in-viral-standoff-video-was-not-a-vietnam-veteran-military-records-show/
