Later Years
Not much is known of Johnston after World War II. He created a non-profit organization to raise college money to send Native Americans to college during the 1950s, but after five years it was dissolved. At the initial reunion of the Navajo Code Talkers in 1968, Johnston may have inadvertently been responsible for the code being declassified. The Navajo Code was kept secret after the end of World War II until a group known to raise money for the children of Marines killed in action decided to honour the Navajo Code Talkers at a scholarship banquet in Virginia. At the event Johnston called himself the inventor of the Navajo Code causing the many Navajo Code Talkers in the room to disavow his statement and nearly starting a physical altercation. Inevitably the Navajo Code Talker Association disavowed Johnston and ended their relationship.
Philip Johnston died on September 11, 1978 at the VA Hospital in San Diego, California. He is buried at Glendale, California.
Read more about this topic: Philip Johnston (code Talker)
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