[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5549 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5549

To authorize the President to award the Medal of Honor to Doris Miller 
posthumously for acts of valor while a member of the Navy during World 
                                War II.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 7, 2020

Ms. Johnson of Texas introduced the following bill; which was referred 
                   to the Committee on Armed Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To authorize the President to award the Medal of Honor to Doris Miller 
posthumously for acts of valor while a member of the Navy during World 
                                War II.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Doris Miller, like other African-American sailors of 
        his day, was generally relegated to service-based roles on 
        ships, as the Navy did not allow sailors of color to enlist in 
        combat roles.
            (2) Doris Miller was acknowledged in the USS West Virginia 
        Action Report, individually, along with other brave personnel 
        for having ``carried out every order promptly and 
        enthusiastically, even when it meant danger to themselves. They 
        did not attempt to abandon the bridge until ordered to do so''.
            (3) Doris Miller aided other service members and ``was 
        instrumental in hauling people along through oil and water to 
        the quarterdeck, thereby unquestionably saving the lives of a 
        number of people who might otherwise have been lost''.
            (4) On December 15, 1941, the Navy released its 
        commendations for actions in Pearl Harbor which included one 
        ``unnamed Negro''. It wasn't until March of 1942, at the behest 
        of the NAACP, that the Navy formally recognized Miller's 
        heroism.
            (5) Doris Miller was recognized by the Navy and awarded the 
        Navy Cross Medal with the citation reading ``For distinguished 
        devotion to duty, extraordinary courage and disregard for his 
        own personal safety during the attack on the Fleet in Pearl 
        Harbor, Territory of Hawaii, by Japanese forces on December 7, 
        1941. While at the side of his Captain on the bridge, Miller, 
        despite enemy strafing and bombing and in the face of a serious 
        fire, assisted in moving his Captain, who had been mortally 
        wounded, to a place of greater safety, and later manned and 
        operated a machine gun directed at enemy Japanese attacking 
        aircraft until ordered to leave the bridge.''.
            (6) On May 27, 1942, Admiral Chester Nimitz personally 
        pinned the Navy Cross to Miller's left breast pocket while on 
        board the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise.
            (7) Doris Miller died in action on November 24, 1943, on 
        board the USS Liscome Bay in the Pacific Ocean after a single 
        Japanese torpedo sank the vessel off the coast of Butaritari 
        Island.
            (8) Of the 15 sailors who were awarded the Medal of Honor 
        for similar actions taken during the attack on Pearl Harbor, 
        not one was African-American.
            (9) Doris Miller deserves the highest honor the United 
        States can bestow upon a member of the Armed Forces.

SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION FOR POSTHUMOUS AWARD OF MEDAL OF HONOR TO DORIS 
              MILLER FOR ACTS OF VALOR WHILE A MEMBER OF THE NAVY 
              DURING WORLD WAR II.

    Notwithstanding the time limitations specified in sections 8298(a) 
and 8300 of title 10, United States Code, or any other time limitation 
with respect to the awarding of certain medals to persons who served in 
the Armed Forces, the President is authorized to award the Medal of 
Honor posthumously, under section 8291 of such title, to Doris Miller 
(service number 356-12-35) for acts of valor during World War II while 
a member of the Navy.
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