[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 98 (Thursday, July 18, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Page S7031]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                HONORING GENERAL BENJAMIN O. DAVIS, JR.

  Mr. EDWARDS. Mr. President, 2 weeks ago as America celebrated the 
birth of our Nation, one of its greatest military leaders passed away. 
General Benjamin O. Davis Jr., 89, the legendary commander of the 
Tuskegee Airmen, died at Army Reed Medical Center on the Fourth of 
July. Yesterday, General Davis was laid to rest in Arlington National 
Cemetery.
  From his youth Davis knew that he wanted to become a pilot and serve 
his country. In 1932 he entered the U.S. Military Academy at West 
Point. Throughout his years at West Point he was shunned by his fellow 
cadets who refused to speak with him. Think of it, 4 years at one of 
the Nation's best institutions of higher education where no one spoke 
to you and you ate all of your meals alone. Davis once spoke of the 
intimidation and harassment he endured at the academy, saying, ``I 
wasn't leaving, this is something I wanted to do and I wasn't going to 
let anybody drive me out.'' In 1936, Davis became the first African 
American in the 20th century to graduate from West Point.
  After graduation Davis applied for the Army Air Corps but was 
rejected because of his race. He became professor of military science 
at the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama. In 1940, President Roosevelt 
issued an order allowing African Americans to fly for the military, and 
Davis immediately began his training at the Tuskegee Army Air Base. In 
1942 he took command of the first all-black air unit, the 99th fighter 
squadron. Due to his excellent service in North Africa and Italy during 
World War II, he was promoted to colonel of the 322nd fighter group. As 
a colonel, Davis led 200 air combat missions. Davis would tell his men, 
``We are not out looking for glory. We're out to do our mission.'' 
During his first mission, his 38 pilots held off over 100 German 
fighters. Davis's fighter group boasted an inspiring 100-percent 
success rate. None of the bombers he protected was ever lost to enemy 
fire. Despite his success, he was not allowed to command white troops 
and was turned away from segregated officers' clubs.
  After World War II, Davis led a fighter wing in the Korean War and, 
in 1953, was promoted to brigadier general, becoming the first black 
general in the Air Force. Over the next 13 years he would rise in rank 
to lieutenant general and serve as deputy-commander-in-chief of U.S. 
Strike Command. When Davis retired from the Air Force in 1970, he was 
the highest-ranking African American officer in the military.
  After hanging up his uniform Davis continued serving our country. He 
supervised the Federal Air Marshal Program and, in 1971, was named 
Assistant Secretary of Transportation.
  In 1998 President Clinton awarded Davis his fourth star. ``One person 
can bring about extraordinary change'' President Clinton said when 
speaking of the general. At the White House ceremony then-Defense 
Secretary William S. Cohen stated that ``General Davis is often held up 
as a shining example of what is possible for African Americans. But 
today we honor him not only as a great African American. We honor him 
because like his father before him, he is a great warrior, a great 
officer, and a great American.'' Indeed like his father, General 
Benjamin Oliver Davis Sr., he served his country with great patriotism 
in the face of discrimination. His father was the first African-
American general in the U.S. Armed Forces.
  Even in his 80s, General Benjamin Oliver Davis Jr. still spoke with 
the strong, dignified and commanding manner he was known for during his 
professional career. Steve Crump, an Emmy-Award-winning journalist in 
Charlotte, NC who did a documentary on the Tuskegee Airmen, recalled a 
speech by General Davis to many of his fellow airmen. Crump said that 
the general's attendance was a surprise to the audience and that upon 
seeing him walk out on to the stage, they snapped to attention just as 
they had done more than 50 years earlier.
  At Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in Goldsboro, NC there is a KC-135 
tanker with a portrait of Davis on its nose. The aircraft is dedicated 
to all the Tuskegee Airmen.
  One of the greatest of the greatest generation is gone. As those who 
passed on before him did, General Benjamin O. Davis, Jr. left us with a 
simple template on how to conduct ourselves in service to our country. 
Be of great courage, character and humility.

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