[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 139 (Wednesday, December 8, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12040-S12041]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     THE COURAGEOUS TUSKEGEE AIRMEN

  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, today I would like to make my colleagues 
aware of my intention, when the 109th Congress convenes in January, 
2005, to introduce bipartisan legislation, to authorize the awarding of 
the Congressional Gold Medal, collectively, to the Tuskegee Airmen.
  The Tuskegee Airmen were not only unique in their military record, 
but they inspired revolutionary reform in the Armed Forces, paving the 
way for integration of the Armed Services in the U.S. The largely 
college-educated Tuskegee Airmen overcame the enormous challenges of 
prejudice and discrimination, succeeding, despite obstacles that 
threatened failure. What made these men exceptional was their 
willingness to leave their families and put their lives on the line to 
defend rights that were denied them here at home. Former Senator Bill 
Cohen, in remarks on the floor of the Senate in July of 1995 summed it 
up this way:

       . . . I listened to the stories of the Tuskegee airmen and 
     . . . the turmoil they experienced fighting in World War II, 
     feeling they had to fight two enemies: one called Hitler, the 
     other called racism in this country.

  Prior to the 1940s, many in the military held the notion that black 
servicemen were unfit for most leadership roles and mentally incapable 
of combat aviation. Between 1924 and 1939, the Army War College 
commissioned a number of studies aimed at increasing the military role 
of blacks. According to the Journal of the Air Force Magazine, Journal 
of the Air Force Association, March 1996:

       . . . these studies asserted that blacks possessed brains 
     significantly smaller than those of white troops and were 
     predisposed to lack physical courage. The reports maintained 
     that the Army should increase opportunities for blacks to 
     help meet manpower requirements but claimed that they should 
     always be commanded by whites and should always serve in 
     segregated units.

  Overruling his top generals and to his credit, President Roosevelt in 
1941 ordered the creation of an all black flight training program at 
Tuskegee Institute. He did so one day after Howard University student 
Yancy Williams filed suit in Federal Court to force the Department of 
Defense to accept black pilot trainees. Yancy Williams had a civilian 
pilot's license and received an engineering degree. Years later, ``Lt. 
Col. Yancy Williams'' participated in an air surveillance project 
created by President Eisenhower.
  ``We proved that the antidote to racism is excellence in 
performance,'' said retired Lt. Col. Herbert Carter, who started his 
military career as a pilot and maintenance officer with the 99th 
Fighter Squadron. ``Can you imagine . . . with the war clouds as heavy 
as they were over Europe, a citizen of the United States having to sue 
his government to be accepted to training so he could fly and fight and 
die for his country?'' The government expected the experiment to fail 
and end the issue, said Carter. ``The mistake they made was that they 
forgot to tell us . . .''.
  The first class of cadets began in July of 1941 with 13 men, all of 
whom had college degrees, some with PhD's and all had pilot's licenses. 
From all accounts, the training of the Tuskegee Airmen was an 
experiment established to prove that ``coloreds'' were incapable of 
operating expensive and complex combat aircraft. Stationed in the 
segregated South, the black cadets were denied rifles.
  Months passed with no call-up from the government. However, by 1943, 
the first contingent of black airmen were sent to North Africa, Sicily, 
and Europe. Their performance far exceeded anyone's expectation. They 
shot down six German aircrafts on their first mission, and were also 
the first squad to sink a battleship with only machine guns. Overall, 
nearly 1,000 black pilots graduated from Tuskegee, with the last class 
finishing in June of 1946, 450 of whom served in combat. Sixty-six of 
the aviators died in combat, while another 33 were shot down and 
captured as prisoners of war. The Tuskegee Airmen were credited with 
261 aircraft destroyed, 148 aircraft damaged, 15,553 combat sorties and 
1,578 missions over Italy and North Africa. They destroyed or damaged 
over 950 units of ground transportation and escorted more than 200 
bombing missions. Clearly, the experiment, as it was called, was an 
unqualified success. Black men could not only fly, they excelled at it, 
and were equal partners in America's victory.
  A number of Tuskegee Airmen have lived in Michigan, including 
Alexander Jefferson, Washington Ross, Wardell Polk, and Walter Downs, 
among others. Tuskegee Airmen also trained at Michigan's Selfridge and 
Oscoda air fields in the early 40s. In the early 1970s, the Airmen 
established their first chapter in Detroit. Today there are 42 chapters 
located in major cities of the U.S. The chapters support young people 
through scholarships, sponsorships to the military academies, and 
flight training programs. Detroit is also the location of the Tuskegee 
Airmen National Museum, which is on the grounds of historic Fort Wayne. 
The late Coleman Young, former mayor of the city of Detroit, was 
trained as a navigator bombardier for the 477th bombardment group of 
the Tuskegee Airmen. This group was still in training when WWII 
ended so they never saw combat. However, the important fact is that all 
of those receiving flight-related training--nearly 1,000--were 
instrumental in breaking the segregation barrier. They all had a 
willingness to see combat, and committed themselves to the segregated 
training with a purpose to defend their country.

  The Tuskegee Airmen were awarded three Presidential Unit Citations, 
150 Distinguished Flying Crosses and Legions of Merit, along with The 
Red Star of Yugoslavia, 9 Purple Hearts, 14 Bronze Stars and more than 
700 Air medals and clusters. It goes without question that the Tuskegee 
Airmen are deserving of the Congressional Gold Medal.
  According to existing records, a total of 155 Tuskegee Airmen 
originated from Michigan, I wish to recognize each one of them. I ask 
unanimous consent that their names be included for the Record. They are 
as follows:
  Kermit Bailer; Clarence Banton; James Barksdale of Detroit; Hugh 
Barrington of Farmington Hills; Naomi Bell; Thomas Billingslea; Lee 
Blackmon; Charles Blakely of Detroit, Robert Bowers of Detroit; James 
Brown of Ypsilanti; Willor Brown of Ypsilanti; Ernest Browne of 
Detroit; Archibald Browning; Otis Bryant; Joseph Bryant, Jr. of 
Dowagiac; Charles Byous; Ernest Cabule of Detroit; Waldo Cain; Clinton 
Canady of Lansing; Carl Carey of Detroit; Gilbert Cargil; Nathaniel 
Carr of Detroit; Donald Carter of Detroit; Clifton Casey; David Cason, 
Jr; Peter Cassey of Detroit; Robert Chandler of Allegan; Pembleton 
Cochran of Detroit; Alfred Cole of Southfield; James Coleman of 
Detroit; William Coleman of Detroit; Eugene Coleman; Matthew Corbin of 
Detroit; Charles Craig of Detroit; Herbert Crushshon; John Cunningham 
of Romulus; and John Curtis of Detroit. Donald Davis of Detroit; 
Cornelius Davis of Detroit; Eugene Derricotte of Detroit; Taremund 
Dickerson of Detroit; Walter Downs of Southfield; John Egan; Leavie 
Farro, Jr.; Howard Ferguson; Thomas Flake of Detroit; Harry Ford, Jr. 
of Detroit; Luther Friday; Alfonso Fuller of Detroit; William Fuller of 
West Bloomfield; Frank Gardner; Robert Garrison of Muskegon; Thomas Gay 
of Detroit; Charles Goldsby of Detroit; Ollie Goodall, Jr. of Detroit; 
Quintus Green, Sr.; Mitchell Greene; James Greer of Detroit; Alphonso 
Harper of Detroit; Bernard Harris of Detroit; Denzal Harvey; James 
Hayes of Detroit; Ernest Haywood of Detroit; Minus Heath; Milton Henry 
of Bloomfield Hills; Mary Hill; Charles Hill, Jr. of Detroit; Lorenzo 
Holloway of Detroit; Lynn Hooe of Farmington Hills; Heber Houston of 
Detroit; Ted Hunt; and Hansen Hunter, Jr. Leonard Isabelle Sr., Leonard 
Jackson; Lawrence Jefferson of Grand Rapids; Alexander Jefferson of 
Detroit; Silas Jenkins of Lansing; Richard Jennings of Detroit; Louie 
Johnson of Farmington; Ralph Jones; William Keene of Detroit; Laurel 
Keith of Cassopolis; Hezekiah Lacy of River Rouge; Richard Macon of 
Detroit; Albert Mallory; Thomas Malone;

[[Page S12041]]

Ralph Mason of Detroit; J. Caulton Mays of Detroit; William McClenic; 
Arthur Middlebrooks; Oliver Miller of Battle Creek; Vincent Mitchell of 
Mt. Clemens; Wilbur Moffett of Detroit; Dempsey Morgan of Detroit; 
Russell Nalle, Jr. of Detroit; Robert O'Neil of Detroit; Frederick 
Parker; Robert Pitts of Detroit; Wardell Polk of Detroit; Walter Poole; 
Calvin Porter of Detroit; Calvin Porter; Leonard Proctor; Della Rainey; 
Sandy Reid of Southfield; Edward Rembert; Harry Riggs of Bloomfield 
Hills; Walter Robinson of Detroit; Major Ross of Oak Park; Washington 
Ross of Detroit; John Roundtree of Westland; Calude Rowe of Detroit; 
William Ruben; William Rucker; Jesse Rutledge of Detroit; and Issac 
Rutledge. Calvin Sharp; Albert Simeon, Jr. of Detroit; Paul Simmons, 
Jr. of Detroit; Leon Smith; Chauncey Spencer; William Stevenson; 
Chester Stewart of Detroit; Harry Stewart of Bloomfield Hills; 
Roosevelt Stiger of Jackson; Howard Storey; Willie Sykes of Detroit; 
Willis Tabor; Kenneth Taitt of Detroit; William Taylor, Jr. of Inkster; 
Lucius Theus of Bloomfield Hills; Donald Thomas of Detroit; Austin 
Thomas; Wm. Horton Thompson of Detroit; Jordan Tiller; Paul Tucker of 
Detroit; Edward Tunstall of Detroit; Allen Turner of Ann Arbor; 
Cleophus Valentine of Detroit; Charles Walker of Jackson; Robert 
Walker; Roderick Warren of Detroit; Theodore Washington of Detroit; 
Richard Weatherford of Aibion; Jimmie Wheeler of Detroit; William 
Wheeler of Detroit; Cohen White of Detroit; Harold White of Detroit; 
Paul White; Peter Whittaker of Detroit; Leonard Wiggins of Detroit; 
David Williams of Bloomfield Hills; Willie Williamson of Detroit; 
Robert Wolfe; William Womack; and Coleman Young.

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