[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 145 (Thursday, September 27, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2009]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




COMMENDING JOHN GRAY OF MOBILE, ALABAMA, FOR HIS SERVICE IN THE MARINE 
                       CORPS DURING WORLD WAR II

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                             HON. JO BONNER

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 27, 2007

  Mr. BONNER. Madam Speaker, it is my pleasure to rise today to 
recognize Mr. John Gray of Mobile, Alabama, for his service to his 
country as a Marine during World War II. As a member of the 51st 
Defense Battalion, Mr. Gray served in one of only two black Marine 
units trained for combat.
  After changing his age in an effort to get a job at a Mobile 
construction company, Mr. Gray was drafted into the military when he 
was just sixteen. Though he and his unit were trained for combat and 
sent to the South Pacific with training and experience in handling 90- 
and 150-millimeter machine guns, his white commanding officers 
relegated them to menial tasks such as unloading cargo and carrying 
ammunition.
  Carrying his experiences from segregated Alabama into the Marines, 
Mr. Gray served patriotically despite discrimination. When Japanese 
propaganda encouraged him and other black soldiers to defect, Mr. Gray 
chose to fight for his country.
  Returning from the war to a state still more rigidly segregated than 
the armed forces, Mr. Gray devoted his life to education. He is now 
retired after serving for 50 years in Mobile city schools as a teacher 
and assistant principal.
  Madam Speaker, the recognition of John Gray in Ken Burns' documentary 
series ``The War'' is an appropriate time for us to pause and thank 
him--and all of the soldiers who fought in World War II. They personify 
the very best America has to offer. I urge my colleagues to take a 
moment to pay tribute to Mr. John Gray and his selfless devotion to our 
country and the freedom we enjoy.

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