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WASHINGTON - Congressman Charles Rangel today announced that his bill to honor the Tuskegee Airmen with the Congressional Gold Medal will soon be signed into law after its passage by unanimous consent in the U.S. Senate on Monday night.
Senator Carl Levin of Michigan, the legislation's Senate sponsor, guided the final version of the bill to passage. Approved by the House of Representatives on February 28th by a vote of 400-0 under the sponsorship of Congressman Rangel, the bill now awaits President Bush's signature in order to become law.
"I am really humbled to be involved in focusing the attention of the U.S. Congress and this generation of Americans on the great achievements of the Tuskegee Airmen," Congressman said. "While their exploits took place more than 60 years ago, they will forever be part of the pantheon of American heroes.
"They are in that group of African Americans who put themselves in harm's way--not primarily to defy the low expectations and prejudices of the day--but rather to fulfill their own belief in themselves. In doing so, they made some of the highest military contributions to the nation in fighting for freedoms that they could not themselves enjoy at home," Congressman Rangel said.
The Congressional Gold Medal is the highest and most distinguished civilian award conferred by the United States Congress, and is presented by the President on behalf of the Congress. It was first presented to George Washington, the nation's first President, in 1776.
Among its recent recipients were Rosa Parks, who helped spark the Civil Rights Movement in the American South, and the great former President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela.
Percy Sutton, the radio executive, former Manhattan Borough President, and Tuskegee Airman, described the passage of the bill as "a great thrill."
The Tuskegee Airmen were a group of about 1,000 African-American pilots comprising the segregated 99th Fighter Squadron and 332nd Fighter Group of the Army Air Corps during World War II. Their name was taken from the segregated airfield in Tuskegee, Alabama, where they trained.
Renowned for their heroics in protecting American bombers from enemy fighter planes in raids over Europe and North Africa, the Tuskegee Airmen collected nearly 1,000 military awards. Their exploits are credited with contributing to President Harry Truman's decision to desegregate the U.S. military, announced in 1948.
The first class of Tuskegee Airmen cadets began in July 1941 and the last finished in June 1946. Their success in combat belied earlier studies commissioned by the Army War College which concluded that Blacks were unfit for leadership roles and incapable of aviation.
Four hundred fifty Black fighter pilots under the command of then Colonel Benjamin O. Davis, Jr., fought in aerial battles over North Africa, Sicily, and Europe, flying more than 15,000 sorties and 1,500 missions.
So proficient were the Airmen that they were credited with never losing a U.S. bomber flying under their protection. Among its top pilots was Lee Archer, a New Yorker and later a senior corporate executive and consultant, who earned the title of "Ace" having shot down five enemy aircraft. Sixty-six Airmen lost their lives in combat.
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Dr. Roscoe Brown, currently Director of the Center for Urban Education Policy at the City University of New York Graduate Center, was another Top Gun, being the first member of the 15th Air Force to shoot down an enemy jet aircraft.
"The Award of the Congressional Gold Medal symbolizes the nation's recognition of the Tuskegee Airmen's accomplishments," Dr. Brown said. "I am personally thrilled that Congressman Rangel and Senator Levin campaigned for this great honor."
"The Tuskegee Airmen made a mark in the annals of American military history that could not be ignored or denied the way so many others were," Congressman Rangel.
"Sixty years ago, they helped force President Truman's hand to remove the walls of segregation from U.S. military service, and in doing so helped pave the way that would end legalized discrimination against Americans of all races and genders."
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