Legacy of the Tuskegee Airmen from World War II

The famed Tuskegee Airmen of World War II have entered the history books for their accomplishments as pilots as well as their strides toward improving race relations in America. Early in the war, the Army Air Corps was persuaded to open pilot training to African-Americans. The first black men enlisted and trained at the Tuskegee Army Air Field in Alabama. Between 1943 and 1945, they were deployed to Europe and North Africa where they flew more than 1,500 missions. Serving as bomber escorts, they destroyed more than 250 enemy aircraft. The Tuskegee Airmen's record of not losing a single bomber to enemy fire is unsurpassed by any other fighter pilot squadron.

Testing the foundation established by the Tuskegee Airmen were other African-American pilots such as Roger "Bill" Terry. World War II veteran Terry trained as a bomber pilot flying B-25s and he spoke recently to an audience gathered in Los Angeles. Of the 83 fellow student pilots who trained with Terry, only 7 graduated from the program. Terry remembers the dedication of such behavior as sleeping on the barracks floor rather than mussing the beds made up tightly for morning inspection.

Terry's flight group consisted of pilots, navigators, gunners, radiomen and bombardiers scattered across 4 different air field locations. The entire squadron was ultimately gathered at Freeman Field in Indiana. It was there that the group confronted race relations by testing Franklin Roosevelt's recently issued presidential Executive Order banning discrimination in any recreational facility on military bases. Terry and his colleagues attempted to enter an officer's club on the base in small groups of three African-American men at a time. Each group of the squadron attempting entry was systematically arrested. When about 60 men had been arrested in this manner, the officer's club was closed to prevent further incident. Terry was court-martialed for "jostling," among other charges, and was convicted. His conviction lasted for 50 years. Resulting from a recent ceremony of exoneration, Terry says, "We are a country of laws. If it takes 50 years or 100 years, you will be vindicated if you are right."

Of his pilot service, Terry says he was happy to be flying but angry at the discrimination. "You couldn't help but be confused," he says of the unusual situation. "You had to come to the conclusion that it had to be worthwhile."

Now as a senior member of the African-American community, Terry's focus is on young people. He laments the fact that in modern America, "We have more African-American men in jail than in college." He says there has been a break-down in the system of passing information to the young and he finds it hard to "see them go down the tubes." Terry has served as president of the national organization of the Tuskegee Airmen which emphasizes a program of scholarship endowments to encourage and enable continuing education for African-American students. Terry notes with some amusement that 70% of these scholarships are going to women. His advice to everyone is, "Let young people know you are with them."