Despite the fact that more than one million African Americans served, not a single Black soldier received the Medal of Honor. To see the posts, click here. Author and Navy veteran Malcolm Nance got the services attention Sunday when he tagged several official accounts in a Twitter post about French. A man discriminated against by the country that he loved, was willing to put his life on the line for. While the sailors in the life raft were off the burning ship, they were still in deep trouble. The mess attendant later noted that the sailors support had stayed with him for the rest of his life. This story or history was written to correct one of the many wrongs in the recording of American History. One member of the 320th would be nominated for the Medal of Honor, an award he would never receive because the nations highest decoration was not given to black soldiers in World War II. A letter of commendation? This might be the first time I agree with Malcolm Nance. To see the full listing of over 250 posts, click on our Blog listWe post weekly, so check often, For Black History Month 2020, we posted daily. Hundreds of Blacks were slaughtered and 10,000 left homeless in this largely unknown event. This man did as much if not more than a medic often does to save 15 of his comrades from capture, while being actively shelled, in shark infested waters. https://chng.it/F8y8w5n2 via @Change Ted Carlson, commander of Naval Base San Diego. Social media posts over the weekend began highlighting the story of Petty Officer 1st Class Charles Jackson French of Foreman, Arkansas, who became a national hero after the destroyer Gregory was sunk Sept. 5, 1942, by Japanese warships near Guadalcanal. Generations of Sailors will train [at the pool] and never forget the values and legacy of such a brave American hero.. Omahans during World War II knew a strong-swimming, shark-defying, human tugboat of a hero when they saw one, regardless of the color ofCha, An African American sailor from Omaha was hailed as a hero during World War II for swimming through shark-infested waters to rescue his wounde, The full House approved HR 4168 to rename the facility at 6223 Maple St. the Petty Officer 1st Class Charles Jackson French Post Office., The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency said identifications of the 92nd Infantry members, known as "Buffalo Soldiers," have beendifficult beca, Lt. Vernon Baker of Clarinda, Iowa, is part of a series of graphic novels about recipients of the Medal of Honor, the nations highest award f, A 36-year Air Force missile and space officer has been nominated as the next commander of Offutt-based U.S. Strategic Command, the Pentagon an, Eighty years ago, Nebraska set the pace for the nation in launching a scrap metal drive to support the World War II effort. French stayed in the military until the end of the war, then took a civilian job with the Navy in San Diego. In this story can be found the heretofore-unwritten chapters of one phase of the Negroes march toward freedom in America, written by a man who participated in it. Apparently part of the reason that he did not receive an award was that the Navy was reluctant to give him a medal equal or higher to what his ships commander received, and he was killed in the action. For his bravery, Navy Messman Charles Jackson French was provided a letter of commendation from Adm. William F. "Bull" Halsey, the Commander of the Southern Pacific Fleet, and the Navy Cross, the second-highest award available. He will be missed dearly by his family and friends. For meritorious conduct in action while serving on board of a destroyer transport which was badly damaged during the engagement with Japanese forces in the British Solomon Islands on September 5, 1942. When the sailors were rescued, the Master at Arms attempted to separate French from the men he had just saved. Category: Historical, Navy, Valor, War Stories, We Remember. To see the posts, click here. These are the least desired jobs possible and beneath the White troops. Award of a Medal of Honor would require congressional intervention, but award of a Navy Cross or a Navy and Marine Corps Medal would not. Please subscribe to keep reading. Virginia State Conference NAACP, Doris (Dorie) Miller, is a Black veteran, who demonstrated such dedication to his duty on December 7, 1941, when his ship was attacked in Pearl Harbor, Doris Miller showed little regard for his safety when he dragged his wounded captain and several shipmates to safety before manning an anti-aircraft gun that he had never been trained to use, and brought down several Japanese planes, but was not recommended for the Medal of Honor. This sounds horrendous and it was, but it is just one example of the horrors of war that greeted Black soldiers who had risked their lives for their country with the goal of making it an equitable society for all. He was also featured in a 1943 comic book and was honored at halftime during a Creighton University football game. To comment or make suggestions on future posts, use Contact Us. C harles Jackson French, a Black Navy swimmer and petty officer finally gets recognition for his courage to save his White teammates during World War II. The ship sailed on the Pacific Ocean heading towards Guadalcanal. He told the story to the Associated Press which he also did on NBC radio program It Happened in the Service., Ensign Robert N. Adrian was awarded the Purple Heart and the man who rescued him got a letter meritorious conduct in action. French received no medal, only a letter of commendation. French was hailed as the hero of the Solomons and the Human Tugboat for his daring rescue of the Pacific during World War II. Itwould ef. These posts focus on the reality of Black life in America after the Civil War culminating in the landmark Brown v Board of Education that changed so many of the earlier practices. Charles Jackson French is what makes America great. Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. It would seem to me well past the point to review Frenchs case. The bravery that he demonstrated serves as a reminder of the sacrifices that can be made at any age. He was a generous and kind soul who was always willing to lend a helping hand. He was particularly noted for his work on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal in Maryland, a major engineering feat of its time. He was responsible for the development and construction of hundreds of public works projects during his career. For Black History Month 2022 we focused on Health and Wellness in the Black Community. Now many feel that a letter of commendation for a heroic eight hour swim through sharks and enemy shell fire is not enough. There is no way a man with a set of brass balls the size of what PO1 French possessed could float, let alone tow a raft. Future Hero of the Heartland events may be held during other heritage months to celebrate heroes among a broad array of diverse ethnic groups. But French said he wasnt afraid. The event was held as part of events hosted by the Office of Multicultural Affairs in observance of Black History Month. This meant that if there were family members they had to live in ghettos like the general public. The server is misbehaving. After the death of his parents, he lived with his older sister, Viola, in Omaha, Nebraska. French, a Black man from Foreman, Arkansas, worked as a mess attendant on a destroyer transport ship named the USS Gregory, according to a 1943 Associated Press article. Charles Jackson French, a beloved husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather, passed away peacefully at the age of 77 on June 17th, 2020. Nothing of value. The injustices of 1940s Jim Crow America are brought to life in this extraordinary blend of military and social history, an account that pays tribute to the valor of an all-black battalion whose crucial contributions at D-day have gone unrecognized to this day. Story\Experience 43 comments 100% Upvoted This thread is archived New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast Sort by: best Ensign Adrian fought for French to receive the Medal of Honor for his heroic rescue. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Your email address will not be published. The first was an enlistment was in 1937 when he served four years before receiving an honorable discharge in 1941. 80 years later, Omaha hero who swam in shark-infested waters receives Navy honor. French was honored at the U.S. Olympic swim trials in 2021. Navy officials escorted members of Frenchs family to his gravesite at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, on San Diegos Point Loma peninsula. I know that lots of guys missed out on medals for one reason or another, but for him to be recognized at the time for risking life (from nature) to avoid having his companions killed by direct action or by being taken prisoner of the Japanese and to just get a letter seems more than just an over-site. ** You can cancel at any time. www.epmcknight.wixsite.epfitspiration Follow me: Tiktok, imdb.me/epmcknight. Retroactive to 7 December 1941, the criteria and procedure for award of the medal were likely not yet formalized when word of Frenchs heroics came in. Charles Jackson French saved 15 men from the USS Gregory in September of 1942. We encourage you to share the site on social media. Schomburg dedicated his life to proving that teacher wrong and Schomburg did an amazing job with his collection. The ensign told French the plan was crazy, that they were surrounded by sharks and he would only get himself killed. He enlisted in the Navy in 1937 and became a mess attendant, one of the few military jobs open to African Americans in the segregated U.S. armed forces of that era. On Thursday, a billto rename the Benson postal facility at 6223 Maple St. the Petty Officer 1st Class Charles Jackson French Post Office cleared the Senate by a unanimous vote. In 2022, the Navy announced that they would name a pool at their San Diego base in Frenchs honor. Bacon, R-Neb., had written a letter to the acting secretary of the Navy a year ago, asking for a review of Frenchs file to determine whether he had received the proper awards. The above summary gives a view of Charles Jackson French, a man who deserves a place in history, but like many Blacks have been excluded. We see many examples of prisoners of war being treated with greater dignity than soldiers wearing American uniforms after suffering injuries, physical, emotional, mental, and even watched death. But his story will be told during a ga, A Virginia woman is trying an unconventional approach to secure the Medal of Honor for two WWII heroes, including Charles Jackson French, who , The University of Nebraska at Omaha honored a long-unsung World War II hero once lauded as a human tugboat during a Black History Month even, Metropolitan Community College is seeking to take over a Marine Corps facility next to its Fort Omaha campus for future expansion. Growing Up and Early Naval Days. For this heroic action, in saving the lives of 15 US Sailors, Petty Officer French, an African American, recieved little more than a simple letter of commendation in his file. 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