[Linda Thompson] Honoring Charles McGee and the Tuskegee Airmen

Tomorrow marks “Juneteenth,” the 155th anniversary of the day Union general Gordon Granger proclaimed the news in Galveston, Texas, that slaves in the Lone Star State were free. Texas was the last holdout, so this effectively ended slavery in the United States. This momentous occasion provides an opportunity to reflect on the legacy of World War II’s tenacious Tuskegee Airmen, and the inspiring battle against prejudice they fought–and won.

“…The Tuskegee Airmen are to military aviation what Jackie Robinson is to major league baseball. It is surprising that many Americans, both young and old, have not heard of them.”
– Military.com

The hard-scrabble Depression years were aviation’s glamour era. The world hung on the exploits of aviation pioneers such as Amelia Earhardt, Howard Hughes, Eddie Rickenbacker and Jimmy Doolittle.

But for young men with the wrong skin color, the dream of a career in aviation dangled beyond reach. Honestly, my blood boils at the thought of the barriers these American heroes faced. And it’s a true thrill to learn what the Tuskegee Airmen were able to achieve in spite of every obstacle.

In the late 1920s, Charles Anderson could find no flight instructor willing to take him. He was so determined to fly he bought his own plane and taught himself to take off and land. Impressed by his grit, German-born Ernest Buehl agreed to instruct him in 1929. Charles became the first black American to receive his pilot’s license and worked as a flight instructor through the 1930s.

Winds of Change

It was 1939 before the winds of change began to blow. Congress ordered the Air Corps to accept blacks into its Civilian Pilot Training Program (CPTP). Dozens of black men successfully completed the program.

But the Army Air Corps refused to offer them slots. Pressure from civil rights leaders mounted and President Roosevelt made campaign promises. Historic Tuskegee Institute, a private black college founded by Dr. Booker T. Washington, was selected to host a new program. The effort, nicknamed the “Tuskegee Experiment,” had a stated goal to determine whether black men could succeed as military aviators. Many believed the true goal was to prove they could not.

The program got a P.R. “lift” when Eleanor Roosevelt visited the Tuskegee campus and agreed to take a half-hour flight with Charles Anderson, now head of training for the program.

Many Hurdles

Charles McGee’s father, an AME pastor in the Midwest, instilled in him a belief that all people stand as brothers and sisters before God, regardless of skin color. An outstanding student, Charles enrolled in R.O.T.C. at the University of Illinois. He was accepted into the Tuskegee program.

The discrimination he had experienced growing up did not prepare him for life in the South. 

“As the train left Southern Illinois, you had to change your location in the car…. You could feel the change in atmosphere….”
– Charles McGee 

“Everything [on base] was black or white. They wouldn’t let black officers in the white officers’ club…. We went to the movie theater and they had a sign up that said, ‘Blacks in the back.’” 
– Tuskegee Airman Roscoe Brown

The Army’s segregation rules dictated that black officers could not serve over white men. Qualified black pilots could not receive their commissions until black crews and a full complement of mechanics and supporting staff had also been trained. Army policy restricted black officers to assignments in “predominately black nations.” But the need was great enough that 355 Tuskegee airmen saw combat over Italy and Germany anyway.

The Tuskegee Airmen’s Legacy

The group’s record proved exemplary. They flew over 1500 missions, losing only 27 bombers they escorted. 

Eighty-four Tuskegee Airmen lost their lives. Thirty-two were captured. CBN has produced a riveting video clip in which Tuskegee Airman Harold Brown credits God with intervening twice to save his life after his P-51 went down in Germany. 

“You realize somebody, somebody had to be looking out for you; somebody had to be taking care of you. And there’s only one somebody in the world who I know is capable of doing that—God.” 
– Harold Brown

Charles McGee Honored

Charles McGee continued to serve in Korea and Vietnam. In 2011 he was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame. Those fortunate enough to know him laud him as “an American patriot who kept the faith.”

Last February, a few weeks after his 100th birthday, Charles McGee received another noteworthy honor–a promotion to Brigadier General. The president himself pinned the stars on McGee’s epaulets before introducing him as an honored Gallery Guest at his State of the Union Address.

Always seek excellence and always do your best in things that you do. Finally, don’t let the negative circumstances be an excuse for not achieving.
– Brigadier General Charles McGee

The outstanding service the Tuskegee Airmen rendered—in spite of every obstacle—was instrumental in bringing our nation a step closer to the Biblical truth McGee’s father taught him.