House Resolution 18

PAG LIN

  1  1                HOUSE RESOLUTION NO.    
  1  2               BY  FORD, MILLER, and BERRY
  1  3 A Resolution recognizing the significant achievements
  1  4    of the Tuskegee Airmen during World War II and the
  1  5    involvement of Iowans in those achievements and
  1  6    expressing appreciation on behalf of the citizens
  1  7    of this state.
  1  8    WHEREAS, even with the World War I record of
  1  9 accomplishment by the graduate black U.S. Army
  1 10 officers of Fort Des Moines' 17th Provisional Training
  1 11 Regiment, racist beliefs persisted within the
  1 12 military, as shown by an Army War College study in
  1 13 1925 that concluded that "blacks lacked intelligence
  1 14 and were cowardly under combat conditions"; and
  1 15    WHEREAS, in spite of the prevalence of racism in
  1 16 this country at the time, the first training facility
  1 17 for black combat pilots was implemented at Moton
  1 18 Field, Tuskegee, Alabama, from 1941=1945; and
  1 19    WHEREAS, of the 992 graduate airmen who became the
  1 20 99th Fighter Squadron, 332nd Fighter Group, and 477th
  1 21 Composite (Bomber) Group, 450 saw combat during World
  1 22 War II, including 200 escort missions without losing a
  1 23 bomber to enemy fighter planes; however, 66 airmen
  1 24 lost their lives in combat or accidents; and
  1 25    WHEREAS, Iowa had 12 graduate airmen, including
  1 26 several of the most notable and a number of others who
  1 27 trained but were "washed out", often for unjust
  1 28 reasons; and
  1 29    WHEREAS, Iowa's initial connection to the airmen
  1 30 was the design of Moton Field at Tuskegee by prominent
  2  1 black engineer, Archie Alexander, who was a native of
  2  2 Ottumwa and a graduate of the University of Iowa; and
  2  3    WHEREAS, the War Department's civilian pilot
  2  4 training program refused to admit black pilots until
  2  5 licensed pilot and Howard University student Yancy
  2  6 Williams filed suit forcing the Army Air Corps
  2  7 Department to admit blacks to the pilot training
  2  8 program, and in spite of its location in the racially
  2  9 segregated deep south, Tuskegee Institute was selected
  2 10 as the site for the training at Moton Field; and
  2 11    WHEREAS, in April 1943, when the 99th Fighter
  2 12 Squadron deployed to North Africa where allied troops
  2 13 were battling German and Italian forces in the desert
  2 14 and assumed the Red Tail as their unit color
  2 15 designation, Iowans Maurice Esters, Joseph Gomer, and
  2 16 Luther Smith were part of the first deployment and the
  2 17 "Red Tail Angels" quickly earned a reputation for
  2 18 ferocity in air combat; and
  2 19    WHEREAS, between 1943 and 1945, the Tuskegee Airmen
  2 20 flew 15,533 sorties over North Africa, Italy,
  2 21 Yugoslavia, and Germany, and in addition to the 200
  2 22 flawless bomber escort missions, the airmen destroyed
  2 23 or damaged 409 enemy aircraft and ground targets and
  2 24 sank a German destroyer, and the six Iowans who
  2 25 experienced combat flew over 400 combat missions and
  2 26 won numerous decorations; and
  2 27    WHEREAS, although a half=century has passed, little
  2 28 recognition has been made of the Tuskegee Airmen's
  2 29 perseverance and sacrifice through an incredibly
  2 30 difficult period in American history, and of how these
  3  1 individuals have continued to contribute to the growth
  3  2 of the nation in careers as physicians, engineers,
  3  3 educators, and a variety of other distinguished
  3  4 professions; NOW THEREFORE,
  3  5    BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
  3  6 That the House of Representatives recognizes the
  3  7 extraordinary achievements of the Iowans who served as
  3  8 Tuskegee Airmen, as representative of all who served
  3  9 as Tuskegee Airmen, and expresses the grateful
  3 10 appreciation of the citizens of this state for that
  3 11 service; and
  3 12    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Chief Clerk of the
  3 13 House of Representatives shall provide an official
  3 14 copy of this resolution to the Iowans who brought
  3 15 distinction to themselves and to this state by serving
  3 16 as Tuskegee Airmen.
  3 17 LSB 2629HH 80
  3 18 jp/sh/8