89R15586 BPG-D
By: Collier H.C.R. No. 92
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, One of the most celebrated military units in our
nation's history, the Tuskegee Airmen played a crucial role in the
Allied victory in World War II and in the advancement of civil
rights in the United States; and
WHEREAS, Although Black pilots served with French forces
during World War I, African Americans were excluded from the U.S.
Army Air Corps, even as the nation began preparing for another
global conflict in the late 1930s and early 1940s; the NAACP,
churches, and newspapers urged an end to this discrimination, and
President Franklin D. Roosevelt promised to meet their request
during his 1940 campaign; following his victory, he overruled his
top generals to order the creation of a separate flight training
program for Black aviators in 1941; and
WHEREAS, The 99th Pursuit Squadron, later renamed the 99th
Fighter Squadron, was activated as the first Black flying unit in
March of that year; its base was established at Tuskegee Institute
in Alabama, one of the nation's foremost African American colleges,
which already housed a successful civilian pilot training program
and owned a small private airfield; many military leaders of the
time considered Black soldiers inferior and expected the initiative
to fail, but the staff at Tuskegee Army Air Field immediately began
their efforts to prepare accomplished aviators; Colonel Noel F.
Parrish, the airfield's commander, mandated the same rigorous
training that was provided at other bases, and the determined
individuals who made up ranks of the Tuskegee Airmen eagerly took up
the challenge of becoming military pilots; and
WHEREAS, Led by West Point alumnus and future four-star
general Benjamin O. Davis Jr., a member of Tuskegee's first
graduating class, the pilots of the 99th Fighter Squadron initially
proved themselves in battles over North Africa and Italy; the unit
later joined three other Black squadrons, the 100th, 301st, and
302nd, to form the 332nd Fighter Group; from bases in Italy, they
destroyed numerous enemy aircraft and targets on the ground and at
sea; on escort missions for the 15th Air Force, which had been
losing a dozen bombers a day, the Tuskegee Airmen achieved a
dramatic turnaround, losing just five bombers on 205 missions;
their success in protecting Allied aircraft earned them the
nickname the Red-Tail Angels, in reference to the crimson color
scheme of their planes; and
WHEREAS, Between 1942 and 1946, nearly 1,000 Army Air Corps
pilots, 20 bomber pilots, and 16,000 ground personnel graduated
from Tuskegee; the airmen flew over 15,000 missions and earned more
than 150 Distinguished Flying Crosses, among myriad other
decorations; their record of excellence contributed to President
Harry Truman's decision to end segregation in the military with an
executive order in 1948; moreover, many former Tuskegee Airmen
became leaders in the United States Air Force, their communities,
and the Civil Rights Movement in the decades that followed; and
WHEREAS, A number of notable Texans served bravely as
Tuskegee Airmen; Robert T. McDaniel graduated from I. M. Terrell
High School in Fort Worth and became a flight officer with the 477th
Bombardier Group; he went on to distinguish himself as a principal
in the Fort Worth Independent School District, and he was named to
its Wall of Fame; that same honor was bestowed upon fellow Terrell
High graduate and Tuskegee Airman Captain Claude Robert Platte Jr.;
a Denison native, Captain Platte was born in 1921 and served as a
flight instructor, training more than 400 Black fighter pilots, and
he ultimately pursued an 18-year career in the U.S. Air Force;
Master Sergeant Joseph Benjamin Montgomery, born in Quitman in
1926, also built on his experience as a Tuskegee Airman, enlisting
in the U.S. Air Force in 1958 and serving for a quarter century
until his retirement in 1980; and
WHEREAS, Through their courage, skill, and patriotic
service, the Tuskegee Airmen valiantly answered their nation's call
to duty in World War II, contributing immeasurably to the
integration of the military and American society as a whole, and
their achievements are indeed deserving of special recognition;
now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the 89th Legislature of the State of Texas
hereby designate the fourth Thursday of March as Tuskegee Airmen
Commemoration Day; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That, in accordance with the provisions of Section
391.004(d), Government Code, this designation remain in effect
until the 10th anniversary of the date this resolution is finally
passed by the legislature.