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hollowyaounde848 t1_itld4az wrote

1578 combat missions, 112 enemy aircraft destroyed in the air, another 150 on the ground and 148 damaged.

Not one of them allowed into the Officers Club, because they were black.

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appliedecology t1_itm2ac0 wrote

After the war, six Tuskegee airmen lived in my small historically segregated neighborhood. Not one of them was allowed to eat or stay at the downtown hotels for another 20 years. Those dudes changed military and social history.

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Impressive-Shame4516 t1_itng2iw wrote

Treatment of minority veterans after WW2 was a massive catalyst for the Civil Rights Movement.

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HawkeyeTen t1_itmjxdg wrote

I think that was true to an extent with non-white folks in the British Army too, at least some of them. I've heard Indian officers were not allowed in the Club. It sounds like racial/ethnic prejudice was a problem on both sides of the Atlantic, even if it was significantly different.

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Ellisoner t1_itn151q wrote

The baffling thing is this in comparison to the treatment of black soldiers on the British Home Islands. Brits on the home island for example, at the battle of Bamber Bridge, fought white Americans in defence of black Americans being allowed into pubs and public spaces with everyone else, yet in India this attitude was not carried over at all.

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jangma t1_itomrsy wrote

Unfortunately the "it's different when they do it" attitude is something we see time and time again across nations/ethnicities/religions.

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Ardentgoggles t1_itlawgt wrote

One of my favorite movies growing up was actually a HBO film called The Tuskegee Airmen.I am talking Laurence Fishburne.I'm talking Cuba Gooding Jr.And so many other amazing actors.It utilizes actual gun cam footage for some of it's scenes that lend it a distinct style and also help hammer home that this is real.

It's not without it's faults but it's well worth checking out.Over the years my Dad and I have sat down to watch it many times and it still hits hard.

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imanAholebutimfunny t1_itljvb0 wrote

i still remember vividly the song he was singing as he was shot down going into the ground. May have to watch it again.

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brighterside t1_itngov2 wrote

I mean spoilers, but ok.

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WeedEmAndReap t1_itnjymq wrote

Well it is almost 30 years old. I think the spoiler embargo has long exceeded its term limits.

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Interesting_Act1286 t1_itoel8z wrote

It is a really good movie with a solid cast. The real airmen were some of the best pilots out there.

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Dogrug t1_itm6a55 wrote

My father in law was a B17 pilot. He loved these guys, and they saved his ass on more than one occasion. He was not progressive but he had a great deal of respect for these men.

In the movie Red Tails they portray a young white officer standing up for them to come into a bar or something (don’t remember exactly), that moment is real, that officer was my father in law. Pretty proud of him.

Edit: corrected plane type

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v13 t1_itmny9d wrote

That is so cool to know! I'm glad he did that!

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31_hierophanto t1_ito004y wrote

>In the movie Red Tails they portray a young white officer standing up for them to come into a bar or something (don’t remember exactly), that moment is real, that officer was my father in law. Pretty proud of him.

Whoa, can't believe that actually happened. I thought that was Hollywood writing yet another "white savior" scene.

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shinobi500 t1_itlgh6f wrote

Badasses fighting two wars simultaneously. One in the skies over Europe and one at home. Salute.

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31_hierophanto t1_ito0i7d wrote

And some of them would later become a major part of the civil rights movement.

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Ok_Pressure1131 t1_itm7xdi wrote

These dudes were badass!

Just think how much better America would have been had we embraced our differences rather than segregate.

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MrMetalhead3029483 t1_itlzi3h wrote

If this doesn’t speak badass then I don’t know what does. Some of the bravest pilots ever to fight In WW2, and some of the boldest as well

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Crispynipps t1_itnb1rw wrote

My ex wife’s grandad was a Tuskegee airman. I think he just turned 97. It’s insane. Talking to him is wild

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Noir_Amnesiac t1_itnjnm8 wrote

I really wish they would make a Band of Brothers style show on these guys. Also want one about the Japanese units.

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CherWhorowitz1227 t1_itmud9i wrote

Some good looking men! Learning about the Tuskegee Airmen was my favorite history lesson in my high school history class ❤️

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Putrid-Home404 t1_itn9mj8 wrote

This is a great picture. These men should have received the highest honors possible. Racism is an ugly thing.

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XueShiLong t1_itng9ex wrote

Genuine badasses - they had the lowest loss records of all the escort fighter groups. BADASSES.

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50FirstCakes t1_itnpgzh wrote

Heroes. I see six brave American heroes in this photo. And I hope their story will continue to be shared for many generations to come.

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tombeaux1950 t1_itnhovq wrote

My late uncle flew bombers out of Italy in WWII and got tears in his eyes when the subject of these guys came up. He said he and his crews’ confidence went way up when they had these guys as escorts.

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tidytibs t1_itnlfjt wrote

True fucking legends

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tpn1984 t1_itn9rog wrote

I honestly have respect for anyone that goes above and beyond. Hopefully, this brave and courageous group of humans will always be remembered and honored.

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BuSsYBoI-sTaYpOpPiN t1_itleh46 wrote

Hope these guys were treated like human beings if/when they came home.

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BSB8728 t1_itm1fi1 wrote

*Twenty years* after the Tuskegee airmen came home, Colin Powell did *two* tours of duty in Vietnam. When he returned to the States and tried to order a hamburger at a restaurant in the South, he was advised to go to the take-out window around back.

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HawkeyeTen t1_itmkorr wrote

What makes the southern states look even more pathetic is when you read about how some states like Iowa had enforced integration for decades by the 60s (all public accommodations HAD to serve them). The South had no excuses for their treatment of others.

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BSB8728 t1_itn0x3y wrote

My dad was a WWII veteran, and I remember he was furious in the '70s when there was a news story about a VFW post (I can't remember where it was located) that turned away a Black veteran, telling him there were posts for people "on his side of town" -- or words to that effect. Dad wanted that post shut down.

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Lexicontinuum t1_itng8tc wrote

Hell, Cleveland Ohio had a black mayor in 1968 while the southern states were still tripping over the mere suggestion that people with African ancestors were, y'know, human.

Pathetic. And as you say, no excuse.

Edit: just looked up the year. Nineteen freakin sixty-eight!

Edit 2: Apparently he took office precisely 100 years after the United States finally granted black men full citizenship. Wow.

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slater_just_slater t1_itlng2k wrote

Better than many, but they were still black men in the 40s and subject to Jim Crow laws, red lining and all the other institutionalized racism that Black Americans faced

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lotusflower64 t1_itndwf0 wrote

Some men were lynched in their uniform in the US, medals and insignia removed.

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Radiant-Reporter8624 t1_itng08e wrote

Nah they gave them syphilis and left it untreated their entire lives just to see what happens

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MisterJawsh t1_itohndq wrote

Nope, they did not. The syphillis study started ten years before the war, and was not at all related. Really sad that any time Tuskegee Airmen get brought up, someone tries to connect the two things.

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tillie4meee t1_itn2zff wrote

I read about these intensely brave and focused men. For them to have been treated as badly as they were once they came home was/is a travesty.

America was fortunate to have had these and of course - all other military folks fighting for us. They should have been honored and invited into any Officer's club with gratitude.

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illestprodigy t1_itndxtb wrote

Saw Red Tails about 2 months ago with my SO. Shit was a fucking blast.

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JoeSabo t1_itnav7p wrote

These dudes were so badass - few today could hold a candle to the courage and strength of these men. Truly.

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BlueEyeSky t1_itnchl5 wrote

Do we know their names?

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lotusflower64 t1_itndgro wrote

OMG, thanks so much for sharing. Beautiful.

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LC_001 t1_itnrfur wrote

America had an interesting view of its Negro population. They were expected to bear all the responsibilities of citizenship with none of the privileges.

As a proportion of their respective populations blacks had a greater proportion drafted into the armed forces in WW1 and WW2 than the white population.

George C. Marshall had such a low opinion of black troops that he said they were only fit for duty on Iceland in the summer.

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ike_tyson t1_itp1jlj wrote

These brothers are why I have a mustache. I grew up in awe once I learned their story .

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Ok_Exam3557 t1_itn1wg2 wrote

Should have never fought for the whites

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novdelta307 t1_itn3x42 wrote

About to drop bombs and the hottest album of the year

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ejzero1 t1_itobapg wrote

That right there is a picture of a whole lotta heroic badassery.

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chibinoi t1_itoqeqn wrote

Incredibly brave, and talented airmen.

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Cocobeana t1_itoyxh3 wrote

Sexy men! All heros!

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bigcyc666 t1_itp80hn wrote

What covid? Putin-who? Isis? Dude you fell real bad. Come on we got germans to bomb.

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1115SRICK t1_its72nw wrote

My 5th grade teacher (Alton Ballard) was a Tuskegee Airman. I didn't know the significance then but if I did I would have asked him more questions than he asked me. RIP Mr. Ballard.

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ActualWheel6703 t1_itmwjh6 wrote

I had a chance to meet Col. Jefferson once. An amazing man!

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edWORD27 t1_itn27k9 wrote

After the war, I heard Jefferson moved on up to the east side. Deluxe apartment in the sky.

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loud119 t1_itmytpa wrote

Of all the dumb stuff Hollywood chooses to write about, why hasn’t a movie been made about these guys yet ? A real one not some straight to dvd bs

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MerlinsBeard t1_itn1tzf wrote

They have done a movie about these guys. The 1995 The Tuskegee Airmen movie as well as Red Tails. Red Tails is ... not a great movie but The Tuskegee Airmen movie is good.

Additionally, there is a movie coming up called Devotion about Ensign Jesse Brown who was a USN fighter pilot that died in Korea.

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Radiant-Reporter8624 t1_itng7us wrote

Wasn’t Red Tails the movie George Lucas described as being the first “all black film”?

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LeftRGruhmors t1_itnhqkv wrote

Remember when the US government gave them all syphillis as an experiment and lied to them about the treatment they were getting?

The CDC and US government don’t do that stuff anymore though. No longer corrupt it’s all clean.

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Tha_Watcher t1_itluv9i wrote

The one in the middle looks like Michael Jordan.

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apjoca t1_itlbww3 wrote

The one on the far right might be Steph Curry

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