The Tuskegee Airmen: African-American Pilots of World War II (Journey to Freedom)

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Summary: The heroic story of the Tuskegee Airmen of World War II
Review: I have long thought that when President Harry S Truman gave the order to desegregate the United States military during the Korean War, behind the innate justice of the decision there was the practical lesson of the Tuskegee airmen, the African-American pilots of World War II who provided yet another lesson of the absurdity of racial inferiority. In this volume for the Journey to Freedom series of the African American Library, Sarah E. De Capua tells the story of how the Civilian Pilot Training Act of 1939 trained 20,000 college students each year to provide a pool of civilian pilots who could serve as military pilots during a war. Eventually all-black colleges became part of the program, one of which was the Tuskegee Institute founded by Booker T. Washington. In early 1941, months before the attack on Pearl Harbor, the War Department created the all-black 99th Fighter Squadron. During World War II they would defend American bombers and destroy enemy targets, thereby earning their place in military aviation history.

De Capua puts this effort in the context of the prejudice these pilots faced before, during, and after their military service. More importantly, she provides the details on what these men went through to, both in terms of the training and their military service in Europe, as well as what was happening in the U.S. military to make it possible for them to serve. De Capua also establishes the legacy of the Tuskegee Airmen, citing not only Truman's Executive Order 9981, which led to the integration of the U.S. military, but the fact that one of the first five Tuskegee graduates Benjamin O. Davis, Jr. became the first black general in the U.S. Air Force in 1959, and that Colin Powell not only served as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, but also became Secretary of State. "The Tuskegee Airmen: African-American Pilots of World War II" is illustrated with historic photographs and is yet another solid volume in this fine series educated young readers about the achievements and contributions of African-American, most of who do not receive the credit they deserve in your standard American history textbook.