THe Tuskegee Airmen

It is good to see the honor being accorded the brave individuals who, while still segregated, worked in their own unique way to bring about integration. It seems unlikely they thought of it that way...instead it seems more as if it were men going about doing their duty as they saw it to the best of their ability and a nation waking up to say hey...these are people too, just like you and me, no better and no worse...although these particular ones might be a bit better as demonstrated by their performance.

It is interesting to note that all-black regiments existed before the Tuskegee airmen. There were several in the Civil War and of course the Buffalo Soldiers of the Indian Wars. And it is interesting to note they almost always served with distinction and with better average performance than most other regiments.

There are some good lessons to be learned with even a cursory examination of our history and the honors accorded today will hopefully be a help in that.