Not only were the Tuskegee Airmen the first black pilots to serve in the U.S. Army Air Force, the airmen never lost a
plane.
Seven living airmen and two widows were honored at Ball State
University for their contributions and bravery. Jo Ann Gora, President of Ball State, presented the Airmen with the Ball State
President's Medal of Distinction.
Students cheered as six of the airmen walked in and one was wheeled
onto the stage. Hundreds of Delaware County students got to hear the airmen speak about their personal experiences during
World War II. The airmen spoke openly about racism and how they were treated worse in the U.S. than when they were a prisoner
of war in Germany.
Students were eager to ask the airmen questions about their experiences
during and after the war. "Was it fun after coming back from the war and getting awards?" asked one boy from the audience.
The answer was simply "no."
Another question was why you would want to live and fight for a
country that was not respecting their culture and efforts? "Out of all the countries, I would want to live here than any other
in the world, We got the best country in the world," said Julius Jackson.
"Things
have changed so much now," said 91 year old 1st Lt. Pompey Hawkins, "It's still a long ways to go, but it's a start."
At the end of the ceremony students had a chance to go up and met
the airmen. The airmen were pleased to sign autographs, get their pictures taken and chat with the students.
