New aircraft carrier to be named after first black American who received Navy Cross for valor
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the Navy will name its new $12.5 billion aircraft carrier after Mess Attendant 2nd Class Doris Miller , the first black American to receive the Navy Cross for valor, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported .
Miller, a native of Waco, Texas, received the prestigious award in 1942 after he fired back on Japanese planes with a machine gun on Dec. 7, 1941, at Pearl Harbor. The Navy Cross for valor is the second-highest distinction awarded by the U.S. military for valor.
At the time of the attack, black Americans weren't allowed to man a gun in the Navy.
Doreen Ravenscroft, president of Cultural Arts of Waco and team leader for the Doris Miller Memorial, told the paper, "I think that Doris Miller is an American hero simply because of what he represents as a young man going beyond the call of what's expected."
"Without him really knowing, he actually was a part of the civil rights movement because he changed the thinking in the Navy," she added.
Miller died in 1943 when the ship he was on was attacked by a Japanese submarine during the invasion of the Gilbert Islands.
The USS Miller is a Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carrier — the new kind of carrier the Navy is hauling out to replace Nimitz-class vessels.
According to the Navy, as of December, 14 ships had been named for African Americans, including destroyers and a ballistic missile submarine.
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I was going to save this for tomorrow (Martin Luther King Day) but I thought it belonged more to Sunday.
This is a refreshing story and someone needs a bit more credit:
"According to the Navy, as of December, 14 ships had been named for African Americans, including destroyers and a ballistic missile submarine."
Somebody in the Navy had to have suggested this. It would be nice to know who he/she is.
Wasn't he the inspiration for the part Cuba Gooding Jr played in the movie Pearl Harbor?
I think you're right.
Absolutely! He was serving on the West Virginia the day Pearl Harbor was attacked. I thought the movie was fairly accurate in it's portrayal of Miller.
He was my favorite character in the movie.
Yes, he was.
Doris Miller’s Navy Cross citation
Very fitting, Vic, considering we remember Martin Luther King, Jr. tomorrow. Miller helped African-American sailors, soldiers, and marines get the recognition they had always deserved.
Dear Friend Vic Eldred: Great seed.
Just what we needed at this time.
We are indebted.
P&AB.
Enoch.
Thank you my friend.