Navy Moves to Recognize 'Heroic' Black WWII Sailor

[HARDCORE]

https://www.newsweek.com/navy-moves-...15-men-1586288
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U.S.
Navy Moves to Recognize 'Heroic' Black WWII Sailor Who Swam for Hours With Sharks to Save 15 Men

BY NAVEED JAMALI AND CHRISTINA ZHAO ON 4/25/21 AT 8:21 PM EDT

The U.S. Navy Chief of Information on Saturday moved to properly recognize a "heroic" Black World War II sailor for swimming through the night for hours to save 15 wounded sailors.

On September 5, 1942, U.S. Navy Petty Officer First Class Charles Jackson French navigated through shark-infested waters with a rope around his waist, towing 15 wounded sailors to safety from the USS Gregory after it was bombed by the Japanese navy near Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands.

At the time, French, of Omaha, Nebraska, was 22 years old and serving as a mess attendant. He died at the age of 37 on November 7, 1956 in San Diego.

Described as "hero of the year" by the African-American newspaper Chicago Defender, French received a royal welcome as he returned to Omaha. The sailor was also awarded a letter of commendation and a Navy Marine Corps Medal.

As in the case of most other Black service members during World War II, French's bravery was not adequately recognized through awards, several U.S. veterans told Newsweek Saturday.

"Too often in our past, service members of color were overlooked despite their fidelity and bravery in the face of overwhelming odds," said Naveed Shah, a U.S. Army veteran and government affairs associate at the organization Common Defense.

Today, as the nation faces a reckoning on systemic racism sparked by the police killings of Black Americans, several former veterans have urged the Navy to posthumously award French with recognitions appropriate to the bravery he demonstrated in 1942.

In a tweet, Malcolm Nance, an American author and retired U.S. Navy senior chief petty officer, highlighted French's story and questioned why his act of heroism wasn't adequately recognized by the U.S. Navy.

Rear Admiral Charlie Brown, the Navy public affairs officer, acknowledged Nance's call in a response tweet: "Thanks for highlighting this heroic story, Senior. Will work with @USNavyCNO [the chief of naval operations] & look into whether we can do more to recognize Petty Officer French."

Veterans of color celebrated the move to properly recognize French, with one suggesting that he should receive the Congressional Medal of Honor, America's highest honor.

Shah said he was "glad to see senior Navy leadership looking to right these wrongs today."
"My father was a seaman in World War II and this reconsideration honors every service member regardless of rank or race. Don't listen to my voice, listen to those shipmates whom he saved. His bravery fills me with Navy pride!" Nance told Newsweek.

Lieutenant Commander Ernest Morales III urged Navy officials to award French with the Congressional Medal of Honor.

"There's no time like the present to correct the errors of yesterday's thoughts," he told Newsweek. "French performed valiantly on September 5, 1942 disregarding his own personal safety to help save the lives of 15 wounded shipmates."

Morales' suggestion echoes those of the survivors who French swam for more than two hours without rest to save.

In May 1943, French was awarded a letter of commendation from Admiral William F. Halsey Jr., then-commander of the Southern Pacific Fleet. Disappointed by the accolade, the survivors expressed belief that French deserved the Congressional Medal or at least the Silver Star.

French's "valiant and fearless actions are well-deserving of recognition beyond that of his original award. It is my hope the Secretary of the Navy shares the view and does everything in his power to ensure my Shipmate is appropriately awarded," Travis Akers, a veteran Navy intelligence officer, said in a statement to Newsweek.

When the U.S. entered World War II in 1941, African-American sailors were limited to serving as mess attendants whose main function was to tend to white service members for nearly two decades, according to the Naval History and Heritage Command. It wasn't until 1948 that the entire military was desegregated.

The bravery of heroes such as Doris 'Dorie' Miller, the first Black American to be awarded the Navy Cross, and a surge of political activities eventually forced change. In 1944, the Navy commissioned its first-ever African-American officer.

"It's amazing how service members of color demonstrated heroic acts of bravery only to go unrecognized," Navy veteran Tashandra Poullard told Newsweek, adding that it's important to update the record "so that their stories don't go untold."

Black service members vowed to work harder when the opportunity rose to break the Navy's color barrier. "We were the hopes and aspirations of the blacks in the Navy," veteran William Sylvester White said 30 years later. "What we did or did not do determined whether the program expanded or failed."

Nance said every recruit should be told the story of French at boot camp.

"You think you can't get across that pool? Everybody have a seat? I'm gonna tell you the story of petty officer first class French, a goddamn mess specialist, because that's the only job Blacks could have. He f***ing pulled 15 people in a goddamn life raft. I want to hear you say you can't swim across from the middle of the pool to the end."
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Charles Jackson French

Born September 25, 1919
Foreman, Arkansas, US

Died November 7, 1956 (aged 37)
San Diego, California, US

Allegiance United States

Service/branch United States Navy

Years of service 1937–1946
Rank Petty Officer First Class

Charles Jackson French (September 25, 1919 – November 7, 1956) was a United States Navy sailor. He had first enlisted in the Navy in 1937[1] and had completed his enlistment, moving to Omaha, Nebraska where he had family.[2] With the attack on Pearl Harbor, French went to the closest recruitment office, and on December 19, 1941, re-enlisted in the United States Navy.[3]

Biography

French was an orphan from Foreman, Arkansas[4] who learned to swim in the Red River at the age of eight.[5]

During World War II,[1] messmate French swam 6–8 hours in shark-infested waters near Guadalcanal while towing a life raft with 15 USS Gregory (DD-82) survivors of an attack by the Japanese Imperial Navy.[6][7] For this action, French received a letter of commendation from Adm. William F. Halsey Jr. in May 1943.[6] Adm. Halsey was then commander of the Southern Pacific Fleet.[8] The commendation stated:

For meritorious conduct in action while serving on board of a destroyer transport which was badly damaged during the engagement with Japanese forces in the British Solomon Islands on September 5, 1942. After the engagement, a group of about fifteen men was adrift on a raft, which was being deliberately shelled by Japanese naval forces. French tied a line to himself and swam for more than two hours without rest, thus attempting to tow the raft. His conduct was in keeping with the highest traditions of the Naval Service.

French was memorialized on War Gum trading cards and in a comic strip. The Chicago Defender named him Hero of the Year.[9]

French was posthumously awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for his heroic actions. The award was presented on May 21, 2022, at Naval Base San Diego, at a ceremony in which the base's rescue swimmer training pool was dedicated in French's honor.[10]

In June 2022, President Biden signed into law (H.R.4168) to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 6223 Maple Street, in Omaha, Nebraska, as the Petty Officer 1st Class Charles Jackson French Post Office.[11]

French is buried at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery in San Diego, California.

[Boats]

Navy Honors 13 USS Indianapolis Sailors Lost during World War II
By: Tammy Waitt - American Security Today 05-28-22
Re: https://americansecuritytoday.com/na...20US%20history.

1st Photo link: https://americansecuritytoday.com/wp...vy-696x530.jpg
A feeding frenzy took place after a Japanese submarine torpedoed the USS Indianapolis on July 30, 1945 during World War II. Some 900 American sailors were stranded in shark-infested waters, where an estimated 50 men a day were ripped apart by the sharks. It was the largest shark attack in US history. (Courtesy of the U.S. Navy and the National Archives) - By Navy Personnel Command Public Affairs

The United States Navy has officially changed the status of 13 Sailors lost when the USS Indianapolis (CA 35) was sunk in 1945 from “unaccounted for” to “buried at sea,” Navy Casualty announced May 27.

The change in status is the result of extensive research between Naval History and Heritage Command, Navy Casualty Office, the USS Indianapolis Survivors Association, the USS Indianapolis Legacy Organization, and The Chief Rick Stone and Family Charitable Foundation.

The announcement helps bring closure to the families of these Sailors who lost their lives at the end of a secret mission that helped end World War II.

2nd Video link: https://youtu.be/pEVDAzkXfTQ
(What happened on board the USS Indianapolis? What happened to the survivors? Find out here, courtesy of the Infographics Show and YouTube.)

USS Indianapolis (CL/CA-35) was a Portland-class heavy cruiser of the United States Navy, named for the city of Indianapolis, Indiana. Launched in 1931, the vessel served as the flagship for the commander of Scouting Force 1 for eight years, then as flagship for Admiral Raymond Spruance in 1943 and 1944 while he commanded the Fifth Fleet in battles across the Central Pacific during World War II.
In July 1945, Indianapolis completed a top-secret high-speed trip to deliver parts of Little Boy, the first nuclear weapon ever used in combat, to the United States Army Air Force Base on the island of Tinian and subsequently departed for the Philippines on training duty.

At 0015 on 30 July, the ship was torpedoed by the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine I-58 in shark-infested waters and sank in 12 minutes. Of 1,195 crewmen aboard, approximately 300 went down with the ship.

The remaining 890 faced exposure, dehydration, saltwater poisoning, and shark attacks while stranded in the open ocean with few lifeboats and almost no food or water. The Navy only learned of the sinking four days later, when survivors were spotted by the crew of a PV-1 Ventura on routine patrol.

Only 316 survived. The sinking of Indianapolis resulted in the greatest loss of life at sea from a single ship in the history of the US Navy.

On 19 August 2017, a search team financed by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen located the wreckage of the sunken cruiser in the Philippine Sea lying at a depth of approximately 18,000 ft (5,500 m). On 20 December 2018, the crew of the Indianapolis was collectively awarded a Congressional Gold Medal.

3rd Video link: An Exclusive First Look Inside USS Indianapolis Wreck...
Re: https://youtu.be/vzs8wJvbwWQ
(Learn More about the crucial role played by the USS Indianapolis in World War II before being torpedoed by a Japanese submarine. Its wreckage was finally found after 72 years, and TODAY shares an exclusive first look at the underwater site. Courtesy of TODAY and YouTube.)

The Sailors whose status changed have been changed to “buried at sea” are as follows:
Seaman 1st Class George Stanley Abbott, of Bedford, Kentucky
Seaman 2nd Class Eugene Clifford Batson, of Kansas City, Kansas
Gunner’s Mate 1st Class William Alexander Haynes, of Homedale, Idaho
Seaman 2nd Class Albert Raymond Kelly, of Cleveland, Ohio
Seaman 1st Class Albert Davis Lundgren, of Washington, D.C.
Fireman 1st Class Ollie McHone, of Mars Hill, Arkansas
Seaman 2nd Class George David Payne, of Grand Rapids, Michigan
Storekeeper 3rd Class Alvin Wilder Rahn, of Hamlet, North Carolina
Ship’s Cook 3rd Class Jose Antonio Saenz, of Edinburg, Texas
Coxswain Charles Byrd Sparks, of Birmingham, Alabama
Radioman 2nd Class Joseph Mason Strain, of Creston, Iowa
SSML3 Angelo Anthony Sudano, of Niles, Ohio
Gunner’s Mate 3rd Class Floyd Ralph Wolfe, of Turner, Oregon

Video of USS Indianapolis: Largest shark attack in US history:
Re: https://youtu.be/nj8epQ1RQDw
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(It was a feeding frenzy after a Japanese submarine torpedoed the USS Indianapolis on July 30, 1945 during World War II. Some 900 American sailors were stranded in shark-infested waters, where an estimated 50 men a day were ripped apart by the sharks. It was the largest shark attack in US history. Courtesy of the New York Post and YouTube.)

Approximately 300 of the ship’s 1,195 Sailors went down with the ship, and some 900 men were set adrift. Only 316 survived.

Due to administrative errors, many Sailors who were recovered from the ocean and buried at sea from responding vessels were misclassified as “missing in action “or “unaccounted for.”

Rick Stone, who previously served at NHHC, says he initiated the USS Indianapolis Burial at Sea Project to determine if any Indianapolis casualties met this criteria.

Following his retirement from government service, he established the Chief Rick Stone and Family Charitable Foundation to continue the project and located documentation proving the 13 Sailors were misclassified.

“Recovering a lost Sailor, giving their loved ones and family closure is the greatest gift we can imagine and the greatest way to celebrate and thank the Sailors who lost their lives aboard the USS Indianapolis,” says the foundation’s USS Indianapolis Burial at Sea Project web page.

“One of my favorite quotes is ‘Poor is the nation that has no heroes but shameful is the nation who, having heroes, forgets them,’” Stone said.

“Our foundation will never forget the heroes of the USS Indianapolis and are proud of our role in helping thirteen families learn that the Navy went to great lengths to honor them soon after their deaths.”

Capt. Robert McMahon, director of the Navy Casualty Office, said bringing closure to families of those lost at sea is a “solemn duty and obligation” he takes to heart.
“Nothing is more important to me than giving families that knowledge when the unthinkable happens,” he said.

“No amount of time lessens the loss, however, if we can bring some certainty to loved ones, even seven decades later, we are keeping faith with those we lost.”
One of those family members, William Baxter, nephew of Gunner’s Mate 3rd Class Wolfe, was notified on April 26th of the change in status. Sailors from Naval Medical Readiness and Training Command Beaufort, South Carolina, arrived at his door with a certificate and flag to recognize Wolfe’s sacrifice.

Baxter, an Okatie, South Carolina, native, said while he did not know his uncle, “it’s nice to finally have some closure to what actually happened to [him]. Thank you all for going above and beyond for me and my family. I wasn’t expecting all of this, but thank you.”

“It was an absolute honor and a privilege to be a part of informing Mr. Baxter and his family of his uncle’s status change, and also being a part of history,” said Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Naomi Hall, one of the Sailors from NMRTC Beaufort involved in making notifications.

Navy Casualty’s mission is to provide timely and first-class casualty assistance to Navy families when a Sailor is seriously ill or injured, is placed in a duty status whereabouts unknown (DUSTWUN) or is declared missing and/or Prisoner of War or dies.

To Learn More about Navy Casualty, please visit https://www.mynavyhr.navy.mil/Suppor...ices/Casualty/.

With more than 90 percent of all trade traveling by sea, and 95 percent of the world’s international phone and internet traffic carried through fiber optic cables lying on the ocean floor, Navy officials continue to emphasize that the prosperity and security of the United States is directly linked to a strong and ready Navy.

American Security Today’s Annual ‘ASTORS’ Awards is the preeminent U.S. Homeland Security Awards Program, and now in its Seventh Year, continues to recognize industry leaders of Physical and Border Security, Cybersecurity, Emergency Preparedness – Management and Response, Law Enforcement, First Responders, as well as federal, state and municipal government agencies in the acknowledgment of their outstanding efforts to Keep our Nation Secure.

The United States was forever changed 20 years ago on September 11th, and we were fortunate to have many of those who responded to those horrific tragedies join us at the 2021 ‘ASTORS’ Awards Luncheon.In the days that followed 9/11, the critical needs of protecting our country catapulted us into new and innovative ways to secure our homeland – which is how many of the agencies and enterprise organizations that are today ‘ASTORS’ Awards Champions, came into being.
Our keynote speaker TSA Administrator David Pekoske delivered a moving and timely address on the strategic priorities of the 64,000 member TSA workforce in securing the transportation system, enabling safe, and in many cases, contactless travel, and more (Be sure to see Interview.)

TSA Administrator David Pekoske addressing attendees at the 2021 ‘ASTORS’ Awards Luncheon in New York City on November 17, 2021. (Be sure to see AST Exclusive Interview, facilitated by Dr. Kathleen Kiernan HERE.)

Our 2021 keynote speaker featured a moving and informative address from TSA Administrator and Vice-Admiral of the United States Coast Guard (Ret), David Pekoske; to our attendees who traveled from across the United States and abroad, on the strategic priorities of the 64,000 member TSA workforce in securing the transportation system, enabling safe, and in many cases, contactless travel.

Commissioner Bill Bratton signing copies of his latest work, ‘The Profession: A Memoir of Community, Race, and the Arc of Policing in America,’ at the 2021 ‘ASTORS’ Awards Presentation Luncheon. (Be sure to see AST Exclusive Interview with Comm Bratton, facilitated by Dr. Kathleen Kiernan HERE.)
Legendary Police Commissioner William Bratton of the New York Police Department, the Boston Police Department, and former Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department was also live at the event, meeting with attendees and signing copies of his latest work ‘The Profession: A Memoir of Community, Race, and the Arc of Policing in America,’ courtesy of the generosity of our 2021 ‘ASTORS’ Awards Premier Sponsors.

Note: The 2022 ‘ASTORS’ Awards Program is Proudly Sponsored by New PLATINUM SPONSOR: NEC National Security Systems (NSS), New Premier Sponsors Rajant Corporation, and guardDog AI, and returning Sponsors to date, Automatic Systems, RX Global, and SIMS Software!

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The Annual CHAMPIONS edition includes a review of Annual ‘ASTORS’ Award Winning products and programs, highlighting key details on many of the winning firm’s products and services, including video interviews and more.

It serves as your Go-To Source throughout the year for ‘The Best of 2021 Products and Services‘ endorsed by American Security Today, and can satisfy your agency’s and/or organization’s most pressing Homeland Security and Public Safety needs.
From Physical Security (Access Control, Critical Infrastructure, Perimeter Protection, and Video Surveillance Cameras and Video Management Systems), to IT Security (Cybersecurity, Encryption, Data Storage, Anti-Malware and Networking Security – Just to name a few), the 2021 ‘ASTORS’ CHAMPIONS EDITION has what you need to Detect, Delay, Respond to, and Mitigate today’s real-time threats in our constantly evolving security landscape.
It also includes featured guest editorial pieces from some of the security industry’s most respected leaders, and recognized firms in the 2021 ‘ASTORS’ Awards Program.
For a complete list of 2021 ‘ASTORS’ Award Winners, begin HERE.
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Personal note: I know of only one guy who still searches for the fallen on
many battle grounds to this very day. He said it was the least who could
do for the Families and himself - knowing that until they are found - and
get the recognition they deserve for their service to their Country.

There are many like him that volunteer to go to these battle grounds
and find whomever they can - and send their remains back home to be
buried on American soil - and to give them the honor's they deserve.
God Bless those who do this service - for the fallen & for the Families of
those who've lost their loved ones!!
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