Geousphere

Who Are the Real Tuskegee “Red Tails” Airmen

One of this weekend’s biggest films is “Red Tails,” the George Lucas-produced and Anthony Hemingway directed story of a crew of African American pilots in the Tuskegee training program, having faced segregation while kept mostly on the ground during World War II, are called into duty under the guidance of Col. A.J. Bullard. The movie stars Michael B. Jordan, Elijah Kelley, David Oyelowo, Leslie Odom Jr., Nate Parker, but who are the REAL Red Tails, exactly?

Facts About the “Red Tails” movie

• This is Director Anthony Hemingway‘s first feature film.
• Cuba Gooding Jr. is not new to the subject of the film. He has previously been in HBO’s The Tuskegee Airmen
• This is Terrence Howard‘s second performance as a Tuskeegee Airman, his first wasHart’s War.
• George Lucas directed the reshoots. Anthony Hemingway was unavailable, having already committed to filming the first season of Treme.
• George Lucas began developing Red Tails around 1988 but was unable to secure funding from any major studio, as any he approached believed that producing a film featuring an all black cast would be unmarketable. As a result, Lucas ended up funding the project with his own money, investing $58 million into the production of the film, and a further $35 million towards marketing.
• A prequel and a sequel are planned. George Lucas wants Lee Daniels and Spike Lee to direct them, respectively.

World War II’s REAL Tuskegee Airmen

During World War II, the United States Military, like so much of the nation, was segregated. Jim Crow Laws kept blacks from entering public places such as libraries, restaurants, and movie theaters. Although African Americans served in the armed forces, they were restricted in the types of jobs and positions they could hold. On April 3, 1939, Public Law 18 was passed which provided for an expansion of the Army Air Corps. One section of the law offered hope for those African Americans who wanted to advance their military careers beyond the kitchen or the motor pool. It called for the creation of training programs to be located at black colleges which would prepare blacks for service in a variety of areas in the Air Corps support services.

The program for training an all-black flying unit took place at the Tuskegee Institute in Tuskegee, Alabama. The Institute, founded by Booker T. Washington in 1881, had a strong Civilian Pilot Training Program (CPTP) under the direction of Charles Alfred Anderson, the nation’s first African American to earn a pilot’s license. The Army chose Tuskegee as the training grounds for the new segregated 99th Pursuit Squadron in January 1941 and the “Tuskegee Airmen” took flight.

From 1941 to 1946 over 2000 African Americans completed training at Tuskegee and nearly three quarters of them qualified as pilots while the remainder were trained as navigators or support personnel. The 99th Pursuit Squadron was activated and became the 99th Fighter Squadron in May 1942. The Tuskegee Airmen saw combat in over 1500 missions in Europe and North Africa. Not one of the bombers that the Tuskegee Airmen escorted was lost to enemy fire; the 99th Fighter Squadron is the only U.S. squadron to hold that distinction during the Second World War.

First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt was very interested in the work at the Tuskegee Institute, particularly in the aeronautical school. In 1941 she visited Tuskegee Army Air Field and asked to take a flight with one of the Tuskegee pilots. Although the Secret Service was anxious about the ride, flight instructor Charles A. Anderson piloted Mrs. Roosevelt over the skies of Alabama for over an hour. That flight proved for Mrs. Roosevelt that blacks could fly airplanes and she did everything in her power to help them in that endeavor. Mrs. Roosevelt marked the occasion with a photograph of herself and Mr. Anderson which she promptly brought back to her husband, the President of the United States, and successfully urged FDR to utilize the 99th Squadron in combat missions.

Although the Tuskegee Airmen played an integral part in the outcome of World War II, their most important victory was the one at home. Due to the bravery, tenacity, and success of the Tuskegee Airmen, President Harry S. Truman desegregated the United States Military in 1948.

So I think everyone should go see this compelling, inspiring story about some real-life super heroes. I am saying this not because I attended Tuskegee University, or the fact that I have an uncle who was an Tuskegee Airman (above), but because I believe that all great stories should be told.. over and over again. These are the stories that inspired me and I know that they can inspire someone else.  The next story that should be told (movie) should be about WWII’s 761st Tank Battalion, an all African-american Tank Battalion who fought their way clear through Europe and into Russia. Despite the racist and prejudicial conditions, these enlisted men were so good at what they did, they became know as Patton’s Black Panthers.