Title
Recognizing and Congratulating the Greater Philadelphia Chapter of Tuskegee Airmen.
Body
WHEREAS, In 1939, mobilization pressures on the Roosevelt administration and Congress led to the passage of Public Law 18, formerly the Civilian Pilot Training Act. This Act, sponsored by the Civil Aeronautics Authority, established the Civilian Pilot Training Program (CPTP), which created a reserve of civilian pilots available in the event of a war emergency; and
WHEREAS, It was through this program that six segregated CPTP centers were established at African-American colleges in the south, the West Virginia State College for Negroes, Howard University in Washington, D.C., Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, Hampton Institute in Virginia, Delaware State College for Colored Students and North Carolina Agricultural and Technical College; and
WHEREAS, In spite of adversity and limited opportunities, African Americans have played a significant role in U.S. military history over the past 300 years. They were denied military leadership roles and skilled training because many believed they lacked qualifications for combat duty; and
WHEREAS, Before 1940, African Americans were barred from flying for the U.S. military. Civil rights organizations and the black press exerted pressure that resulted in the formation of an all African-American pursuit squadron based in Tuskegee, Alabama, in 1941. They became known as the Tuskegee Airmen; and
WHEREAS, "Tuskegee Airmen" refers to all who were involved in the so-called "Tuskegee Experience," the Army Air Corps program to train African Americans to fly and maintain combat aircrafts. The Tuskegee Airmen included pilots, navigators, bombardiers, maintenance and support staff, instructors, and the personnel who kept the planes in the air; and
WHEREAS, The Tuskegee program expanded and became the center for African-American aviation during World War II; and
WHEREAS, The Tuskegee Airmen overcame segregation and prejudic...
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