Manic Monday: Rank

Villagers, the Manic Monday word this week is 'RANK'. I've shared information about African Americans in the military before. As such, many of you know that my cousin retired from the US Navy as a rear admiral. Of course, the highest-ranked Black military man that most of us know nowadays is retired General Colin Powell. If things had broken a little different for Colin Powell ... he might have become our President instead of George Bush (sigh).

Anyhow, I thought I would point Villagers to high ranking African American officers in the four branches of the military.

1. Air Force - Lt. General John Hopper was the highest-ranking African American in the US Air Force when he retired in 2005, after a distinguished 35-year military career. His last assignment was Vice Commander, Air Education and Training Command at Randolph AFB, Texas. The command recruits, trains and educates more than 370,000 men and women for the aerospace force and the nation.


2. Army - Colonel Charles Young was the highest ranking African American officer in the army when WW1 started. He was also the first African American to reach that rank in the army. Young thought that he would have a major leadership role in World War I as a result of his military experience and rank, but prejudice and injustice led to him being forced out of of the military on June 22, 1917 under protest.


3. Marines - Maj. General Cornell Wilson will be the highest-ranking African American on active duty in the Marine Corps when he receives his second star. He's now commander of the II Marine Expeditionary Force Augmentation Command Element at Camp Lejeune, NC. Wilson often reflects on the accomplishments of Black marines since the The Montford Point Marines were first established after President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 8802, which allowed African Americans to be recruited during World War II.


4. Navy - Samuel Lee Gravely, Jr., (1922-2004), was an African American Navy pioneer and a native of Richmond, VA. Gravely built a Navy career that lasted 38 years and included many distinguished accomplishments. He became the first African American to command a U.S. Navy warship (Theodore E. Chandler), the first African American to command an American warship under combat conditions (Taussig), the first African American to command a major naval warship (Jouett), the first African American admiral, the first African American to rise to the rank of Vice Admiral, and the first African American to command a U.S. Fleet (Commander, U.S. 3rd Fleet). The USS Gravely (DDG-107) has been named in his honor. A street on the east side of Richmond, VA is also named in his honor.

Anyhow, these are the thoughts that ran through my mind as I pondered the word RANK. I hope you have enjoyed my Manic Monday effort this week.