Sunday, February 27, 2011

The Tuskegee Airmen

The Tuskegee Airmen of World War II were African American men dedicated in becoming the first black air pilots. They came from all over the country wanting to become the first black air pilots. They were mostly college  graduates or undergraduates and others demonstrated academic qualifications by an entrance exam. Tuskegee Airmen were trained to the fullest no standards were lowered nor raised they were trained to be strong. If anything would happen while you were training in the sky or if your pilot crashed and blew up in flames, you were honored and the remaining airmen moved on. The black men could either train in the single-engine or multi-engine pilots they were trained at the Tuskegee Army Air Field. The first aviation cadet class started in July of 1941. Only five airmen successfully completed the training and nine hundred ninety-two pilots graduated at Tuskegee Army Air Field. Training was done with two pilots the P-40 Warhawk and P-39 Aircobra.  In the end  the Tuskegee Airmen were very successful and dedicated. The 99th Squadron received two Presidential Unit Citations. In my opinion the Tuskegee Airmen changed the Air-force.

Mock Hearings

The Mock Congressional Hearings was a very fun experience. We had a man named Mr.Justin who judged us who was a very nice guy! The people in my group were Terrnika, Tiffani, Reggye , and Shannon. Our group made it all the way to city wide! I'm very proud of everyone who made it to city wide even though we came in 3rd, its still great that we placed!

The Day Lt.Broadwater Came

On the past Thursday, Lt.William Broadwater came and visited out school to tell us about his experience with the Tuskegee Airmen. He told us some very interesting and useful information. He also told us some life lessons. One life lesson I learned while he spoke was that no matter how hard a person tries to put you down, you have to continue and follow your dreams. This is so because many Caucasians put down the African-American men that were apart of the Tuskegee Airmen, but they kept fighting because they didn't want anyone to get in the way of their dreams. Another life lesson I learned from Lt.Broadwater's friend Mr.Jones is that school will help you with whatever you want to do with your life.. I learned this because he was talking about how in his past, he had to take classes he didn't like such as all of the different math classes he took in high school. But when he got older, those classes helped him with his job as an Air Traffic Controller. I also learned that when you feel down and you think that your dreams won't come true, you must look at the bright side and think about what will happen if you do go through with your dreams. That's what the Tuskegee Airmen did, and they changed the history of our country.

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Dorie Miller-The man who altered history

When Dorie Miller joined the Navy he was just a cook. He was a black cook who didn't think he would get any higher in life than that. That was until December 7, 1941 at Pearl Harbor when he grabbed a 50 mm gun. He shot down a Japanese plane and became a hero. He became the first African American man to recieve the Navy Cross. Though he had to wait 6 months before he got it. Believe it or not, a lot of people did not want him to get it. After that he got to serve in the Navy.. That is, until 1943 on the U.S.S. Liscome Bay when he was killed. Dorie Miller changed the way people thought about black people in the navy. He also incouraged more black people to join the Navy. He is a very important person in history. that is why our class is named after him.

Saturday, December 11, 2010

The Day Mrs. Jenn Came In

About 2 weeks ago Mrs. Jenn a good friend to Ms. Trenkle came in to talk about the Revolutionary War. Ms. Jenn showed us pictures of where in Boston it took place and also talked to us about how the National Park Services works with the renovation of the landmarks. The Revolutionary War was very brutal women could go outside to get a pail of water and see the smoke of the war. Winters for the American side were brutal because they didn't have the proper clothes, not enough food, and not enough weapons. The French worked with the Americans and showed them new war tactics like guerrilla warfare. You may wonder what that is but basically it is when you hide behind a tree with camouflage clothing on and you ambush your enemy also hit and run. That is what the Americans used to weaken the British Army. America had many advantages, one they knew the land, second they weren't overly confident like the British, and third they stuck together even through rough times; those are just a few. After the war George Washington commended his army for their endurance during the war in a letter he sent to all of his former soldiers. Then the Americans came up with the Paris Treaty stating that America can fish off the coast lands of Canada, Newfoundland, and Nova Scotia, and other land also any captured prisoners. The British also had some share in the treaty to but the treaty was never fulfilled after it was created. So that was the day of when Mrs. Jenn came in.

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Art Museum Label: Dorie Miller

Dorie Miller was a attendant anonymous to the public until one day. Dorie worked on the U.S.S West Virginia. Dorie was born in 1919 and died in 1943. On December 7, 1941 on the attack of Pearl Harbor when his ship got shot down and was sinking. Dorie Miller did the unthinkable, he got his Captain and swam to the top of the ship grabbed a gun and shot down one plane. Dorie kept shooting till his Captain said " enough". After the war and word got out to everyone about what Dorie Miller did Frank Knox Secretary of the Navy wrote Dorie a letter of Commendation. An uproar began because people thought he should get the Navy Cross Award. Eventually Dorie Miller was awarded the Navy Cross by Franklin Roosevelt 6 months after the war ended in December. Dorie Miller died at age 24 on the sinking of the U.S.S Liscome Bay.

Monday, November 22, 2010

Born in 1919, Dorie Miller was the first African-American that was rewarded the Navy Cross for his "above and beyond the call of duty" act.  Although he was just a cook in the Navy, he did step up when needed. On December 7, 1941 at Pearl Harbor, he grabbed a 50 mm bridge gun and shot down at least on Japanese plane while on the U.S.S West Virginia ship. Even though he showed so much dedication to fighting for his country, there was a lot of controversy on whether or not he should be awarded a Navy Cross. It was nearly 6 months after his heroic act when he received the Navy Cross. Unfortunately, Dorie Miller was killed while serving in Navy in 1943 on the U.S.S Liscome Bay. Dorie Miller has a great impact on a lot of people, especially my Dorie Miller History Class