Photo courtesy: the Detroit Free Press
HARRISON TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) -- Southeastern Michigan's Selfridge Air National Guard Base has honored four original members of the Tuskegee Airmen.
The four World War II veterans were guests Tuesday at the base in Macomb County's Harrison Township. The Detroit News says about 300 people attended the Selfridge Base Community Council meeting.
The honorees are retired Col. Charles McGee and Lt. Cols. Alexander Jefferson, Washington Ross and Harry Stewart Jr.
They were members of the famed African American air unit, the Tuskegee, Ala.-based 332nd Fighter Group. They served at a time when the U.S. military practiced rigid racial segregation, denying blacks most promotional opportunities.
Stewart says he wanted to be a pilot since he was a boy playing with toy airplanes. He says he considers those he served with as heroes and role models.
From the Associated Press