Bernard P. Randolph, career Air Force officer, was born on July 10, 1933 to Phillip J. Randolph and Claudia Randolph, in New Orleans, Louisiana. He attended Xavier University of Louisiana in New Orleans, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry in 1954. In 1964, he earned a Bachelor … Read MoreBernard Peter Randolph (1933- )
Lieutenant General Daniel James III became the first African American to be named Director of the Air National Guard upon assuming the position in 2002. He was the son of Daniel James Jr., the first black four-star general in the U.S. Air Force. In 2006 James … Read MoreDaniel James III (1945-2017)
James Whitehead, Jr., the first African American Lockheed U2 pilot, was born in Jersey City, New Jersey in 1934. From a young age Whitehead was surrounded by a strong military presence in his family including relatives who served in World War II. Coming of age during that war he … Read MoreJames T. Whitehead, Jr. (1934- )
Business executive, city official, and civil rights activist David Surmier Cunningham, Jr. was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Reverend David S. Cunningham, Sr. and Eula Mae Lawson Cunningham on June 24, 1935. His family moved to Decatur, Illinois in 1943. Cunningham attended E.A. Gastman Elementary School and received musical instruction at Millikin University. … Read MoreDavid Surmier Cunningham, Jr. (1935-2017)
Larry Spencer is a retired Air Force 4-star General who began his military service in 1971 as a eighteen-year-old private. Spencer was born on August 1, 1954 in Washington, D.C. to Alfonzo Spencer, a disabled career Army mechanic, and Selma Gaines Spencer. After graduating from Central High School … Read MoreLarry Oneil Spencer (1954- )
Retired 4-star Air Force General Edward A. Rice, Jr. was raised in Yellow Springs, Ohio, the son of Edward A. Rice, Sr., an Air Force major, and Josie Rice. He entered the United States Air Force Academy at Colorado Springs, Colorado, where he graduated with distinction and a … Read MoreEdward A. Rice, Jr. (1955- )
Pioneering African American airline pilot David E. Harris, a native of Columbus, Ohio, was born December 22, 1934, the son of Walter R. Harris and Ruth A. Estis Harris. He graduated from Ohio State University in 1957 with a degree in education. While at the university he was initially … Read MoreDavid Ellsworth Harris (1934- )
Air Force 4-star General Darren W. McDew was born in Rantoul, Illinois, on September 29, 1960. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in engineering in 1982 from the Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, Virginia. With his officer’s commission, McDew trained as pilot in the 82d Flying Training Wing, Williams Air Force Base, Arizona. He … Read MoreDarren Wayne McDew (1960- )
The first African American pilot hired by a commercial passenger airline carrier owed his achievement to Marlon D. Green who fought a six-year court battle that opened the industry to minority-race aviators. Born on June 6, 1929 in El Dorado, Arkansas, one of the five … Read MoreMarlon DeWitt Green (1929-2009)
Four-star general and precision flier Lloyd W. Newton was born December 24, 1942 in Ridgeland, South Carolina, the fourth of seven children of John H. Newton, a farmer, and Annie Newton. Finishing Jasper High School in Ridgeland, he majored in mechanical engineering at Tennessee State … Read MoreLloyd Warren Newton (1942- )
