80 Years After D-Day, the Family of a Black World War II Combat Medic Receives His Medal for Heroism
WASHINGTON — Waverly B. Woodson Jr., who was part of the only African American combat unit involved in the D-Day invasion during World War II, spent more than a day treating wounded troops under heavy German fire — all while injured himself. Decades later, and nearly 20 years after his death, his family finally received […]
A Snowmobiler Who Crashed into a Parked Black Hawk Helicopter Is Awarded $3 Million
BOSTON — The federal government was mostly responsible for a nighttime collision involving a snowmobiler who nearly died after hitting a Black Hawk helicopter that was parked on a Massachusetts trail, a judge ruled in awarding him $3.3 million in damages. U.S. District Judge Mark Mastroianni blamed both parties for the March 2019 crash in […]
US Army Cut Off the Pay of Staff Sgt. Gordon Black After His Arrest in Russia, Officials Say
Army officials have confirmed that the service has stopped paying the salary of a U.S. enlisted soldier who traveled to Russia without permission before being arrested and sentenced to nearly four years in prison for theft. Staff Sgt. Gordon Black, 34, was convicted of stealing and making threats of murder by a court in the […]
A Journalist Traces His Family Tree Back to Ancestor Who Served in Black Regiment in Civil War
WASHINGTON (AP) — It was the middle of the night in the summer of 2021 when I finally found the missing piece of my family history. My great-great-great-great grandfather Hewlett Sands, born into slavery in Oyster Bay, New York in 1820, was one of the more than 200,000 names listed on the African American Civil […]
Black D-Day Combat Medic's Long-Denied Medal Tenderly Laid on Omaha Beach Where He Bled, Saved Lives
OMAHA BEACH, France (AP) — A medal richly deserved but long denied to an African American combat medic wounded on Omaha Beach in the D-Day landings was tenderly laid Friday on the hallowed sands where he saved lives and shed blood. U.S. First Army soldiers held a ceremony in honor of Cpl. Waverly B. Woodson […]
A Black Medic Wounded on D-Day Saved Dozens of Lives. He's Finally Being Posthumously Honored
WASHINGTON — Waverly Woodson Jr., a medic who was part of the only Black combat unit to take part in the D-Day invasion of France during World War II, is being posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross in recognition of the heroism and determination he showed treating troops under heavy enemy fire. The announcement was […]
Texas Governor Pardons Ex-Army Sergeant Convicted of Killing Black Lives Matter Protester
AUSTIN, Texas — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a full pardon Thursday for a former U.S. Army sergeant convicted of murder for fatally shooting an armed demonstrator in 2020 during nationwide protests against police violence and racial injustice. Abbott announced the pardon just a few minutes after the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles announced […]
Staff Sgt. Gordon Black Reportedly Pleads Guilty to Theft While Being Held by Russia
A U.S. soldier being held in Russia pleaded guilty to theft charges Thursday, two weeks after he was detained in the country on suspicion of stealing money from a Russian woman he was in a relationship with, according to several state media outlets. Russian authorities arrested Staff Sgt. Gordon Black, 34, in Vladivostok, a port […]
Still Held by Russia, US Soldier Gordon Black Files Appeal over Confinement Ahead of Trial
The U.S. Army soldier currently being held in police custody in Russia appealed his two-month pretrial detention, according to state media. Staff Sgt. Gordon Black, 34, was detained by Russian authorities in the port city of Vladivostok on May 2 on suspicion he stole money from his Russian girlfriend. Black, an infantryman, was stationed in […]
US Army Reserve's 1st Black Lieutenant General Retires from Military
A.C. Roper, the former police chief in Birmingham, Alabama, is retiring after 42 years of service in the military. Roper, who became the first Black person to achieve the rank of U.S Army Reserve lieutenant general, served simultaneously in the military and in civil law enforcement for more than three decades. “Although I’ve served the […]