By Lexi Palma '13
Siena College welcomed J. Todd Moye, Ph.D. to give a presentation on his narrative history book Freedom Flyers: The Tuskegee Airmen of World War II as part of the College's annual Niebuhr Institute of Religion and Culture Lecture. The book features more than 800 oral histories. Moye played some of the conversations during his presentation of “The Double Victory of the Tuskegee Airmen.”
The Tuskegee Airmen were fighter pilots during World War II. They were the first African-Americans in the United States military to become pilots. Known as "Red Tails," They were subjected to much discrimination, but refused to fail or give up. During the presentation, Moye talked about one of his favorite figures from the time period, General Benjamin O. Davis. “(Davis) believed that anyone can do anything they set their mind to, regardless of race,” Moye said. This was a coup at the time because General Davis was white and he still supported the Tuskegee Airmen, who were not widely respected during the time peroid.
The event was sponsored by the Damietta Cross Cultural Center, Black and Latino Student Union, Dean of Students, First Year Seminar, J. Spencer & Patricia Standish Library, Office of Residential Life, Residence Hall Association, Student Events Board, and the Reinhold Niebuhr Institute of Religion and Culture.
The students who attended really enjoyed the thought provoking discussion. “I thought it was a really interesting presentation,” Olivia Fay ’13 said. “I learned a lot of interesting facts that I didn’t know before.”
The story of the Tuskegee Airmen continues to inspire peole of all ages and is the focus of the recently released Hollywood blockbuster Red Tails, featuring Terence Howard and Cuba Gooding, Jr.
