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RECOGNIZING CHARLES JACKSON FRENCH
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Bacon) for 5 minutes.
Mr. BACON. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to recognize Charles Jackson French, a World War II hero with ties to Omaha who made one of the most underappreciated sacrifices in American military history
The story of Charles Jackson French is an American story: One of courage, sacrifice, and hope. Charles, a Black man, was born in a racially segregated Foreman, Arkansas, on September 15, 1919. In 1937, Charles enlisted in the United States Navy. After completing his enlistment, he moved to Omaha, Nebraska, to be with family, but after the attack on Pearl Harbor, he reenlisted.
According to accounts, on September 5, 1942, Petty Officer First Class French was serving as a mess attendant in the racially segregated USS Gregory. As a Black man growing up in 1930's Arkansas, Charles lived in a time when segregation laws prohibited Black people from swimming alongside White people in public pools and beaches, yet when the USS Gregory was attacked and sunk by Japanese gunfire off the coast of Guadalcanal, it was Petty Officer French who dove into the treacherous waters of the Pacific to save his fellow sailors who had been wounded.
Petty Officer French loaded 15 of his fellow sailors into a lifeboat and saved his injured comrades from drowning. However, Charles knew that they could not simply float to shores controlled by the Japanese where they would meet a fate worse than death. Prisoners were often tortured then executed. Military.com recounted how Charles tied a rope around his waist with the help of his shipmates and towed his fellow sailors through shark-infested waters for 8 long hours until they were finally identified and saved by an American landing craft.
In his book ``Black Men and Blue Water'' Chester Wright recounted his conversation with Petty Officer French who told him that when he and the raft full of survivors were rescued, persons aboard the ship told Charles to go ``where the colored boys stay'' while the crew tended to the wounded White survivors. Charles further shared that the sailors rescued by him told the crew: ``He ain't going nowhere. He is a member of the Gregory's crew and he damned well will stay here with the rest of us.''
Just like the sailors who stepped up at the time for French, it is our time to stand up and recognize with full measure the sacrifice and service of French, whose story has been underappreciated by the Navy and history. A real-life hero like Charles must be recognized by the military and the country that he devoted his life to.
In World War II, the Navy gave French a commendation letter. I have now asked the Navy to review and consider upgrading to a medal, and the Navy is reviewing this now.
Full recognition of U.S. Navy Petty Officer First Class Charles Jackson French is long overdue. We owe it to Charles, his family, and to the millions of Americans who learned from Charles' story.
Last Friday, I also introduced legislation to rename one of Omaha's post offices after Charles, and I am pleased that Representatives Jeff Fortenberry and Adrian Smith have joined me in this effort to recognize a Nebraska hero.
Today, I call on the Navy, Congress, and the White House to recognize the service and sacrifice of Petty Officer First Class French so that all Americans, especially our Nation's future leaders and servicemembers, can be inspired by Charles' display of patriotism and sacrifice. But also, so the family of Charles can be comforted by the eternal gratitude of a Nation that Petty Officer First Class French so dutifully served. This three-decade veteran salutes him.
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SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 167, No. 113
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