Air Force Museum
Tuskegee Airmen Congressional Gold Medal
In April 2006, the U.S. Congress voted to award the Tuskegee Airmen a Congressional Gold Medal, the most prestigious award Congress can give to civilians. The award was presented to the surviving Tuskegee Airmen on March 29, 2007, at a ceremony in the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol "in recognition of their unique military record, which inspired revolutionary reform in the Armed Forces."
In depth
History & service
The medal features three Tuskegee Airmen in profile -- an officer, a mechanic and a pilot. The eagle symbolizes flight, nobility and the highest ideals of the nation. The years 1941-1949 indicate the years that these Airmen were assigned to segregated units. The reverse side depicts three types of airplanes flown by the Tuskegee Airmen in World War II: the P-40, P-51 and B-25. The medals on display are bronze copies of the original gold medal, which remains at the Smithsonian Institution per public law.
Service, skill, and the right to take part
Aviation has often been presented as a field open to anyone with enough skill and determination. The historical record is more complicated. Race, gender, money, institutional rules, and access to training shaped who could fly, maintain aircraft, receive commissions, or be recognized for their work. Those barriers were not separate from aviation history; they helped determine whose talents the field could use.
The people represented by uniforms, clothing, photographs, and personal equipment made achievements within those conditions. Their stories include technical proficiency and courage, but also persistence, organization, advocacy, and support from others. Military service could create opportunities while also exposing the contradiction between serving a country and being denied equal treatment within it.
Individual milestones should therefore be connected to the wider community. Pilots relied on instructors, mechanics, administrators, medical personnel, and families. Changes in policy were influenced by public pressure and documented performance as well as by exceptional individuals. Moving between the civil and military galleries makes those connections visible. A flight suit, a scarf, a jacket, or a cockpit can mark both a particular career and a larger expansion of opportunity. The inspirational force of these objects grows when the difficulties are described accurately and the less visible contributors are included.
