Black History Month talk today
Robert Lawrence flew nearly three dozen combat missions in World War II as part of a group of pilots who came to be known as the “Tuskegee Airmen.” Lawrence will share some of his experiences during a talk at 10 this morning in the Physics Building Auditorium at Technical Area 3.
The Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity (HR-OEOD) and the African American Diversity Working Group are sponsoring the talk as part of the Lab’s observance of Black History Month in February.
The Tuskegee Airmen were the first squadron of fighter pilots composed entirely of African-Americans. Lawrence enlisted in the Army Air Corps after high school and was one of the original members of the 99th Pursuit Squadron. He advanced to captain and trained in Tuskegee, Alabama with the 332nd Fighter Group known as the “Tuskegee Airmen,” said Danny Valdez of HR-OEOD.
"In training, we had a sergeant who told us we were making history, but that didn’t really register then,” said Lawrence. "We just wanted to fly and defend our country.”
Lawrence received the Air Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters and a Presidential Unit citation for his thirty-three combat missions. He spent ten years as a public accountant and twenty-six years as a teacher, counselor, and school administrator.
For more information, contact Valdez at 5-7215 or dlvaldez@lanl.gov by electronic mail.
