CASH MICHAELS
DORIS "DORIE"MILLER
HONOR AMERICAN COURAGE AND PRIDE,
NOT COWARDICE AND THIEVERY
By Cash Michaels
When I was growing up as a little Black kid in Brooklyn, NY decades ago, I watched a lot of World War II movies on TV. That’s what was on all the time. Great white American heroes like Tyrone Power, Rock Hudson (who actually did serve in the US Navy), Robert Mitchum, Burt Lancaster, and John Wayne (who never served a day of his life in the real military, by the way)
I left Wayne for last, because out of all of them, he actually made a World War II movie about the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor by Japanese warplanes titled “In Harm’s Way.” Released in 1965 and directed by Otto Preminger, the film featured everything about that fateful day in American History, December 7th, 1941.
Well, almost everything.
Fortunately, as a kid, I didn’t count on that or any other movie to teach me about American history. Why? Because in not one of the many, many Hollywood films about World War II, did I ever see anyone who looked like me being brave, fearless and displaying love of country. And I know there were many. I have pictures of family hanging up at home, in uniform, who did.
That is until 1970, when an extraordinary joint production by 20th Century Fox Studios and the Toho Company of Japan titled “Tora, Tora, Tora” was released, retelling the story of Pearl Harbor from both the American and Japanese military perspectives.
It was in this movie that I first heard the name “Dorie Miller” and saw the portrayal of the courageous actions of a true American hero. Messman Second Class Doris “Dorie” Miller, 22, a grandson of slaves and the son of sharecroppers, whose job it was then to do the white officers’ dirty laundry, shine their shoes and serve them their meals. A mess attendant aboard the battleship USS West Virginia in America’s then segregated U.S. Navy, who during the Japanese attack, bravely tended after the seriously wounded captain of the West Virginia, fearlessly helped carry wounded sailors to safety, and then with no prior training or permission, instinctively got behind an anti-aircraft gun and according to US Navy records, shot down at least one attacking Japanese warplane (some witnesses say Miller actually downed four, maybe six).
But you know what the best thing about seaman Dorie Miller of Waco, Texas was?
He looked just like me, and back then, sailors who looked just like me were officially not allowed to handle weapons to defend their country like their white counterparts. Shoe polish, pots and pans and the captain’s dirty underwear, but no guns, grenades or rifles. And certainly no heavy artillery. The Black sailor who was segregated to the battleship galley (kitchen) or laundry room below showed up with a big, fat red “S” under his US Navy uniform during that “date which will live in infamy,” and started saving the lives of his crew members and defending his country, and it took a 1970 Amer-Japanese made movie to allow me to see this, and brag about it to my high school buddies (I’d have to wait until after college in 2001 to see it dramatized once more when Academy Award winning actor Cuba Gooding Jr. portrayed Dorie Miller in director Michael Bay’s big-bang production of “Pearl Harbor.”)
It has now taken 56 years for me to learn that all Dorie Miller got as gratitude from a "grateful" nation for his outstanding bravery and heroism was the distinguished Navy Cross, when he damn well deserved the much more prestigious Medal of Honor, and was nominated for it by members of Congress. President Franklin D. Roosevelt made sure Miller was the first Black man in history to have the Navy Cross pinned to his chest. But Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox was against Miller getting the Medal of Honor, let alone anything denoting his bravery because he was opposed to Black people serving in the US military in the first place. So it was quite ironic when a promoted Cook Petty Officer Doris “Dorie” Miller went on to serve aboard the escort carrier Liscome Bay, and lost his life when that ship was attacked by the Japanese in November 1943- two years after Pearl Harbor. Miller was among over 600 brave sailors who went to their watery graves during that attack, and without the due honor he deserved because some white supremacist with a government title wouldn’t let it happen.
Funny thing, right after the Pearl Harbor attack, the Navy wasn’t brave enough to publicize Miller’s name for four months, choosing instead to simply refer to him as “an unknown Negro sailor.” It took a Black newspaper to dig up the truth and reveal Dorie Miller’s name to the world for him to finally receive his due respect.
Now if the Dorie Miller story stopped right there, it would indeed be a sad, ironic tragedy.
But what’s happening now to the memory and brave sacrifice of this young Black serviceman is even sadder.
Acting Secretary of the US Navy Thomas Modly proudly announced on MLK Day 2020 that the next Gerald R. Ford-class nuclear aircraft carrier to be built - one of the mightiest symbols of American military power on the high seas - will not be dedicated for a deceased president or a state as they traditionally are, but after the beloved Pearl Harbor hero, the USS Doris Miller. This would be a tremendous honor, making seaman Miller the first African-American for which a naval vessel has been named for.
And there was also talk of Miller finally getting his well-deserved, long overdue Medal of Honor posthumously, too. This all would be justice for Dorie's family.
But now it’s being reported by CNN and other news organizations that very well may not happen. Reportedly the Navy has decided to rename the USS Doris Miller aircraft carrier after...Donald Trump instead.
To be clear, no naval vessel has ever been named for a president while he was still in office, let alone one convicted of 34 felonies, and charged with other alleged state and federal crimes.
So instead of doing the right thing in honoring the legacy of a brave American of color who had the courage to stand up for his country when needed the most in time of war, we’re about to see an American president who is a convicted felon, convicted sexual abuser, and all-around thief be honored instead for something he never did - serve his country in an honorable capacity, including during a war he started, and has now arguably and shamefully, lost.
In fact, we dare say we could call Trump President “Draft Deferment” for skipping the Vietnam War; President “Bone Spurs” noting the flaky health reason he gave for not allowing himself to be drafted for military service; and President “Final Disqualification” for pulling every trick in the book to not serve his country until, as a privileged rich white kid, he could get elected and rob it blind. As far as Donald Trump is concerned, not allowing a nuclear aircraft carrier to be named for a true Black American hero is just one more fitting way to further stab DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) in the heart. And he’s doing it with a gold-encrusted knife with his name on it, too.
The same with Trump’s stooge at the Pentagon, the fearless “Dept. of War” Secretary Pete “Mr. Testosterone” Hegeseth, who has made it very clear he wants no generals who are Black or females in the ranks because he doesn’t believe they’re good enough.
It’s the disgrace I just can’t get over. The proud legacy of Dorie Miller is something we should all celebrate and be proud of. When that poor Black man from Waco, Texas stood up from imposed government segregation to risk his young life for his country, he stood up for ALL of us, regardless of the social implications. Something ALL of us should teach our children. Heroes like Miller, the Tuskegee Airmen and the Buffalo Soldiers, to name a few in American history, ALL loved a country that didn’t always love them back.
And now we have a joke of a president wiping his feet on the legacy of a true American hero, just because he can. In the words of NAACP President/CEO Derrick Johnson, "Doris Miller earned his place in American history through courage, sacrifice, and service. Donald Trump only wants to serve himself. This is a slap in the face to every war hero and every service member who has worn the uniform. It's beyond comprehension for a president to want his own name on a Navy ship while our armed forces are living in deteriorating conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln.
"For generations, millions of Black women and men have proudly served in the United States military, defending freedoms that too often were not even afforded to them, their families, or their communities. Donald Trump is making a mockery of that legacy by treating military service as another opportunity for personal branding. Our brave service members signed up to defend the nation, not the fragile ego of one man. America deserves better than this."
If this Dorie Miller controversy disgusts you like it does me, then do something about it, and VOTE this November for the change we need. Our courageous military men and women of all colors and backgrounds deserve respect. Let’s honor American courage, not sniveling cowardice and corruption. We can do much, much better than Donald Trump and his obnoxious band of incompetent criminals.
So many people are pointing towards how the now late, but certainly great American icon, Dolly Parton, lived her life wanting to do her best for everyone, regardless of color or class. Let's try to follow her example. VOTE THIS FALL FOR AN HONORABLE AMERICA! The kind of America Dorie Miller bravely gave his life for!
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