New York's Senator
CHARLES E. SCHUMER

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 25, 2001

SCHUMER: MOMENTUM BUILDING TO GET BUSH TO ENDORSE MEDAL OF HONOR FOR LOCAL WWI HERO HENRY JOHNSON

Western Union responds to Senator's call for civic action, launching grass roots campaign to put Capital Region residents in touch with the White House
Grassroots pressure is building on the Bush Administration to award the Congressional Medal of Honor to World War I hero and Albany-native Sgt. Henry Johnson, according to US Senator Charles E. Schumer. Schumer said Western Union will distribute 9,000 calling cards to customers this Memorial Day weekend, urging them to voice their support for giving the long overdue medal to Johnson.

The Western Union campaign follows a call by Schumer last month for businesses to get involved in the effort to get the medal for Johnson. Speaking at a rally in Albany in support of Johnson, Schumer called on Capital Region residents to let the Pentagon and the Administration know of their support for honoring the World War I hero.

"Western Union's campaign is exactly the type of civic action I was talking about a month ago at the rally," Schumer said. "This campaign sends a message that further denial of this medal undermines the heroism and sacrifices of Henry Johnson and the thousands of black soldiers who were denied equal treatment during a period when our nation's military was segregated. I want to thank Western Union for joining me in the fight to acknowledge this American hero ."

Starting this weekend, Western Union will provide 9,000 of its customers at over 50 participating locations in the Capital Region with 10-minute calling cards, information on Henry Johnson, and a phone number residents can call to make their support of Johnson known to President Bush.

In April, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Henry H. Shelton, decided not to endorse the January recommendation of then-Secretary of the Army Louis Caldera that Johnson receive the honor. Caldera's recommendation was the product of two years of lobbying by Schumer of both the Department of Defense and the Department of the Army. Schumer said Shelton's decision not to follow the recommendation is extremely unusual.

Johnson, an Albany native, served in the US Army from 1917 to 1919 but was not allowed to fight in an American combat unit overseas because he was an African-American. Seeking to serve his country, he joined a group of African American soldiers which came to be known as the "Harlem Hell-Fighters" who fought under the French flag. While on sentry duty on May 14, 1918, Johnson singlehandedly fought off a German raider party with rifle fire and hand-to hand combat. Despite sustaining 21 wounds, he kept his critically-injured sentry partner, Needham Roberts, from being captured by the Germans.

Although the US Army has used Johnson's name and likeness in recruiting ads, his bravery remains unrecognized by the United States . Former President Teddy Roosevelt called Johnson one of the five bravest men of World War I in his book Into the Line and France granted Johnson one of its highest decorations of bravery, the Croix de Guerre with Gold palm.
Congress made the Medal of Honor a permanent decoration in 1863, making it the highest honor bestowed upon American soldiers. According to the Congressional Medal of Honor Society, the decoration has been awarded 3,427 times to individuals who committed acts of bravery far above and beyond the call of duty.

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