The only black unit, totally feminine, which serves in Europe during World War II, commonly known as the “Triple Eight Six”, will be presented on Tuesday with the Gold Medal of Congress, after a long campaign to recognize its efforts.
The 6888º Central Postal Directory Battalion was attributed to the resolution of a growing mail crisis during his period in England and, upon his return, served as a model to follow for generations of black women who joined the military.
An accumulation of approximately 17 million pieces of mail in three months came, twice as projected. The battalion would continue to serve in France before returning home. And like many black units during World War II, his exploits never received the attention he gave to his white counterparts, so far.
In a ceremony scheduled to be held in the Emancipation Room at the Capitol Visitor Center, the president of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, and others will present the medal to the family of the unit commander, Lieutenant Colonel Charity Adams Earley.
Kim Guise, main curator and director of curatorial affairs at the National Museum of World War II, said there are only two women living from the 855 who served in the unit.
“That really shows how long this recognition took,” Guise said. “It is really important to recognize the achievements of these women and what happened to serve their country in the time of war.”
The Wisconsin representative, Gwen Moore, who co -matocinated the legislation to award the medal at 6888 Battalion of the central postal board, called him a very late honor for women in the unit.
“These heroes deserve their quotas; and I am very happy to tell their story,” said Moore, Democrat, The Associated Press on Monday. “I feel especially honored to ensure that my constituent Mrs. Anna Mae Robertson and the many others who served her are recognized for her selfless service.”
In 2022, Congress voted 422-0 to grant its greatest honor at 6888.
“He is overwhelming,” the greatest Fannie Griffin McClendon, who lives in Arizona, withdrew, He told the AP After the vote. “It’s something I never thought about that.”
McClendon joined the Air Force after the army was integrated and retired in 1971. She was the first woman to command a squad of men with the strategic air command.
He 6888th It was sent abroad in 1945, a time when there was a growing pressure of African -American organizations to include black women in what was called the women’s army body, and allowed them to join their white counterparts abroad.
“They kept screaming about wanting we were going abroad, so I guess they found something for us to do abroad: take care of the mail,” McClendon said. “And there was a lot of mail … They hoped we were there about two or three months trying to straighten it. Well, I think that in approximately a month, in a month and a half, we straightened everything in the right direction.”
The 6888º worked throughout the day, processing around 65,000 pieces of mail in each of the three shifts. They created a system using location cards with the name and unit number of a service member to ensure that the mail would be delivered.
Over the years, the history of the unit began to obtain a broader recognition. TO The monument was erected in 2018 in Fort LeavenworthKansas, to honor them, and 6888 received the recommendation of the meritorious unit in 2019. A documentary “The six triple eight” It was made about his exploits. In 2024, Tyler Perry directed a film for Netflix about the unit, Starring Kerry Washington.
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Associated Press writer Michael Casey contributed to this report.
