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Roscoe C. Brown Jr.

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For the actor, see Roscoe Lee Browne.
Roscoe Brown
Brown speaks at the dedication of the Tuskegee Airmen Bus Depot of MTA Regional Bus.
Born(1922-03-09)March 9, 1922
Washington, D.C., US
DiedJuly 2, 2016(2016-07-02) (aged 94)
Bronx, New York, US
AllegianceUnited States
Service / branchArmy Air Corps
RankCaptain
Unit100th Fighter Squadron of the 332nd Fighter Group
ConflictWorld War II
AwardsDistinguished Flying Cross

Dr. Roscoe Conkling Brown Jr. (March 9, 1922 – July 2, 2016) was one of the Tuskegee Airmen and a squadron commander of the 100th Fighter Squadron of the 332nd Fighter Group.[1]

Brown was born in Washington, D.C., in 1922.[2][3] His mother was a teacher and his father, Roscoe C. Brown Sr. (1884–1963), was a dentist and an official in the United States Public Health Service[4] who was born as George Brown and had changed his name to honor Roscoe Conkling, a strong supporter of the rights of African Americans during Reconstruction. His mother was the former Vivian Kemp, a teacher.[2]

Brown graduated from Springfield College, Springfield, Massachusetts, where he was valedictorian of the Class of 1943.[5] He joined the U.S. Army, and graduated from the Tuskegee Flight School on March 12, 1944, as member of class 44-C-SE[1]

During combat with the U.S. Army Air Forces in Europe during World War II, he served as a flight leader and operations officer. On a March 24, 1945, mission to Berlin, Captain Brown shot down a German Me 262 jet fighter, becoming the first 15th Air Force pilot to shoot down a jet. On March 31, he downed a Fw 190 fighter.[6][7] He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.[8]

He was appointed commander in June 1945, which was after VE Day (May 8, 1945).

(L-R) Tuskegee Airmen Roscoe C. Brown, Marcellus G. Smith, and Benjamin O. Davis
Brown receives the Congressional Gold Medal from President George W. Bush in 2007

After the war, Brown resumed his education. His doctoral dissertation at New York University[8] was on exercise physiology.[9]

Brown became a professor at New York University and directed the NYU Institute of Afro-American Affairs (now the Institute of African American Affairs) in 1950.[10] Brown hosted The Soul of Reason, a radio talk show with interviewees which included politicians, professional athletes, medical professionals, and contemporary artists, which aired between 1971 and 1986.[11] Brown also hosted Black Arts (1970–71)[12] and CUNY TV show African American Legends.[10] Brown was President of Bronx Community College from 1977 to 1993 and director for the Center for Education Policy at the City University of New York.[2] Among his many distinguished awards, honors, and recognitions, he was elected into the National Academy of Kinesiology (née American Academy of Physical Education)[13] in 1971 as an Associate Fellow.[14] In 1992, Brown received an honorary doctor of humanics degree from his alma mater, Springfield College.

On March 29, 2007, Brown attended a ceremony in the U.S. Capitol rotunda, where he and the other Tuskegee Airmen were collectively awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in recognition of their service.[15]

He was also a member and past president of the 100 Black Men of America New York Chapter.[16] and professor of Urban Education at the CUNY Graduate Center.

Brown died on July 2, 2016, at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, N.Y. at the age of 94.[2][17][18] He had resided in Riverdale in his latter years.[19] His ashes were interred at Arlington National Cemetery on what would have been his 95th birthday, March 9, 2017.[20]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Tuskegee University's Tuskegee Airmen Pilot Listing. Retrieved 2012-01-21 Archived 2013-12-03 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ a b c d Roberts, Sam (July 7, 2016). "Roscoe C. Brown, Jr., 94, Tuskegee Airman and Political Confidant". New York Times. p. A17. Archived from the original on 6 July 2016. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  3. ^ "Roscoe C. Brown". thehistorymakers.com. Archived from the original on 11 May 2013. Retrieved 6 November 2013.
  4. ^ The History Makers Archived 2011-06-17 at the Wayback Machine Biography of Captain Brown
  5. ^ Interview: Dr Roscoe Brown, Tuskegee Airman and Squadron Commander Archived 2022-01-23 at the Wayback Machine claytonperry.com
  6. ^ "Roscoe C. Brown, Jr. - Military Biography". Archived from the original on 2008-05-01. Retrieved 2010-01-29.
  7. ^ "Roscoe Brown, Jr. Biography". Archived from the original on 2016-08-18. Retrieved 2010-01-29.
  8. ^ a b "Saying farewell to an American hero: Roscoe Brown Jr". The New York Post. July 5, 2016. Archived from the original on 2023-07-05. Retrieved 2021-04-13.
  9. ^ Pilot and edicator Roscoe C Brown Keystone College
  10. ^ a b "Famed Tuskegee Airman and educator, Dr. Roscoe C. Brown Jr. passes at 94". amsterdamnews.com. 7 July 2016. Archived from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-06-19.
  11. ^ "Guide to the Records of the Institute of African American Affairs RG.9.8". dlib.nyu.edu. Archived from the original on 2021-04-30. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
  12. ^ Heitner, Devorah (2013). Black power TV. Durham. p. 151. ISBN 978-0-8223-5409-3. OCLC 816030807. Archived from the original on 2024-03-04. Retrieved 2021-06-19.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  13. ^ Cardinal, Bradley J. (2022). "The National Academy of Kinesiology: Its founding, focus, and future". Kinesiology Review. 11 (1): 6–25. doi:10.1123/kr.2021-0064.
  14. ^ The American Academy of Physical Education (1971). "The Academy Welcomes to Associate Fellowship". The Academy Papers. 5: 89.
  15. ^ "WWII black pilots, Tuskegee Airmen, get top civilian honor" Archived 2011-06-29 at the Wayback Machine William Douglas. McClatchy Newspapers, March 30, 2007.
  16. ^ Roscoe C Brown, Jr Facebook
  17. ^ "Longtime NYC educator, WWII hero, Roscoe Brown dead at 94". New York Daily News. 4 July 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-07-06. Retrieved 2016-07-05.
  18. ^ World War II Hero Dr. Roscoe C. Brown Dies at 94 Archived 2016-07-05 at the Wayback Machine
  19. ^ "Sixty years later, Congress honors Tuskegee Airmen" Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine William Douglas. McClatchy Newspapers, March 15, 2007.
  20. ^ "Brown, Roscoe C". ANCExplorer. U.S. Army. Archived from the original on 2020-10-16. Retrieved 2021-04-13.
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Academic offices
Preceded by President of
Bronx Community College
1977 — 1993 		Succeeded by
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