Tuskegee Airman Speaks in Honor of Black History Month

It was standing room only as the crowd gathered to hear stories from a local hero. George Watson Sr. proudly obliged.

Watson, a Lakewood native, is an original Tuskegee Airman. In honor of Black History Month, the Manchester Branch of the Ocean County Library asked him to speak at a special event.

“This is such a great story and he is a smart and sweet man,” said Donna Risner, Diversity Program Coordinator and event organizer. Risner organizes this event every year.

Watson graduated Lakewood High School in 1941. In 1942 he enlisted in the Air Force and was shipped off to Tuskegee, Ala. His deployment to Tuskegee was based on his test scores.

Watson did not want to go to Tuskegee, but looking back, he said he is proud he was given that opportunity. Tuskegee was the first and only “black” military base at that time.

Because of his background in accounting, he was given the job of a clerk. He was responsible for ensuring that all the parts for the fighter planes, P51s, were in stock and ready for use. He was promoted to Tech Sergeant within a year.

When asked what experience stood out the most for him, Watson recalled a run-in with the Military Police. He was on his first leave, waiting for a bus to take him home and was detained by the MPs.

Because of the prejudice at that time, Watson said the police did not believe that he was a Tech Sergeant. While he waited for the MPs to verify his status, he missed three buses, and was finally released.

That unfortunately was not his only experience with prejudice while in the military. A few years later he would experience it in the North.

Watson served for two years, and re-enlisted 11 months later when he found out a good friend of his had re-enlisted and was stationed at a base in Columbus, Ohio. This base came to be the last home for the Tuskegee Airmen.

Watson's time there, however, was short lived as he was transferred to Mitchell Field in New York in 1947. Blacks were not able to live on the base and were forced to be bussed out every evening to barracks off the base.

While there, he found out that he would never become a pilot because of his lack of a college education. He was given the job of transporting prisoners, a task he had no experience with.

He was later given the opportunity to chose a job that was better suited for him - Aircraft and Missile Technician. This afforded him the opportunity to be transferred back to Ohio.

Watson never became a pilot and was never promoted in the 20 years he served. The reason he was given was that there were too many Master Sergeants in his field. “It was a matter of me being at the wrong place at the wrong time," Watson said. “I had my own family and obligations to them, so I had to do what was best for my family”.

Watson retired in 1969. He has received many honors, the most prestigious being the Congressional Gold Medal in March 2007. He was interviewed by George Lucas for a documentary called “Red Tail,” set for release in 2012.

At age 90, Watson still travels, speaking to prisons, schools, military personnel and sharing his stories and the importance the military served in his life. He has written two books, collects memorabilia and organizes a scholarship fund so that others have the opportunity to accomplish what he could not.