Haitian-American Netteange Monaus is a cadet at United States Military Academy at West Point. She recently gave an amazing speech during the dedication ceremony for the General Benjamin O. Davis, Jr. Barracks at West Point. The general was a 1936 graduate of West Point, US Air Force General, and commander of the Tuskegee Airmen during World War II. She spoke about how General Davis’ experience and character are an inspiration to all those who come after him.
Below is her speech:
Courage is the strength to believe in who we are and then take action in summoning the best in ourselves in order to help others. Courage is the first word that comes to my mind when I think about the incredible life of Gen. Benjamin O. Davis Jr. attending West Point and joining a military not yet integrated, are no small feats. However, Gen. Davis had a dream, and he chose to set off on the path that would get him to that dream and change the course of many lives after him.
It was by strength and grit that Gen. Davis could survive such a time as the years he spent at West Point. Shunned for all four years, he still worked his way to graduate and became a commissioned officer of the United States military. This is because when there is a dream worth fighting for, nothing can stand in the way.
Gen. Davis exemplifies the core values of Duty, Honor and Country. He showed his devotion to his duty by conquering four trying years at the Academy. From my experience, it is the people that I have met at this academy, both classmates and instructors, who have inspired me to dig deeper and see the good that will result from my labors.
I cannot imagine how this 47-month experience would have been if there was just silence. No one who valued the dreams I had or encouraged me through my struggles—and yet, this is what Gen. Davis did. He worked steadfastly until he graduated top 1/3 in his class. Then, he continued on his military service beginning in the all-Black division of the 24th Infantry Regiment and reaching new heights as commander of the Tuskegee Airmen, the Red Tails.
When they spurned him at West Point or rejected him in the Army Air Corps or banned him from the officers’ club at Fort Benning or when he faced the unfair criticisms thrown at the Tuskegee airmen, he defended himself and his men by pouring all the more heart and soul in his duties, saying that he and his men “would go through any ordeal to show their worth.”
He showed honor by continuously fulfilling his service during a heated time of race relations in America. Of his time at West Point, he said “living as a prisoner in solitary confinement for four years had not destroyed my personality, nor poisoned my attitude toward other people.”
Davis’ perseverance revealed to the world that the human spirit does not break easy. This man, filled with passion and commitment, inspired change by breaking through color barriers and helping with the integration of the Air Force— constantly choosing what is right, when quitting would have been the easier option. Continue Reading Speech Here………..
Click here to read U.S. Military Academy at West Point Welcomes New Davis Barracks
