WASHINGTON – One of the first Black commanders to lead an elite unit in combat is receiving the nation’s highest award for valor, fixing what advocates viewed as a decades-long injustice.
President Joe Biden will award the prestigious honor to retired U.S. Army Col. Paris D. Davis at a White House ceremony Friday.
Davis dragged fellow soldiers to safety despite being wounded himself as he held off a vastly superior enemy force during a 1965 raid on a North Vietnamese army camp in Bong Son, according to the White House.
The package of recommendations and supporting documents for a Medal of Honor for Davis was lost at least twice as his nomination bounced around the Army and the Pentagon for nearly six decades.
Some advocates for Davis had argued that race was a factor in the delay.
Davis was one of the first Black officers in the Army Special Forces.
Why does Davis deserve the Medal of Honor?
Davis was leading an inexperienced South Vietnamese team in June 1965 when he used “surprise and leadership” to gain the tactical advantage over enemy forces, according to the White House.
Despite being wounded in the initial assault, Davis kept moving forward, engaging the enemy in hand-to-hand combat. After a later counterattack, Davis was shot in the leg as he rescued an America soldier trapped by enemy fire. Davis was hit by enemy grenade fragments when he went back for a second fellow American. Davis refused to be flown to safety by helicopter, remaining on the battlefield until all members of his company were extracted.
He coordinated air and artillery fire to ensure defeat of the North Vietnamese forces, according to the White House.
Why was the Medal of Honor delayed?
After the battle, Davis was recommended for the Medal of Honor by one of the men he’ had rescued, a team sergeant. But his nomination package was “lost” without explanation, according to Christopher C. Miller, who was an acting defense secretary during the Trump administration. A package recreated in 1969 also disappeared, Miller wrote in 2021 opinion piece for USA TODAY.
Miller said he tried during his tenure to restart the process but the bureaucracy stalled again.
“The Davis case raises troubling questions about what truly happened to his Medal of Honor nomination in 1965, then in 1969, and again through the years,” he wrote.
What is the Medal of Honor?
The Medal of Honor is given to members of the Armed Forces who risk their own lives above and beyond the call of duty while engaged in a conflict. Recipients must have shown great personal bravery or self-sacrifice. There also must be “incontestable proof” of their actions.
More about Davis
- Personal: Davis, 84, was born in Cleveland, Ohio. He lives in Arlington, Va.
- Military service: Davis was commissioned as an Army reserve officer in 1959. After graduating from Airborne and Ranger schools, he was selected for Special Forces in 1962.
- Previous honors: Davis has received the Silver Star, Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart and the Air Medal. He was inducted into the Ranger Hall of Fame in 2019.
- Post-military: After retiring from the military in 1985, Davis published a small newspaper in Virginia.
