The city of Albany commemorated a local war hero Wednesday.
Sergeant Henry Johnson enlisted in the Army on June 5th, 1917, a date now commemorated in Albany as Henry Johnson Day. Speaking to elementary school students in Albany, City Auditor and mayoral candidate Dorcey Applyrs says Johnson was deserving of the posthumous Medal of Honor he received in 2015 for his actions in World War I.
“On May 15th 1918, Private Henry Johnson suffered numerous wounds and rescued a fellow soldier, Needham Roberts, while repelling an enemy raid in the forests of France. These actions resulted in Johnson becoming one of the first Americans to be awarded the French Croix de Guerre, France's highest award of valor,” Applyrs said.
Johnson died in obscurity in 1929 after speaking out against racism in the armed forces, a stark contrast to the celebration he received after returning from war.
“His pictures were printed on recruitment posters and ads for victory war stamps, and former President Theodore Roosevelt referred to him as one of the five bravest Americans,” Applyrs said.
The ceremony included performances of the “Star-Spangled Banner,” as well as “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” the Black National Anthem.
In commemorating Johnson, Albany each year recognizes city residents who have made a difference in the community with the Henry Johnson Award. Mayor Kathy Sheehan says nominations for this year are open.
“We are asking people to nominate someone that they know here in the city of Albany, who displays community leadership in one of these four areas: arts and history, education, social justice, or as a volunteer,” Sheehan said.
Nominations are open until August 16th.
Sheehan says the process to have Johnson and his achievements recognized took years, but city residents many years ago insisted that Johnson not be forgotten.
“They were told that because he had passed away, because there wasn't any contemporaneous written documentation — that means something that was written 100 years ago — that they couldn't find that he couldn't get the recognition that he deserved,” Sheehan said.
According to the National Parks Service, the missing document, Johnson’s service record, was uncovered in the 1990s during reexaminations of African Americans’ service records from the war. Again, Sheehan.
“In 2015, I was able to go to Washington, D.C., and be in the White House, when President Barack Obama posthumously bestowed the Medal of Honor on Sergeant Henry Johnson,” Sheehan said.
Johnson was also honored in June 2023 when Louisiana’s Fort Polk was renamed for him.
For WAMC News in Albany, I’m Alexander Babbie.
