A couple of days ago, I read the obituary of David E. Harris who passed away at the age of 89. Harris, fresh out of the Air Force, became the first African American pilot to fly for a commercial airliner when American Airlines hired him in 1964. He would attain the rank of captain and would remain with American Airlines for more than 30 years. Hell, Harris has a permanent exhibit at the Smithsonian Institution.
Harris had interviewed for other commercial aviation jobs and was turned down on account of his race. When he told the chief pilot for American Airlines that he was black, the pilot replied, "This is American Airlines and we don't care if you're black, white or chartreuse, we only want to know, can you fly the plane?"
When I read that particular statement, I could not help but think of what conservative leading light Charlie Kirk said about black pilots back in January. Kirk said on his show, "If I see a Black pilot, I'm gonna be like 'boy, I hope he is qualified.'"
Well, good to know that Charlie Kirk sees fit to judge people by the color of their skin.
In which case, I suppose Kirk would have questioned the patriotism and service of the Tuskegee Airmen during WWII. Had he saw David E. Harris entering the cockpit, I have no doubt that he would have questioned his credentials because he assumes black people have no credentials and are gainfully employed only by virtue of affirmative action or DEI. As Mike Freeman of USA Today wrote when at the time Kirk made his remarks:
What's important to remember is that people like Kirk will always be there. In the background. Lying. Or trying to crush dreams. When that happens, remember that he can't. Remember that the Tuskegee Airmen fought far worse racism and were still the best pilots in the world.
They never forgot something: the power of a dream.
Freeman's passage also applies to David E. Harris. Like the Tuskegee Airmen, Harris soared to heights that Charlie Kirk and his bigoted, closed mind can never reach. R.I.P.
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