Who is Doris Miller

Doris "Dorie" Miller (October 12, 1919 - November 24, 1943) was an African American cook in the United States Navy and a hero who went above and beyond the call of duty during the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. He was the first African American to be awarded the Navy Cross, the third highest honor awarded by the US Navy at the time, after the Medal of Honor and the Navy Distinguished Service Medal (today the Navy Cross precedes the Distinguished Service Medal). In 2002, scholar Molefi Kete Asante listed Doris Miller on his list of 100 Greatest African Americans.

Early Life and Career
Miller was born in Waco, Texas, on October 12, 1919, to Henrietta and Connery Miller. He was the third of four sons and grew up in a strong and loving household. He enjoyed playing with his brothers but was also a considerate child. He often helped around the house, cooking meals and doing laundry, as well as working the fields. Miller was a good student and a fullback on the football team at Waco's A.J. Moore High School. They called him the "Raging Bull" because of his size (5 ft 9 in, over 200 lb).

The Attack on Pearl Harbor
Miller awoke at 6:00 A.M. and was collecting laundry when the alarm for general quarters was sounded. He headed for his battle station, the antiaircraft battery magazine amidship, only to discover that torpedo damage had wrecked it. He went on deck where he was assigned to carry wounded fellow sailors to safer locations. When Captain Mervyn Bennion was injured by a bomb splinter, an officer ordered Miller to the bridge to help in the effort to move him to a place of relative safety. Miller picked him up and attempted to carry him to a first-aid station; the Captain refused to leave his post and remained on the bridge until his death.

World War II
Miller's rank was raised to Mess Attendant First Class on June 1. On June 27, The Pittsburgh Courier called for Miller to be allowed to return home for a war bond tour like white heroes. The following November 23, Miller arrived at Pearl Harbor, and was ordered on a war bond tour while still attached to USS Indianapolis. In December and January he gave talks in Oakland, California, in his hometown of Waco, Texas, in Dallas, and to the first graduating class of African-American sailors from Great Lakes Naval Training Station, Chicago. The Pittsburgh Courier continued to hammer to return Miller for a war bond tour in the February 6, 1943 issue. The caption to Miller's photo read, "He fought...Keeps Mop", while another hero of Pearl Harbor got a commission. It said that Miller was "too important waiting tables in the Pacific to return him", even though he was already on tour.

Popular Culture
Miller's face adorned the U.S. Navy recruiting poster "above and beyond the call of duty". In 1942, Miller's actions were dramatized on the CBS radio series They Live Forever. He was portrayed by Elven Havard in the 1970 film Tora! Tora! Tora!, and in 2001 he was portrayed by Cuba Gooding Jr. in the film Pearl Harbor. In 2007, the historian Bill O'Neal published Doris Miller: Hero of Pearl Harbor. [read the Wikipedia article]

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