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“Hellfighters” Awarded the Congressional Gold Medal

 

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Congressional Gold Medal

Debra Willett (center left) accepts the Congressional Gold Medal from Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson on behalf of the Army’s World War I 369th Infantry Regiment, the “Harlem Hellfighters,” during a 3 September 2025 ceremony at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. Willett is the granddaughter of Harlem Hellfighter Sgt. Leander Willett. (Photo by Christopher Kaufmann, U.S. Army)

 

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal to members of the 369th Infantry Regiment, known as the “Harlem Hellfighters,” for its actions during World War I in a 3 September 2025 ceremony at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. The Congressional Gold Medal is the highest award that can be conferred by the U.S. Congress.

The Harlem-based unit recruited Black Americans from all over the Nation to fight with the unit during World War I. However, with the prejudicial attitudes and policies of that time, the U.S. Army refused to let the Black unit fight in combat, so it instead fought with the French army, which lauded the men for their courage. The unit spent more time in continuous combat—191 days—than any other U.S. regiment. After the war, the French government awarded the Croix de Guerre to the unit and to 171 individual solders for their actions in combat.

Several members of Congress attended the ceremony. Harlem District Rep. Adriano Espaillat said during the event, “We honor the families and legacies of these patriots who gave their all to America’s enduring struggle to secure global freedom. They persevered even as they faced racism and discrimination here at home.”

Congressman Tom Suozzi added, “The Harlem Hellfighters gave everything for America despite extreme circumstances and intense discrimination. This medal is an effort to recognize their sacrifice, their courage and their service, and to say, ‘thank you.’”

Soldiers of the 369th Infantry Regiment

Soldiers of the 369th Infantry Regiment man a trench in France on 4 May 1918. (Photo courtesy of the National Archives)

Nine soldiers from the 369th Infantry Regiment

Nine soldiers from the 369th Infantry Regiment pose wearing the French Croix de Guerre, awarded to them for gallantry in action, upon their return home to New York from World War I. (Photo courtesy of the National Archives)

 

 

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November-December 2025