John W. Rogers Sr. (September 3, 1918 January 21, 2014) was an American attorney and military aviator. He served as a

Cook County, Illinois Cook County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, California. More than 40% of all residents of Illinois live within Cook County. As of 20 ...

Juvenile Court judge,

attorney Attorney may refer to: * Lawyer ** Attorney at law, in some jurisdictions * Attorney, one who has power of attorney * ''The Attorney'', a 2013 South Korean film See also * Attorney general, the principal legal officer of (or advisor to) a gove ...

U.S. Army Air Force The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

officer and combat fighter pilot with the

332nd Fighter Group The 332d Expeditionary Operations Group is a provisional air expeditionary group of the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command, currently active. It was inactivated on 8 May 2012 and reactivated 16 November 2014. The group forms part of ...

's 99th Pursuit Squadron, best known as the

Tuskegee Airmen The Tuskegee Airmen were a group of primarily African American military pilots (fighter and bomber) and airmen who fought in World War II. They formed the 332d Fighter Group and the 477th Fighter Group, 477th Bombardment Group (Medium) of the ...

or "Red Tails". He was one of the 1007 documented Tuskegee Airmen Pilots. He was the father of

John W. Rogers Jr. John Washington Rogers Jr. (born March 31, 1958) is an American investor and founder of Ariel Capital Management (now Ariel Investments, LLC), founded in 1983. He is chairman and co- CEO of the company, which is the United States' largest mino ...

(born March 31, 1958), an investor.

Early life

He was born in

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County, Tennessee, Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Di ...

on September 3, 1918. He was the son of John Rogers (circa 1887–1930) and Ann Rogers (died 1922). His siblings included Geraldine Rogers, Anise Rogers and Juanita Rogers. In 1922, his mother Ann died when he was 4. In 1930, his father died when he was 12. Soon after, he and his sisters were relocated to Chicago to live with their uncle, Henry Tanner, who proved to be very benevolent and an exceptional role model for him and his sisters. He attended

Tilden Technical High School Edward Tilden Career Community Academy High School (formerly known as Tilden Technical High School) is a public 4–year high school bordered between the Canaryville and Fuller Park neighborhoods on the south side of Chicago, Illinois, United Sta ...

. In 1941, he earned a bachelor's degree in education from

Chicago State University Chicago State University (CSU) is a predominantly black public university in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1867 as the Cook County Normal School, it was an innovative teachers college. Eventually the Chicago Public Schools assumed control of t ...

. During this time, he earned a pilot's license through the Civilian Pilot Training Program offered on the South Side of Chicago.

Military career, Tuskegee airmen

After obtaining his pilot license, he enlisted in the

U.S. Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical ri ...

. On August 5, 1942, he graduated from the Tuskegee Advanced Pilot Cadet program as a member of the fifth-ever Cadet Class Single Engine Section SE-42-G, receiving his wings and commission as a

2nd Lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

. He was one of

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

's first thirty-four African American combat fighter pilots. He was assigned to the 332nd Fighter Group's

99th Fighter Squadron The 99th Infantry Division was formed in 1942 and deployed overseas in 1944. The "Checkerboard" or "Battle Babies" division landed at the French port of Le Havre and proceeded northeast to Belgium. During the heavy fighting in the Battle of the ...

and was one of the original 28 99th Fighter Squadron pilots to be deployed overseas. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, he flew 120 combat missions throughout the

European Theater The European theatre of World War II was one of the two main theatres of combat during World War II. It saw heavy fighting across Europe for almost six years, starting with Germany's invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939 and ending with the ...

. Fellow pilots considered him a highly skilled dive bomber pilot. After the war he left the U.S. Army Air Corps with the rank of

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Law career

Rogers Sr. attended the University of Chicago Law School, graduating in 1948 with a Juris Doctor degree. Though the University of Chicago's admissions office initially rejected him, he returned to the office donning his U.S. Army Air Corps' officer uniform, making an argument that anyone who has served America during the war deserved admittance. The University of Chicago Law School rescinded its rejection, admitting Rogers Sr relied on academic funding provided by the

GI Bill The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, commonly known as the G.I. Bill, was a law that provided a range of benefits for some of the returning World War II veterans (commonly referred to as G.I.s). The original G.I. Bill expired in 1956, bu ...

. After graduating from the

University of Chicago Law School The University of Chicago Law School is the law school of the University of Chicago, a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. It is consistently ranked among the best and most prestigious law schools in the world, and has many dist ...

in 1948, he and his then-wife, attorney

Jewel Lafontant Jewel Stradford Lafontant-Mankarious (April 28, 1922 – May 31, 1997) was the first female (and African American female) deputy solicitor general of the United States, an official in the administration of President George H. W. Bush, and an attor ...

, formed their own law firm. In 1974, he joined the law firm Earl L. Neal & Associates (now Neal & Leroy), working there until 1977. In May 1977, he was appointed a Cook County Associate Judge. Several months later, he was assigned to the Juvenile Division where he served 21 years as a Cook County Juvenile Court Judge. In 1998 he retired from the bench.

Personal life

On his first day at

law school A law school (also known as a law centre or college of law) is an institution specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for becoming a lawyer within a given jurisdiction. Law degrees Argentina In Argentina, ...

at the University of Chicago Law School, he met Jewel Lafontant (born Jewel Carter Stradford), a young woman who would become the first African-American woman to graduate from the University of Chicago Law School and serve under two U.S. presidents. They married in 1946. After graduating from the University of Chicago Law School in 1948, Rogers Sr and Jewel formed their own law firm. He and Jewel had only one child,

(born March 31, 1958), an investor, philanthropist and founder of Ariel Capital Management (now Ariel Investments, LLC), founded in 1983. In 1961, he and Jewel divorced. In 1968, he met fellow University of Chicago graduate Gwendolyn on a blind date. After dating for 33 years, they married in 2001. He was a longtime resident of

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Hyde Park Hyde Park may refer to: Places England * Hyde Park, London, a Royal Park in Central London * Hyde Park, Leeds, an inner-city area of north-west Leeds * Hyde Park, Sheffield, district of Sheffield * Hyde Park, in Hyde, Greater Manchester Austra ...

neighborhood.

Death

On January 21, 2014, he died at the

University of Chicago Medical Center The University of Chicago Medical Center (UChicago Medicine) is a nationally ranked academic medical center located in Hyde Park on the South Side of Chicago. It is the flagship campus for The University of Chicago Medicine system and was establis ...

. His memorial service was held at the Rockefeller Memorial Chapel in Chicago. He was interred at

Oak Woods Cemetery Oak Woods Cemetery is a large lawn cemetery in Chicago, Illinois. Located at 1035 E. 67th Street, in the Greater Grand Crossing area of Chicago's South Side. Established on February 12, 1853, it covers . Oak Woods is the final resting place o ...

in Chicago.

Legacy

* In 2007 the collective group of Tuskegee Airmen, received the Congressional Gold Medal. * In 2012, the University of Chicago Law School named its Admissions Office after him and his late first wife, Jewel Lafontant. * In January 2012, President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

, a friend of his son John W. Rogers Jr., invited him and a group of surviving Tuskegee Airmen to the White House to view the movie

Red Tails ''Red Tails'' is a 2012 American war film directed by Anthony Hemingway in his feature film directorial debut, and starring Terrence Howard and Cuba Gooding Jr. The film is about the Tuskegee Airmen, a group of African-American United States A ...

. * In 2014, the Illinois House of Representatives filed House Resolution HR0839-LRB098-19210-MST 54362 in honor of him and his enduring legacy. * In 2016, the City of Chicago renamed section of 57th Street between Stony Island and Cornell Drive on the Chicago's South Side in honor of Rogers Sr.ABC 7. "South Side street renamed in honor of Tuskegee Airman. July 5, 2016. https://abc7chicago.com/john-w-rogers-sr-tuskegee-airman-57th-street-airmen/1414557/

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rogers, John W., Sr. Tuskegee Airmen 1918 births 2014 deaths African-American aviators Military personnel from Chicago People from Illinois Aviators from Illinois United States Army Air Forces pilots of World War II 21st-century African-American people University of Chicago Law School alumni