Oscar Lawton Wilkerson (February 9, 1926 – February 8, 2023) was an American pilot and radio personality. He was one of 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 ...

, a group of

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

aviators and support personnel who served 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 ...

Early life

Wilkerson was born February 9, 1926, in

Chicago Heights, Illinois Chicago Heights is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 27,480 at the 2020 census. In earlier years, Chicago Heights was nicknamed "The Crossroads of the Nation". Currently, it is nicknamed "The Heights". Geograp ...

. He graduated from

Bloom Township High School Bloom High School is a public school in Chicago Heights, Illinois. It is part of Bloom Township High School District 206. The school was founded in 1900. A second Chicago Heights high school, Bloom Trail, was established in 1976 to offset overc ...

in 1944 and joined the

United States 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 ...

Military career

Wilkerson moved to

Tuskegee, Alabama Tuskegee () is a city in Macon County, Alabama, United States. It was founded and laid out in 1833 by General Thomas Simpson Woodward, a Creek War veteran under Andrew Jackson, and made the county seat that year. It was incorporated in 1843. ...

, for training and was assigned to the 617th Bombardment Squadron. He became 2nd Lieutenant and earned his "wings" in 1946. Wilkerson completed his training after the end of the war, so he did not have the chance to fly in combat. Wilkerson faced significant racial discrimination while serving in the Air Force because of the segregation of the military at the time. “The military had no intention of using black pilots. The real mission, the underlying mission, was for us to fail and prove their point,” Wilkerson said in an interview with the Southtown Star. Wilkerson faced segregation when he was required to sit in a different train car than white soldiers on his way to the Tuskegee base. When he arrived there, he found that blacks were forced to eat separately during meals and to sit apart from white soldiers while watching films. Along with the other Tuskegee Airmen, Wilkerson proved that blacks could perform military duties as capably as whites could. The Tuskegee Airmen had a direct impact on the integration of the armed services.

Civilian career

Following his military service, Wilkerson attended

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

to study photography. He also attended the Midwest Broadcasting School and graduated in 1960. He worked as a DJ for WBEE-AM in

Harvey, Illinois Harvey is a city in Cook County, Illinois, Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 20,324 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Harvey is bordered by the villages of Dixmoor, Illinois, Dixmoor and Riverdale, Illinois, R ...

and was known as "Weekend Wilkie." He also hosted his own radio show, ''Wilk's World''. He served as community relations director and later as program director for WBEE-AM. Later, he worked for the radio station

WMAQ (AM) WSCR (670 AM) – branded as 670 The Score – is a commercial sports radio station licensed to serve Chicago, Illinois, servicing the Chicago metropolitan area and much of surrounding Northern Illinois, Northwest Indiana and parts of the Milw ...

until his retirement. Since his retirement, Wilkerson has spent time volunteering for the Chicago "DODO" Chapter of the Tuskegee Airmen, helping minority and at-risk youth fly for free through the "

Young Eagles The Young Eagles is a program created by the US Experimental Aircraft Association designed to give children between the ages of 8 to 17 an opportunity to experience flight in a general aviation airplane while educating them about aviation. The pr ...

" program.

Personal life and death

Wilkerson lived in

Markham, Illinois Markham is a city and a south suburb of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 11,661 at the 2020 census. Geography Markham is located at (41.597467, -87.691570). According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Markh ...

. He died on February 8, 2023, a day before his 97th birthday.

Awards

Congressional Gold Medal The Congressional Gold Medal is an award bestowed by the United States Congress. It is Congress's highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements and contributions by individuals or institutions. The congressional pract ...

awarded to the Tuskegee Airmen in 2006

Related works

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History Makers Interview with WilkersonRed Tails
a 2012 film about the Tuskegee Airmen

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilkerson, Oscar 1926 births 2023 deaths Tuskegee Airmen People from Chicago Heights, Illinois Aviators from Illinois African-American DJs Philanthropists from Illinois United States Army Air Forces pilots of World War II New York University alumni Bloom High School alumni 21st-century African-American people Military personnel from Illinois