Black hero swam in shark infested water for 8hrs saving white sailors untold black history

On the night of September 5, 1942, Japanese destroyers opened fire on the USS Gregory near Guadalcanal. Within three minutes, the ship was sinking. Men screamed. Flames lit up the darkness. Survivors scrambled into the black water—water they knew was filled with sharks.
Amid the chaos, a 22-year-old mess attendant named Charles Jackson French saw something that forced an impossible choice.
A life raft carrying 15 badly wounded sailors was drifting toward Japanese-held territory. If the current carried them to shore, they'd be captured, tortured, or killed. The injured men couldn't fight the current. They were drifting toward death.
French didn't hesitate.
He stripped off his waterlogged clothes, tied a rope around his waist, and slipped into the water.
For six to eight hours—through pitch-black night, through waters where sharks brushed against his legs, through exhaustion that would have drowned most men—Charles Jackson French swam. Stroke after stroke. Every muscle screaming. Every breath a battle.
He didn't stop until dawn broke and an Allied scout plane spotted them. All 15 men survived because one man refused to let them die.
When Ensign Robert Adrian, one of the survivors, tried to get French out of the water during the ordeal, French replied: "I'm more afraid of the Japanese than I am of the sharks. Just tell me if I'm going the right way."
Charles Jackson French was Black. In 1942, Black sailors in the U.S. Navy were restricted to serving as mess attendants—cooking, cleaning, serving white officers. They weren't allowed to fight. They weren't allowed to lead.
And when they performed extraordinary heroism? They weren't given the honors white sailors received.
French was recommended for the Navy Cross—the second-highest decoration for valor. Instead, the Navy gave him a letter of commendation.
Not a medal. Not a ceremony. Just a letter.
His story was told on radio programs. He appeared on war bond tours. Black newspapers called him "The Human Tugboat" and the "Hero of the Solomon Islands." But officially, the Navy barely acknowledged what he'd done.
After the war, French struggled. He suffered from what we now call PTSD. He died in 1956 at just 37 years old, never knowing his country would one day recognize his sacrifice.
Then, 80 years later, something changed.
In May 2022, the Navy posthumously awarded Charles Jackson French the Navy and Marine Corps Medal—the same award given to future President John F. Kennedy for similar wartime heroism.
And in January 2024, the Navy announced a guided-missile destroyer would bear his name: USS Charles J. French. A warship will now sail the seas, carrying the name of a man who once swam through those same waters to save 15 lives.
The men French saved told their children and grandchildren about the young man who swam through hell to bring them home. One survivor, Ensign Adrian, spent the rest of his life trying to get French the medal he deserved.
Charles Jackson French didn't swim through shark-infested waters for glory. He didn't tie that rope around his waist thinking about medals. He did it because 15 men needed saving, and he was able to save them.
That's heroism in its purest form.
The letter they gave him wasn't enough. The medal came too late. But the ship that will carry his name? That's a promise: We will not forget you again.
Black hero swam in shark infested water for 8hrs saving white sailors untold black history
...............................................................................................................................
Last year I had cancer of the appendix in 2023, sadly in 2024 August 5, I had heart failure, and a collapsed lungs where I was under rescutiation for a week . I try to make videos to educate and inspire but at this moment I am struggling with debts as a result of my illness. I still need to have my heart assessed to see what level the failure is.

My lungs is a level 2 failure of which I use a NIV machine for life. If you admire the videos I make and want to help me during this horrible, and difficult time so your donations will be much appreciated .You can also show your appreciation by buying me coffee, and a sandwich.

My videos are not monetised so I rely on fan appreciation to cover costs please note although I set a low limit; you can donate more if you choose too. Thank you so much
Thank you. https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/99...