T
the patriot
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The source of this article is from the Canadian Press. Originally printed on Sunday, September 10, 2000.
The London Free Press
BLACK WAR HERO FINALLY HONOURED
TRURO. N.S.- A black war hero, known in this Nova Scotia town as their Friendly Giant, was given a measure of the honour historians say he richly deserved during a ceremony yesterday.
Jeremiah Jones, a private in the Royal Canadian Regiment, crossed the bloody battlefield at Vimy Ridge and took an enemy machine-gun nest in April 1917.
He was passed over for military medals, but yesterday a group of 200 people watched the unveiling of a grave marker with full Royal Canadian Legion honours.
During the First World War, Truro newspapers described the six-foot-six Jones as "a patriot, brave, powerful and resourceful," but military leaders at the time seemed to ignore Jones‘s exploits.
In 1917, Jone‘s commander recommended him for a Distinguished Conduct Medal, the second highest award after the Victoria Cross. But the award never got past senior commanders of the Canadian Army.
Senator Calvin Ruck, a historian and author, said he believes this was because "the military saw the blacks as creating a problem just by being there."
Ruck - who attend the ceremony - has lobbied for almost a decade to have Jones‘s heroism recognized.
Family members said they harbour no bitterness.
During yesterday‘s ceremony, Willena Jones, Jeremiah‘s daughter-in-law, said "the past is the past. Today we are here for the future."
The headstone was erected as a result of the local branch of the Royal Canadian Legion contacting the Last Post Fund, a non-profit organization that supplies headstones for veterans.
The aim of the fund is to ensure all veterans have grave markers.
-the patriot-
The London Free Press
BLACK WAR HERO FINALLY HONOURED
TRURO. N.S.- A black war hero, known in this Nova Scotia town as their Friendly Giant, was given a measure of the honour historians say he richly deserved during a ceremony yesterday.
Jeremiah Jones, a private in the Royal Canadian Regiment, crossed the bloody battlefield at Vimy Ridge and took an enemy machine-gun nest in April 1917.
He was passed over for military medals, but yesterday a group of 200 people watched the unveiling of a grave marker with full Royal Canadian Legion honours.
During the First World War, Truro newspapers described the six-foot-six Jones as "a patriot, brave, powerful and resourceful," but military leaders at the time seemed to ignore Jones‘s exploits.
In 1917, Jone‘s commander recommended him for a Distinguished Conduct Medal, the second highest award after the Victoria Cross. But the award never got past senior commanders of the Canadian Army.
Senator Calvin Ruck, a historian and author, said he believes this was because "the military saw the blacks as creating a problem just by being there."
Ruck - who attend the ceremony - has lobbied for almost a decade to have Jones‘s heroism recognized.
Family members said they harbour no bitterness.
During yesterday‘s ceremony, Willena Jones, Jeremiah‘s daughter-in-law, said "the past is the past. Today we are here for the future."
The headstone was erected as a result of the local branch of the Royal Canadian Legion contacting the Last Post Fund, a non-profit organization that supplies headstones for veterans.
The aim of the fund is to ensure all veterans have grave markers.
-the patriot-
