☞ SEE: 761st at the Gatehouse Theater

FREE EVENT: Wednesday, Feb 3rd, starting 7:30 PM at The Gatehouse Theater. The 761st was the first unit to enlist African-American soldiers to operate armored vehicles in WWII. What the Tuskegee Airmen were to the skies, the 761st was to land. They were requested by General George S. Patton to assist with heavy fighting during the Battle of the Bulge in WWII. The soldiers of the 761st Tank Battalion fought for 183 consecutive days, in six countries, and with great success despite a fifty-percent casualty rate.

Despite these undeniable accomplishments, the 761st Tank Battalion would not receive their due credit until April 20, 1978 when President Carter issued the Presidential Unit Citation to them. It took 52 years before Staff Sergeant Ruben Rivers would be awarded a posthumous Congressional Medal of Honor (January 13, 1997) in a ceremony presided over by President Clinton.

In 761st, twelve of these great soldiers recount their experience in the United States Army, fighting for a freedom overseas that they did not enjoy in America. Screening followed by Q&A with Pete Chatmon and reception. Harlem Stage is at the Gatehouse Theater in Hamilton Heights is at 150 Convent Avenue at West 135th Street. Tel: 212.281.9240. Take the 1 train to 137th Street. See more at the Harlem Stage site: LINK. RSVP at boxoffice.harlemstage.org