74 YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF THE PEARL HARBOR ATTACK REMEMBRANCE DAY

Washington, DC – (Monday, December 15, 2015)  Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson released the following statement honoring the legacy of those soldiers that served and died during the attack on Pearl Harbor. Today marks the 74 year anniversary of the attack.  Congresswoman Johnson also submitted a congressional record statement honoring the victims of the attack.

“I would like to take a moment to honor the victims who were killed during the devastating attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 – a date which will live in infamy.  Seventy-four years ago today, more than 2,000 American citizens lost their lives and more than 1,000 others were injured in a surprise attack by the Imperial Japanese Navy.

Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day is also about paying tribute to those who served – and survived – during the attack.  Petty Officer Doris “Dorie” Miller was one such American who fought bravely during the conflict.  Petty Officer Miller displayed remarkable courage when his ship, the USS West Virginia, came under attack.  As the fighting occurred, Miller dragged his ship’s commander, who was mortally wounded by shrapnel, out of the line of fire to safety.  He then manned a 50-caliber Browning anti-aircraft machine gun and shot down at least three of the 29 Japanese planes that went down that day until he was ordered to abandon ship.  While Petty Officer Miller survived the attack on Pearl Harbor, he sadly lost his life during a second attack during the Battle of Makin Island when a Japanese submarine and aircraft attack sunk his ship.