Melvin Morris served two tours of duty in Vietnam, but because of his race he didn't receive the Medal of Honor. Morris talks to NPR's Rachel Martin about the award he'll receive from President Obama.
You can listen to the interview, which aired March 16, 2014, on WUSF 89.7 FM.
Morris told Martin that he has no regrets.
"I am never angry about it. You know war is war and we do what we're told to do and we don't determine the outcome," Morris said.
The former Army sergeant spoke with Martin from his home in Port St. John, FL.
He and is one of 24 veterans to be awarded the Medal of Honor in a White House ceremony March 18, 2014. All but three of the awards are posthumous with seven going to World War II veterans, nine to Korean War veterans, and eight to Vietnam War veterans.
Morris is one of the three living Vietnam veterans who will be present at the ceremony. He served with distinction for 23 years in the United States Army.
And the military life agreed with Morris and his family reports Lisa Ferdinando for the Army News Service.
"I never regret not one day of being in the military. Not one. The bad days are good and the good days are good," he said. As a paratrooper and jumpmaster, Morris remembered fondly his time in the skies, "I was as high as I could go, and that was great, to hang out of the door of that aircraft." Morris left the Army for three years, but his devotion to duty and commitment to the nation were too strong and beckoned him back into the uniform. "Call of duty, I just couldn't get away from it. Military was in my blood and I wanted to go back," Morris said. "I was 36 years old and started over as an E-4, which didn't bother me. I'm Army. That's it. I wanted to finish my career."
You can read more about Morris' service to his country and the day-long battle in a Vietnam jungle in the Army News Service.
Morris displayed the the "highest valor" but only received the Distinguished Service Cross because of his race. You can read the citation for his Distinguished Service Cross which is being upgraded to the Medal of Honor this week.
