During World War II, the Tuskegee Airmen became the first Black military aviators in the U.S. military, with over 14,000 service members fighting in the war. This was an incredible feat in an era where Black men fought in segregated units and were considered inferior soldiers to White men. Trained in Tuskegee, Alabama, at the historically Black Tuskegee Institute founded by Booker T. Washington, the Tuskegee airmen distinguished themselves as effective airmen by flying over 15,000 sorties over the battlefields of Europe and North Africa. Their bravery and exceptional service helped make a case for the integration of the armed forces by Harry S. Truman after the war.