Clarence Sasser Quotes

I make appearances, and I select what I do very carefully. I usually do active-duty situations, speaking at military reservations, posts or bases, and at high schools. I like to tell the schoolkids that the actions they take should be directed toward their benefit, meaning: Don't go out there and do something wrong. That's not to your benefit. Have goals, be disciplined, follow that discipline to that goal.

I think considerable progress has been made from the time of Mr. Truman's order to integrate the services in nineteen forty-seven. I think the color of your skin has very very little effect in the military today. The military usually lags behind society, but on this issue I think the military has transcended society. Now it's the best place to be, as evidenced by the number of black guys who rank in the upper echelons. Not only Colin Powell, who was head of the Joint Chiefs, but also J. Paul Reason, who is commander in chief of the Atlantic Fleet.

I don't think they have much in common, other than the medal. They're all from diverse backgrounds, and they had diverse services and jobs in the military. What they do have in common I would say is, they take charge in situations. They are people that felt something needed doing at a particular time and somebody had to do it. Words like bravery and courage are words that come after the fact; they're retroactive, retrospective type words. I think probably the biggest thing you find, particularly if you read the citations, is that there was a feeling that somebody had to do something.