Oct 01 , 2025

Sgt. Henry Johnson's Medal of Honor and the Harlem Hellfighters

The night air tore like shattered glass. Bullets thudded, slicing through mud and blood. Sgt. Henry Johnson stood alone—wounded, outnumbered, but unyielding. His lips moved in silent prayer even as the enemy closed in. This is the edge. To fall meant death for his whole unit. To stand meant destiny.

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Background & Faith: The Roots of a Warrior

Born in 1892, in Albany, New York, Henry Johnson grew up dirt-poor. As a Black man in an America walled by Jim Crow and injustice, he learned early the bitter taste of discrimination—and the bitter grace of perseverance.

Johnson wasn’t just a soldier. He was a man forged in faith. Baptized in the fire of hardship, his belief in God was the spine of his courage. “The Lord is my shepherd,” he might have whispered under fire, clinging to Psalm 23.

He enlisted in the 369th Infantry Regiment—the “Harlem Hellfighters,” an all-Black unit that would etch its name in blood and honor during the hellscape of the Great War. They fought not just a foreign enemy, but the enemy of racial prejudice. Their valor would rewrite what patriotism looked like.

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The Battle That Defined Him: Argonne Forest, May 15, 1918

The German raiding party hit like a thunderclap in the tangled Argonne Forest. Johnson’s unit was caught in the dark—isolated, vulnerable.

The official Medal of Honor citation tells it without flourish but not without awe:

"During the night of 15 May 1918, when a German raiding party of at least 12 men attempted to silence the guns of an American artillery battery, Sergeant Johnson worked his way to the left of the enemy force, wielding a bolo knife and a rifle with deadly effect. Despite severe wounds, Sgt. Johnson continued to fight, killing multiple enemy soldiers and helping to repel the attack, saving the lives of his fellow soldiers." [1]

He fought alone, crawling through the mud and barbed wire, his body riddled with twenty-one wounds—shrapnel, bayonet slashes, bullets. The bolo knife in his hand danced death. His machine gun jammed. The odds were against him.

But Johnson didn’t stop. His battle wasn’t just physical—it was spiritual. Every labored breath was a prayer, every wound a testament.

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Recognition: A Long Road to Honor

Despite his heroism, Sgt. Johnson’s valor was ignored for decades. The military denied him the Medal of Honor at the time, awarding instead the French Croix de Guerre with Palm—France’s highest decoration for bravery. His story smoldered in obscurity, buried under layers of racial bias that plagued America’s military.

It wasn’t until posthumously, in 2015—almost 100 years after that night in May—that President Barack Obama awarded Henry Johnson the Medal of Honor. The ceremony was steeped in long-overdue redemption, a nation’s reflection on its own failures and the true meaning of sacrifice.

"Sergeant Henry Johnson was a man born of America’s promise, yet shackled by its prejudice. His courage proved there’s no color in valor." — Barack Obama [2]

Comrades described him as fearless—a ghost in the shadows, relentless in the fight. Sergeant Needham Roberts, wounded with him that night, called Johnson’s defense “one of the most heroic single-handed efforts you could ever find.” [3]

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Legacy & Lessons: The Warrior’s Eternal Charge

Henry Johnson’s scars told a story of sacrifice. His life reminds veterans and civilians alike that valor is bigger than recognition. It’s forged on the anvil of conviction and tested in the crucible of combat. It’s the quiet act of standing firm when the world tries to crush you.

His fight was not just against an enemy in the trenches, but against the silent enemies of hate and injustice at home. His legacy urges us to honor every soldier who takes the leap into fire, especially those forgotten or left behind.

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God.” — Isaiah 41:10

Sgt. Henry Johnson’s story is the echo of that promise. A warrior battered, yet resolute. A man scarred beyond the skin but redeemed through sacrifice.

In his blood-stained trail, we find the enduring power of faith, courage, and unyielding hope. That no matter how dark the night, the warrior’s spirit will blaze forever.

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Sources

[1] U.S. Army Center of Military History, Medal of Honor Citation - Henry Johnson

[2] The White House Archives, President Obama Awards Medal of Honor to Sgt. Henry Johnson

[3] Harlem Hellfighters Association, Testimony and Memoirs of Sgt. Needham Roberts

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