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Doris Miller (1919–1943) was an American sailor in the United States Navy. He was awarded the Navy Cross, seen here just after being presented to him, for manning an anti-aircraft gun during the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, a role for which he had no training, and for tending the wounded. He was the first black American to be awarded the Navy Cross, and his actions were heavily publicized in the black press, making him an iconic emblem of the war for black Americans. Nearly two years later, he was killed in action when the USS Liscome Bay was sunk by a Japanese submarine during the Battle of Makin.Photograph credit: United States Navy; restored by Coffeeandcrumbs