Chicago, IL- As an original member of the 99th Squadron that became known as the Tuskegee Airmen, Lt. Col. Herbert Carter, flew 77 combat sorties against the German and Italian Air Force in World War II, as the famed fighting men provided support of the Allied Army.

The stories of the Tuskegee Airmen and their exemplary service and courage are an integral part of our American history and this weekend will attract national attention with the release of the big budget George Lucas film, “Red Tails.”

The HistoryMakers, the nation's largest African American Oral Video Archive, also highlights the stories of the Tuskegee Airmen and countless numbers of African Americans have brought to our nation's military since the Revolutionary War.

With the help of a $200,000 grant from The Robert R. McCormick Foundation, The History- Makers has launched, “The MilitaryMakers,” profiling the lives of soldiers, such as Lt. Col. Carter. The grant allows the Chicago-based organization to share these stories with students, educators and the general public.

Beginning by recording the life oral histories of 40 African American service members, MilitaryMakers will start the process of wide dissemination of this lost history. MilitaryMakers will be made available via The HistoryMakers' Test Digital Archive (http://www.idvl.org/thehistorymakers), The HistoryMakers' website (www.thehistorymakers.com).

Since the Revolutionary War, some 10 percent to 15 percent of the United States Armed Forces has been African American. While the Tuskegee Airmen, America's first black fighter pilots, have received well-deserved recognition, many of the 500,000 plus African Americans who served in the Army during World War II still go unrecognized in mainstream history.

These include the 781st tank battalion, the first black armored combat unit known as the "Black Panthers," the all-Black 320th Barrage Balloon Battalion and the 490th Port Battalion, who served decisively on D-Day. The list of African American contributions to the U.S. military goes on and on.