Lt. Gen. Michael Langley becomes first African American Marine promoted to 4-star general

The first African American four-star general in Marine Corps history, Gen. Michael E. Langley, credited his father with telling him to “aim high” and predicted that his promotion on Saturday would have an impact on younger people.

Langley, 60, was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, and grew up at military bases as his father served in the Air Force. A graduate of the University of Texas at Arlington, he was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Marines in 1985.

“My daddy told me to aim high, so I aimed as high as I could and found the few and the proud,” Langley said during a ceremony at Marine Corps Barracks Washington attended by his father and other family members.

The Marine Corps, which traces its roots to 1775, rejected accepting Black men in its ranks until 1942, a turnabout that followed the attack on the American air base at Hawaii's Pearl Harbor in 1941 and the U.S. entry into World War II.

At: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/a-first-african-american-marine-promoted-to-4-star-general/ar-AA10omTV

Lt. Gen. Michael Langley speaks during a Senate Armed Services hearing to examine the nominations at the Capitol Hill, on July 21st in Washington.

Langley was promoted to The Marine Corps' first African American four-star general during a ceremony Saturday, Aug. 6, at Marine Corps Barracks Washington.