Henry Cervantes was a Fresno-born, 19-year-old son of Mexican farmworkers when the Navy told him in 1942 that he could not fight for his country. An enlistment officer sent him home, saying the Navy didn't take Mexicans, Filipinos or Black people. In an interview with the American Patriots of Latino Heritage, Cervantes said he directed a couple of choice epithets at the officer and declared, "I'll prove you wrong," before running out the door. He found a spot instead in the Army and the Army Air... Read this story
