Roscoe Brown Jr., 1922-2016

Two days after the death of World War IIera human-rights hero Elie Wiesel, the world has lost another: Roscoe Brown. As a fighter pilot with the famed all-black Tuskegee Airmen in the then-segregated US Army Air Corps, Brown — who died Monday at the age of 94 — flew 68 vital missions against the Nazi war machine, including one that spectacularly downed a Nazi fighter jet.

His service earned him a Distinguished Flying Cross.

Like many of his fellow pioneering black aviators, Brown pushed back against the racial barriers that impeded full citizenship rights in the Army and American society.

He and his generation waged a “Double V campaign”: victory over the Axis Powers abroad and a second victory over racial oppression at home. Their heroic service and that of other all-black units led to the inte- gration of the US Armed Forces in 1948 and energized the civil-rights movement.

In 2007, Brown and five other surviving airmen accepted the Congressional Gold Medal from President George W. Bush on behalf of the Tuskegee Airmen.

Brown was more than a pilot and activist: He earned a doctorate from NYU, was president of Bronx Community College and directed the CUNY Center for Urban Education Policy. He played a key role in the lives of countless young men and women.

“You’ve got to be better, you’ve got to be disciplined,” he told young folks. “If you believe you can overcome, you can overcome. That’s the story of the Tuskegee Airmen.”

Brown’s life was a testament to the virtues of standing up against injustice — and fighting for a country he helped improve. No wonder he was such an inspiration. RIP.