Eighteen* Jewish Recipients of the
Congressional Medal of Honor
Introduction

Introduction by Seymour "Sy" Brody

The Congressional Medal of Honor (CMOH) is the highest decoration an American military person can receive for outstanding heroism and bravery in battle. Eighteen Jews have received the CMOH. There are probably more as many are unknown because they enlisted under different names. As in the past, the future will reveal more names of the Jews who received the CMOH.

This exhibit tries to capture their heroism through the illustrations and the official citations of their bravery. It also refutes the lie “that Jews didn't fight in any of our country's wars.” Jews have fought in every skirmish, battle and war from the American Revolutionary War to Desert Storm. The Jewish War Veterans of the USA, the oldest active veterans organization in the country, was organized on March 15, 1896, by seventy-eight Jewish Civil War veterans in New York City to expose the lies of Mark Twain and other writers of that day "that Jews didn't fight in the Civil War."

The eighteen Jewish recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor that we know of since the medal was first issued during the Civil War are:

Civil War: Six
Indian Wars: Two
Haitian Campaign: One
World War I: Three
World War II: Three
Korean War: One
Vietnam War: Two

The National Museum of Jewish Military History in Washington, D.C. has the records, memorabilia, artifacts exhibits not only of these brave men and women, but other Jewish men and women who have served in the armed forces of the United States. This exhibit was prepared by Seymour "Sy" Brody, Delray Beach, FL, editor of the Jewish War Veteran's “The Jewish Veteran” and author of Jewish Heroes of America and its sequel, Jewish Heroes and Heroines of America.

Brody's original list had 16 medal winners. There were three rather than two recipients, however, in World War II. and in 2005, Tibor Rubin was the first Jew awarded the medal for valor in the Korean War.