supported the bill to honor the montford point marines with a congressional gold medal. and a particular thanks to congresswoman brown from florida. [ cheers and applause ] senator kay hz hagan from north carolina. national president of the marine association, chief officer and dr. james everhart united states marine corps. the past national president of the montford point marine association, our united states retiree. [ cheers and applause ] and joe carpenter, lieutenant colonel retired united states marine corps. [ cheers and applause ] i would like to personally thank the officers and staff of the

culp says it's a work ethic developed as montford port marines. >> the marine corps made a man out of me. >> reporter: but it was a painful journey. at the height of world war ii, culp and mitchell were among the first blacks in the marine corps and immediately segregated from white marines. 20,000 recruits went through boot camp at montford point, built specifically for blacks, little more than a mosquito, snake infested swamp. >> what was that like? >> it was hell, really. the water was terrible. smelled. >> it's where they trained, ate and slept, without ever seeing a white marine. once out of boot camp, mitchell became a target for racial taunts. when he refused to step to the back of the line, he took a beating. >> but in the heat of battle in the pacific, that racial divide disappeared. >> when you're being shot at over there, the bullets, they don't have no color on them really. you become very close. >> reporter: the montford port marines had joined a marine corps that really didn't want them. to fight for their country that had denied them their civil rights. when the war had

one famous montford point marine became new york city mayor david dinkens. montford point marines it's too late. >> it's a great honor and i can't finish the other part because i just lost my wife and she is not here with me. [crying] >> the 400 survivors who received the congressional gold medal were once unequal. today, they were beyond equal, shep. >> shepard: jen griffin at the pentagon tonight. thanks. stock don, california now. the city that could become the largest american city ever to file for bankruptcy. it's located about a half hour south of sacramento. population about 290,000. officials say stockton has a 26-million-dollar budget short fall and they have run out of options to deal with it housing crash and short drop in tax revenue has forced the city to cut cops and firefighters and other city jobs. weight problem. what the feds have just approved that may go a long way toward fixing it. plus, wives will love this one. the guys probably not so much. turns out a key to happiness could be a long list of chores. the strange finding coming up. fed

they went to montford point, this blacks only boot camp.in world war ii. they are finally being recognized. take a look. [ applause ] >> good afternoon. if i don't talk loud enough, let me know. for 167 years negroes were not permitted to join the united states marine corps to defend this country. that condition changed in 1941, and the entry did begin in 1942. unfortunately, it took a world war to make it happen, but it happened. on behalf of those who came forward, and said i want to be a marine, i welcome you to this occasion because you all were directly involved. at this very proud moment, and in this magnificent venue, i want to thank the honorable speaker of the house mr. john boehner for his kind invitation to each of us that are here today. [ applause ] thank the members the united states senate and the house of the representatives who supported the bill to honor the montford point marines with a congressional gold medal. and a particular thanks to congresswoman brown from florida. [ cheers and applause ] senator kay hz hagan from

fewer than 300 of the montford point marines remain. bieved to be the last living mr of his unit. what did the u.s. marine corps teach you, sir? >> taut me to be a man. because we wouldever give up, just like marines. faithful to the end. >> reporter: always faithful fi. byron pitts, cbs news, hampton, virginia. >> pelley: and that's the "cbs evening news" evening news forti for all of us at cbs news all around the world, goodht. captioning sponsored by cbs captioned by tonight," the most watched entertainment newsmagazine in >>> charlie sheen ways. did he really trash another hol room? >>hat t stupid. ca> the new report and his id intew o leave, marriage and addiction. can he clean up his act good. >>> then what you don't know about the woman who could be ann curry's today show replacement. >>> plus, paula deen from size 18 to size erew interview on lose 30g pounds. >>> love on the >> she's magic. emma a

fewer than 300 of the montford point marines remain.ved to be the last living member of his unit. what did the u.s. marine corps teach you, sir? >> taught me to be a man. because we would never give up, just like marines. faithful to the end. >> reporter: always faithful and finally recognized. byron pitts, cbs news, hampton, virginia. >> pelley: and that's the "cbs evening news" evening news for tonight. for all of us at cbs news all around the world, good night. captioning sponsored by cbs >>> this is 9news now. >> it may end up becoming the supreme court's most historic decision. the high court will rule on the future of healthcare reform. and as bruce leshan reports, we still have no idea what the justices have decided. >> the supreme court may be the one institution in all of washington that simply does not leak. so while the majority of justices seems skeptical at oral arguments of this mandate that every american buy some kind of insurance, we will not know for certain until some time after 10:00 a.m. tomorrow morning. >> a wonde

. >>> few people have heard of the montford point marines, but they are a proud part of this nation's history. and today the unit is going to receive the congressional gold medal. they are the first blacks to serve in the united states marine corps. when they reported to camp lejeune for basic training, they were segregated from whites to a spot named montford point. former new york city mayor david denkins served in the marines and he told our this week in defense news host why he enlisted. >> my rationale was that i recognized from going to the movies, the news reals, that people were dying and people i knew were dying. and the way to survive is to be well trained. >> manassas, virginia native carroll braxton was among the first to sign up. he was 18 years old at the time. today he's going to receive the congressional gold medal just weeks before his 88th birthday and my dear friend randall cherry sls going to be honor -- is also going to be honored. congratulations to him. >>> prince george's county police need our help to locate a missing teenager with special needs. the family of

they were called the montford point marines.ht up with a few of them. >> we fought two kinds of wars. one in combat and the other was right here. we fought jim crow and we fought the enemy. >> the men were trail blazers. they were the first hand picked to integrate the u.s. marine corps, the last branch of the armed services that was still segregated. >> these men were so proud to be the first, and they were eager to learn. >> their initial excitement would be replaced with the reality of racism in basic training and the lack of support waiting at home. >> in the corps, at that time, they were hell bent on making sure we were not going to succeed in what we were doing. >> here we are returning from combat, from war, 18 long months, 18 hard months and having some of the relics. we had japanese flags and we showed the crowd, this is what we earned, what we did and what we had to do to get these relics. despite that, that did not help. the fact that we were black men and so racism continues on. >> across the armed services, african

during world war ii they were housed at montford point, north carolina, a segregated base with poor conditions. but once in the heat of battle in the pacific, the racial divide disappeared. one recipient said, quote, thank god i lived long enough to see it. i'm lynn berry, and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day, today on your nbc station. >>> london's iconic tower bridge is getting an olympic makeover, marking one month until the summer games. a set of giant olympic rings was lowered onto the bridge. officials say it's the centerpiece of the city's "look and feel" campaign for the game. visitors from all around the world will experience it all when the games kick off in july right here on this nbc station. >>> well, one daredevil in belgium takes sprinting to a new level. the extreme athlete has broken a world record for taking a vertical run down a 330-foot building in just 15.5 seconds. this beats the previous record by about 19 seconds. the feat adds to his impressive stunts, such as bungee jumping from an air balloon and hand gliding over the andes mountain. >> looking

they were segregated from whites to a spot named montford point. carroll braxton was among the first to sign up. he was just 18 years old at the time. today he'll receive the congressional gold medal just weeks before his 88th birthday. >>> the 46 annual smithsonian folklife festival kicks off later this morning. emily gravenstein is here to kel us -- tell us what cultures they're celebrating. thank you for coming n. i know you're getting ready for the huge festival that goes on every year. one of the major things that's so fun about it is you have themes. this year you have three. why don't you tell us what they are and why you chose them. >> we do have three themes this year. the first is a celebration of the -- [indiscernible] it's the 25th anniversary. we'll also be celebrating universities and their partnerships with the usda and we'll also be celebrating certified. >> tell us a little bit about that. that theme is local to the area. it draws from sort of a southern heritage, doesn't it? >> it does a little bit. we'll be looking at really what

for the nation's first african-americans to serve in the marine corps. 386 survives members of the montfordarines were giving a special gold medal. they were served in the 1940s. a spokesman accepted the award on behalf of the entire group. it's the highest appreciation from congress. >>> he's only 14. francis tiafoe discovered tennis while he father worked at the tennis center in college park. now the top-ranked junior player in the nation. zachary kiesch has his story. >> francis came here when he was about 1 years old. >> he's been thinking, eating breathing tennis since he was born. >> i think he is very hungry. he wants it badly, and knows the position he's in. >> he sees the court better than some of the professionals, and it all comes because when he was 1 and 2 years old, he was just walking around, crawling here, running after the tennis balls. >> being a tennis player is a lifesty lifestyle. i've been doing it all my life so far. it means a lot to me. >> when constance and altina eskyped sierra leone, they were chase ago dream. 14 years later their son francis is living it. >> i a

. >> that was master gunnery sergeant carroll braxton, one of the montford marines who will be awarded the congressional gold medal. >> you see him proudly wearing his marine insignia but they made it clear they did not want blacks in the marine corps. we've come a long way but have a long way to go. >>> the time is 4:36. the warm air returns today. at 4:38 howard will let us know just how long warm it will get. >>> a popular hotel chain is now the target of a federal lawsuit. >> and a growing number of families in our region are relying on free summer meals to help feed their children. at 4:50, we'll take a look at one of those programs. >> we're back in two minutes with your weather first. keep it here. >>> it is 4:39 on this wednesday morning. it's pretty comfortable, especially when you get away from the water areas. we've got temps in the 50s in spots. we're going to warm up much more quickly than yesterday. low 80s by lunch time with highs today in the mid to even the upper 80s. still not too humid and a little bit of a breeze. we're talking a big time heat wave returning when i

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. >> they are members of the so-called marines of montford point, a reference to where they trained in integrate the corps at the time of segregation. long overdue is an understatement. >> absolutely. well done. heroes all of them. for more than one reason. >>> all right, coming up next -- the parts of your car most vulnerable to thieves. >>> the new york school bus monitor humiliated by bullies meets a hero who changed her life. you are watching "world news now." ♪ we can be heroes for just one day ♪ ♪ we can be heroes >> announcer: "world news now" weather brought to you by arriva medical. everyone's hair breaks. ♪ oh oh oh oh you see it in the brush. ♪ oh oh oh oh ooh oh and then there's the pillow. ♪ i dare you to dare me so they dared me to try this pantene. [ female announcer ] pantene anti-breakage the keratin protection system makes hair stronger reducing breakage up to 97%. ♪ think only salon brands can do that? i dare to compare... will you? [ female announcer ] anti-breakage from pantene. hair so healthy it shines. [♪...] >> i've been training all year for the big race in ch

of emancipation hall in the capitol visitors' center to allowed a gold medal collectively to the montford point marines. the presiding officer: without objection the senate will proceed to the measure. mr. franken: i ask unanimous consent the concurrent resolution be grood agreed to, the motion to reconsider be laid on the table with no intervening action or debate and any statements be placed in the record in the appropriate place as if read. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. franken: i ask unanimous consent that when the senate completes its business today the senate he adjourn until 3:00 p.m. on monday, june 18, that the following -- that following the prayer and pledge, the journal be approved, the morning business deemed expired and the time for the two leaders reserved for their use later in the day that the majority leader be recognized and that at 5:00 p.m. the senate proceed to executive session under the previous order. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. franken: we continue to work on an agreement on amendments to the farm bill. we hope such an agreement

already recognized the tuskegee airmen, we are grateful for the nearly 13,000 black marines from montford who served overseas during world war ii, prepared to give the last full measure of devotion to protect freedoms which they themselves were denied at home. we acknowledge our debt of gratitude to rip brown who sponsored the resolution that makes this day possible. although we cannot be erased the mistakes of the past, thank you for these opportunities to seek to make amends and to narrow the creedsween our nation's and deeds. may what we do here today prompt us to anticipate your coming judgment when many who are first will be last and many who are classed will be first. made this congressional gold medal ceremony brings glory and honor to your name, amen. >> please be seated. ladies and gentlemen, the representative from the 22nd district of florida, the honorable allan west. >> thank you speaker banner. -- speaker john boehner. thank you for being here. welcome and friends and family and to all the men and women today who are in uniform and to those who have served. i stand here toda