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FORT HUACHUCA — The commanding general of the U.S. Army Intelligence Center and Fort Huachuca will present the Bronze Star Medal to World War II veteran Hans Spear on Wednesday.
The event for the 89-year-old Tucson resident will be at 10:30 a.m. at Alvarado Hall. Maj. Gen. John Custer will make the presentation.
Every member of Spear’s unit, with the exception of him and another German-born Jewish soldier, received the Bronze Star for supervising interrogation under fire. He was denied the medal due to anti-Semitism and discrimination because Spear was categorized an enemy alien.
The Army awards regulation, in effect at the time, provided the Bronze Star Medal may be awarded to recognize minor acts of heroism in actual combat or single acts of merit, or meritorious service either in sustained operational activities against an enemy or in direct support of such operations.
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On Dec. 6, the Army Board for Correction of Military Records approved that Spear’s records be corrected to show he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal.
Spear immigrated from Nazi Germany to the United States in 1938 to escape religious persecution. Once in the U.S., he registered for the draft.
He wanted an opportunity to return to Germany and fight against the Nazis.
Spear entered on active duty in August 1943. He served in the European Theater of Operations as a special agent in charge of a Counter-Intelligence Corps team. He conducted investigations of subversive activities in which military and civilian personnel were involved and conducted interrogations and arrests of members of the Nazi party, war criminals and personnel suspected of espionage. He was discharged in December 1945.
The Leonard Kravitz Jewish War Veterans Act of 2001 ordered reviews of the military service records of foreign born, Jewish and African-American war veterans.
Irving Finver wrote on Feb 25, 2008 10:33 PM:
We had (died a few years ago) a veteran who was entitled to the Medal of Honor but was told he would not receive it because he was Jewish. They were supposed to review his record but evidently it was cast aside. "