Russel L. Honoré

Infobox Military Person
name=Russel L. Honoré
born=
died=


caption=Lieutenant General Russel L. Honoré
nickname=The Ragin' Cajun
placeofbirth=
placeofdeath=
placeofburial=
allegiance= United States of America
branch= United States Army
serviceyears=1971–2008
rank= Lieutenant General
unit=
commands=First Army 2nd Infantry Division
battles=
awards=Defense Distinguished Service Medal Army Distinguished Service Medal Defense Superior Service Medal Legion of Merit (5) Bronze Star Expert Infantryman Badge
relations=
laterwork=
Lieutenant General Russel L. Honoré (pronounced ON-or-ay) (b. 1947) served as 33rd commanding general of the U.S. First Army at Fort Gillem, Georgia. He is best known for serving as commander of Joint Task Force Katrina responsible for coordinating military relief efforts for Hurricane Katrina-affected areas across the Gulf Coast. He served until January 11 2008 when he retired from the Army. [cite news|url=http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080108/ap_on_re_us/katrina_general;_ylt=AllmgEBBmn2nkq6qYjNguItH2ocA |title=Katrina general retiring from the Army |author=Bluestein, Greg, Associated Press |publisher="Yahoo! News" |date=2008-01-08 |accessdate=2008-01-08] Honoré is sometimes known as "The Ragin' Cajun' ",ref|TM although he is actually of Louisiana Creole background. The Honore family surname is still found in the Créole Cane River.

Career

A native of Lakeland in Pointe Coupee Parish, Louisiana, and youngest of 12 children, Honoré earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Vocational Agriculture from Southern University and A&M College in 1971. He also holds a Master of Arts in Human Resources from Troy State University as well as an Honorary Doctorate in Public Administration from Southern University and A&M College. He has received leadership development training from the [http://www.ccl.org Center for Creative Leadership] .

Prior to his appointment on July 15, 2004, Honoré served in a variety of command and staff positions in Korea and Germany. He served as Commanding General, 2nd Infantry Division in South Korea; Vice Director for Operations, J-3, The Joint Staff, Washington, D.C.; Deputy Commanding General and Assistant Commandant, United States Army Infantry Center and School, Fort Benning, Georgia; and Assistant Division Commander, Maneuver/Support, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas. Most recently, Honoré served as Commander, Standing Joint Force Headquarters – Homeland Security, U.S. Northern Command.

On June 13, 2002, in South Korea, soldiers from the 2nd Infantry Division were on a training mission near the North Korean border when their vehicle hit two 14-year-old girls on a narrow public road. In July 2002, the U.S. military indicted Sgt. Mark Walker and Sgt. Fernando Nino on charges of negligent homicide. They were later found innocent. Honoré (then a Major General) responded by visiting the victims' parents and promising the U.S. military would build a memorial near the accident site to honor the girls.

Hurricane Katrina

On August 31, 2005, Honoré was designated commander of Joint Task Force Katrina responsible for coordinating military relief efforts for Hurricane Katrina-affected areas across the Gulf Coast. Honore's arrival in New Orleans came after what was widely believed to be a poor performance by FEMA and its director Michael Brown. He gained media celebrity and accolades for his apparent turning around of the situation in the city as well as his gruff management style which contrasted with what many felt were the empty platitudes of civilian officials. In one widely played clip, Honore was seen on the streets of the city, barking orders to subordinates and, in one case, berating a soldier who displayed a weapon, telling him "We're on a rescue mission damn it!" New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin was quoted on a radio interview September 1, 2005, saying: "Now, I will tell you this -- and I give the president some credit on this -- he sent one John Wayne dude down here that can get some stuff done, and his name is [Lt.] Gen. [Russel] Honoré. And he came off the doggone chopper, and he started cussing and people started moving. And he's getting some stuff done." [ [http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/comments.php?id=7051_0_44_0_C Jackson Free Press | News, Opinions, Music, Events and Dining | Jackson, Mississippi ] ] "Stars and Stripes", the official newspaper of the United States Armed Forces, reported that Honoré had previous experience dealing with flooding at many Korean bases during monsoon season and supervised the installation of flood control measures.

Honoré describes himself an "African-American Creole", a mixture that includes French, American Indian and Spanish.ref|aacreole

He lives near Fort Gillem in Forest Park, Georgia, located seven miles south of Atlanta.

On September 20, 2005 at a press conference with Nagin, Honoré made headlines nationwide when he told reporters not to get "stuck on stupid" in reference to questions about the government response to Hurricane Katrina, asking them to stay on the topic of Hurricane Rita. Honoré went on to criticize the media's coverage of the hurricane, and urged; "Don't start panic here. Okay?"

Awards and accolades

During the halftime of the Independence Bowl in Shreveport, Louisiana on December 30, 2005, Honoré was honored with the Omar N. Bradley "Spirit of Independence Award" because of his leadership in the recovery of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

General Honoré will be awarded the Key to the City Award to New Orleans in Recognition of his Exemplary Military Service during the third anniversary of Katrina ceremonies.

General Honoré's awards and decorations include the:
*Defense Distinguished Service Medal,
*Army Distinguished Service Medal,
*Defense Superior Service Medal,
*Legion of Merit (four Oak Leaf Clusters),
*Bronze Star,
*Defense Meritorious Service Medal,
*Meritorious Service Medal (three Oak Leaf Clusters),
*Army Commendation Medal (three Oak Leaf Clusters),
*Army Achievement Medal,
*National Defense Service Medal (two Bronze Service Stars),
*Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal,
*Southwest Asia Service Medal (one Bronze Service Star),
*Global War on Terror Service Medal,
*Korean Defense Service Medal,
*Army Service Ribbon,
*Overseas Service Ribbon (4),
*Kuwait Liberation Medal (Saudi),
*Kuwait Liberation Medal (Kuwait) and
*Joint Meritorious Unit Award. Qualification badges include the Expert Infantryman Badge, the Parachutist Badge, and the Joint Staff Identification Badge.

Notes

# Ragin' CajunsTM is the trademarked nickname of the athletic teams of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.
# "Katrina: The Aftermath: First Army's 'Ragin' Cajun, "Atlanta Journal-Constitution", September 14, 2005

ee also

References

External links

* [http://www.nationalveteransday.org/speakers/honore.htm National Veteran's Day profile]
* [http://www.dod.gov/news/May2005/20050504_889.html Department of Defense article]
* [http://www.army.mil/professionalwriting/volumes/volume3/april_2005/4_05_2.html "Theater Immersion Postmobilization Training in the First Army", by Lieutenant General Russel L. Honoré & Colonel Daniel L. Zajac]
* [http://sg.news.yahoo.com/050831/1/3un04.html Pentagon deploys ships, helicopters, rescuers to hurricane-ravaged areas]
* [http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/09/02/honore.profile/ Article on cnn.com about Honoré]
* [http://edition.cnn.com/2005/US/09/11/katrina.hurricane.general.ap/index.html Associated Press profile on Honoré]
* [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/11/AR2005091101484.html "The Category 5 General:" "Washington Post" "Style" Section Article (September 12, 2005)]
* [http://www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=8559&archive=true Russel Honoré honors teens killed by subordinants]
* [http://usembassy.state.gov/seoul/wwwh4578.html The US Embassy to South Korea's response on the deaths]
* [http://thepoliticalteen.net/2005/09/20/stuckonstupid/ Video of September 20, 2005 press conference]
* [http://www.radioblogger.com/#00100 Transcript and audio of September 20, 2005 press conference]
* [http://www.independencebowl.org/SPIRIT%20OF%20INDEPENDENCE.html Omar N. Bradley "Spirit of Independence Award"]
* [http://www.kepplerspeakers.com/speakers/speakers.asp?1-6L0EF Lt. General Russel Honore Biography]