The 761st Tank Battalion was activated on April 1, 1942, at Camp Claiborne, Louisiana and deployed to Europe, landing at Omaha Beach in France on October 10, 1944. Over the course of 183 days of continuous fighting (including action in the Battle of the Bulge) the "Black Panthers" became the first African-American armored unit to enter combat. With the motto "Come Out Fighting!" they faced racism at home and death overseas in a war for many freedoms they did not enjoy in America.