Booker, Kim Introduce Legislation to Rename New Jersey Post Office After Tuskegee Airman and Willingboro Trailblazer Chief Master Sergeant James A. Cotten

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, in celebration of the United States Postal Service's 250 years of delivering mail to the American people, U.S. Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Andy Kim (D-NJ), member of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs, introduced legislation to rename a post office in New Jersey's 3rd Congressional District in honor of the late Chief Master Sergeant James A. Cotten, a Tuskegee Airman and decorated military trailblazer whose decades of service to his country were matched by decades of service to the Willingboro community he called home. Congressman Herb Conaway Jr., M.D. (D-NJ), along with Representatives Frank Pallone Jr. (D-NJ), LaMonica McIver (D-NJ), Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ), and Rob Menendez (D-NJ), introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives.

"Chief Master Sergeant James A. Cotten did not simply serve his country-he helped transform it. As a Tuskegee Airman, a military trailblazer, and a pillar of the Willingboro community, he broke barriers that were meant to hold people back and opened doors for generations to come," said Senator Booker. "His life is a powerful reminder that service is not defined by a title or a single moment, but by a lifelong commitment to lifting up others and strengthening the communities we call home. Renaming this post office in his honor ensures that his heroism, perseverance, and extraordinary legacy will continue to inspire all who learn his story."

"James Cotten was a hero and a leader that made Willingboro proud and our country safer. He is a reminder that the impact of public service ripples across generations. This isn't just the renaming of a post office, it's a reminder of work done to break down racial barriers and build community. Mr. Cotten represented the best of America and I'm proud to work with my colleagues to make sure his name is never forgotten," said Senator Kim.

Cotten's story spans nearly seven decades of service. Drafted into the Army in 1945, he was assigned to the Army Air Corps as an air operations specialist with the 332nd Fighter Interceptor Squadron - part of the storied Tuskegee Airmen - before integrating the 334th Fighter Interceptor Squadron when the military desegregated. Over a military career spanning more than 20 years, he rose through the ranks before retiring from active duty in 1965 at McGuire Air Force Base. He then spent another 45 years serving the Department of Defense as a civilian.

His impact didn't end at the base gates. Back home in Willingboro, Cotten became one of the first African Americans to deliver mail in the community and remained active for years in local civic and financial institutions.

His life's work has been recognized at the highest levels: a Congressional Gold Medal in 2012, and personal recognition from President Barack Obama in 2013 as one of the nation's honored veterans.

Naming a post office after Cotten ensures that every piece of mail passing through Willingboro carries forward the memory of a man who fought for his country twice: once against a foreign enemy, and once against the barriers his own country put in front of him.

Read the full text of the legislation here.