The
Handbook of Texas Online provides not only a biography, but also some background about the prejudice this man faced, and the right that was done for his cause after he died:
Victor Hugo Espinoza, Korean War veteran and Medal of Honor recipient, son of Amado Espinoza and Altagracia Chavez, was born in El Paso, Texas, on July 25, 1928. After the death of his mother in 1938, Espinoza moved to Los Angeles, California, where he graduated from Lincoln High School and became a municipal employee. He also spent time living with his godmother in El Paso. Espinoza joined the United States Army in November 1950 and was deployed to Korea with the rank of corporal. He served with Company A, First Battalion, Twenty-third Infantry Regiment, Second Infantry Division, as part of the larger United Nations peace-keeping force.
On August 1, 1952, Corporal Espinoza and his unit were tasked with capturing an enemy hill nicknamed “Old Baldy” near Chorwon, Korea, when they came under heavy fire. After his squad leader was wounded, Espinoza made a one-man assault across open ground. Armed with only a rifle and grenades, he destroyed a machine gun nest, a mortar emplacement, and two enemy bunkers. His ammunition exhausted, Espinoza continued his assault using grenades left behind by the fleeing Chinese troops to clear several enemy trenches. He then discovered a covert enemy tunnel and destroyed it with TNT. In total, Espinoza was credited with killing fourteen enemy soldiers, wounding another eleven, and clearing the way for the rest of his unit to secure the remaining enemy strongpoints on “Old Baldy.” For his service, Espinoza received a National Defense Service Medal, a Korean Service Medal with one bronze star, a Combat Infantryman Badge, a UN Service Medal, and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal. He also received the second highest American combat medal, the Distinguished Service Cross, at a parade held on Noel Field at Fort Bliss in April 1953.
Espinoza reached the rank of master sergeant before leaving the military in September 1952. He returned to El Paso, Texas, where he found employment at a car dealership and was briefly married to Helen G. García of El Paso. Espinoza later relocated to San Gabriel, Texas, and married Nancy Alm. The couple had one son, Tyronne. Espinoza ultimately returned to El Paso, where he lived until his death on April 17, 1986. Espinoza was buried at Fort Bliss National Cemetery with full military honors.
In 2002 the United States Congress called on the Department of Defense to review the service records of certain Jewish and Hispanic soldiers who may have been denied the Medal of Honor due to racial prejudice. As a result, on May 18, 2014, Victor Espinoza was posthumously given the Congressional Medal of Honor by President Barack Obama at a ceremony held in the East Room of the White House. Several of Espinoza’s family members, including his son Tyronne, were present to accept the award on his behalf.
His citations read:
ESPINOZA, VICTOR H.
Sergeant Victor H. Espinoza
Rank and organization: Sergeant, U.S. Army.
Place and date: August 1, 1952 Chorwon, Korea.
Entered service at: Texas.
Corporal Victor H. Espinoza distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty while serving as an Acting Rifleman in Company A, 23d Infantry Regiment, 2d Infantry Division during combat operations against an armed enemy in Chorwon, Korea on August 1, 1952. On that day, Corporal Espinoza and his unit were responsible for securing and holding a vital enemy hill. As the friendly unit neared its objective, it was subjected to a devastating volume of enemy fire, slowing its progress. Corporal Espinoza, unhesitatingly and being fully aware of the hazards involved, left his place of comparative safety and made a deliberate one man assault on the enemy with his rifle and grenades, destroying a machinegun and killing its crew. Corporal Espinoza continued across the fire-swept terrain to an exposed vantage point where he attacked an enemy mortar position and two bunkers with grenades and rifle fire, knocking out the enemy mortar position and destroying both bunkers and killing their occupants. Upon reaching the crest, and after running out of rifle ammunition, he called for more grenades. A comrade who was behind him threw some Chinese grenades to him. Immediately upon catching them, he pulled the pins and hurled them into the occupied trenches, killing and wounding more of the enemy with their own weapons. Continuing on through a tunnel, Corporal Espinoza made a daring charge, inflicting at least seven more casualties upon the enemy who were fast retreating into the tunnel. Corporal Espinoza was quickly in pursuit, but the hostile fire from the opening prevented him from overtaking the retreating enemy. As a result, Corporal Espinoza destroyed the tunnel with TNT, called for more grenades from his company, and hurled them at the enemy troops until they were out of reach. Corporal Espinoza's incredible display of valor secured the vital strong point and took a heavy toll on the enemy, resulting in at least fourteen dead and eleven wounded. Corporal Espinoza's extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit and the United States Army.