BY BETTY KATHERINE PERMETTER FALATO A MEMORABLE OKLAHOMA HERO, A DEVOTED BROTHER: RUBEN RIVERS f the many men and women from Pottawatomie County, OOklahoma, who served in World War II, only one was awarded the Medal of Honor—the nation’s highest military decoration. Staff Sergeant Ruben Rivers (1918–1944) was honored with the medal posthumously on January 13, 1997, more than fifty years after he was killed in action in France. Although he received the Silver Star and the Purple Heart during the war, his Medal of Honor came only after his devoted brother Robert Anderson Rivers (1917-2013) and others fought for equal recognition of Ruben and other Black veterans of World War II. Members of the The Black Panthers of the 761st Tank Battalion. 2828