Harriet Tubman was posthumously commissioned as brigadier general of the Maryland National Guard at a Veteran’s Day ceremony.

Harriet Tubman, like most Black women of her era and many Black women today, was often dismissed, underestimated and ignored. That’s what made her such an effective spy and scout. It’s also the reason that it took our nation 160 years to honor her properly for her military service.

Abolitionist and Underground Railroad leader Harriet Tubman, the first woman in the U.S. to lead an armed military operation during a war, was posthumously commissioned as a one-star general in the Maryland National Guard on Monday. Maryland Gov.