Born to a single mother in an impoverished neighborhood in New York City, Thompson entered the Army in 1945 and served tours in Alaska and Japan.

At the outbreak of the Korean War, Thompson was a machine gunner of the U.S. 24th Infantry Regiment, a de facto segregated unit.

When North Korean troops attacked his company and caused many men to panic and scatter, Thompson stood his ground, refusing orders to evacuate despite being wounded, and covered the retreat of his platoon until he was killed by a grenade.

Described as "thin, hollow-eyed and quiet," he was an effective soldier, consistently maintaining his uniform and equipment and keeping his firearms extremely clean.

[7][8] When North Korean rifle fire came in on the dispersed regiment,[9] its troops almost immediately began retreating from the front, ignoring officers' commands to stay in position.

[12] Historians contend its accomplishments, particularly at the Battle of Yechon, were ignored, while shortcomings were seized upon to depict the 24th as a sub-par unit, and African-Americans as inferior soldiers to whites.

[3] During this period, Thompson was wounded several times by small arms fire and grenade fragments[17] but ignored his injuries and did not inform the rest of his unit.

As the platoon retreated, they heard Thompson's continued fire until several grenades followed by a larger explosion erupted near his position, at which point his gun fell silent.

[18][19] A few days later, when M Company retook the area, they discovered Thompson had made a last stand and killed a large number of North Koreans before dying.

[17] Thompson's actions were initially overlooked by division commanders, who instead focused on the poor performance of the 24th Infantry Regiment, whose soldiers panicked and fled from combat.

[20] Thompson's battalion commander, Lieutenant Colonel Melvin Blair, initially refused to submit a recommendation, until January 4, 1951, five months after the action.

While his platoon was reorganizing under cover of darkness, fanatical enemy forces in overwhelming strength launched a surprise attack on the unit.

Thompson set up his machine gun in the path of the onslaught and swept the enemy with withering fire, pinning them down momentarily thus permitting the remainder of his platoon to withdraw to a more tenable position.

Thompson's dauntless courage and gallant self-sacrifice reflect the highest credit on himself and uphold the esteemed traditions of military service.