![Tuskegee Airmen 332nd Fighter Group pilots ppmsca13245u](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/89/Tuskegee_Airmen_332nd_Fighter_Group_pilots_ppmsca13245u.jpg)
The military history of African Americans spans from the
arrival of the first enslaved Africans during the
colonial history of the United States
The colonial history of the United States covers the history of European colonization of North America from the early 17th century until the incorporation of the Thirteen Colonies into the United States after the Revolutionary War. In the ...
to the present day. In every war fought by or within the United States,
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
s participated, including the
Revolutionary War, the
War of 1812
The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...
, the
Mexican–American War
The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...
, the
Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
, the
Spanish–American War
, partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence
, image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg
, image_size = 300px
, caption = (clock ...
,
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
,
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, the
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
, the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
, the
Gulf War
The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...
, the
War in Afghanistan
War in Afghanistan, Afghan war, or Afghan civil war may refer to:
*Conquest of Afghanistan by Alexander the Great (330 BC – 327 BC)
*Muslim conquests of Afghanistan (637–709)
*Conquest of Afghanistan by the Mongol Empire (13th century), see als ...
, and the
Iraq War
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish)
, partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...
.
Revolutionary War
![Crispus Attucks](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c8/Crispus_Attucks.jpg)
African Americans, both
as slaves and
freemen, served on both sides of the Revolutionary War. Gary Nash reports that recent research concludes there were about 9,000 black soldiers who served on the American side, counting the Continental Army and Navy, state militia units, as well as privateers, wagoneers in the Army, servants, officers and spies. Ray Raphael notes that while thousands did join the Loyalist cause, "A far larger number, free as well as slave, tried to further their interests by siding with the patriots."
Black soldiers served in Northern militias from the outset, but this was forbidden in the South, where slave-owners feared arming slaves.
Lord Dunmore
Earl of Dunmore is a title in the Peerage of Scotland.
History
The title was created in 1686 for Lord Charles Murray, second son of John Murray, 1st Marquess of Atholl. He was made Lord Murray of Blair, Moulin and Tillimet (or Tullimet) and V ...
, the Royal Governor of Virginia, issued an emancipation proclamation in November 1775, promising freedom to runaway slaves who fought for the British;
Sir Henry Clinton issued a similar edict in New York in 1779. Over 100,000 slaves escaped to British lines, although only roughly 1,000 served on the front lines. Many
Black Loyalist
Black Loyalists were people of African descent who sided with the Loyalist (American Revolution), Loyalists during the American Revolutionary War. In particular, the term refers to men who escaped enslavement by Patriot (American Revolution), Pat ...
migrated to
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
and later to
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierra ...
. Many of the Black Loyalists performed military service in the British Army, particularly as part of the only Black regiment of the war, the
Black Pioneers
The Black Company of Pioneers, also known as the Black Pioneers and Clinton's Black Pioneers, were a British Provincial military unit raised for Loyalist service during the American Revolutionary War. The Black Loyalist company was raised by Gene ...
, and others served non-military roles.
In response, and because of manpower shortages,
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
lifted the ban on black enlistment in the
Continental Army
The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies (the Thirteen Colonies) in the Revolutionary-era United States. It was formed by the Second Continental Congress after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and was establis ...
in January 1776. All-black units were formed in Rhode Island and Massachusetts; many were slaves promised freedom for serving in lieu of their masters; another all-African-American unit came from
Haiti
Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...
with French forces. At least 5,000 African-American soldiers fought as Revolutionaries, and at least 20,000 served with the British.
and
Salem Poor
Salem Poor (1747–1802) was an enslaved African-American man who purchased his freedom in 1769, became a soldier in 1775, and rose to fame as a war hero during the American Revolutionary War, particularly in the Battle of Bunker Hill.
Early lif ...
are the most noted of the African-American
Patriots during this era, and
Colonel Tye
Titus Cornelius, also known as Titus, Tye, and famously as Colonel Tye ( – 1780), was a slave of African descent in the Province of New Jersey who escaped from his master and fought as a Black Loyalist during the American Revolutionary War; h ...
was perhaps the most noteworthy Black Loyalist.
African Americans also served with various of the South Carolina guerrilla units, including that of the "Swamp Fox",
Francis Marion
Brigadier-General Francis Marion ( 1732 – February 27, 1795), also known as the Swamp Fox, was an American military officer, planter and politician who served during the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War. During the Ameri ...
, half of whose force sometimes consisted of free Blacks. These Black troops made a critical difference in the fighting in the swamps, and kept Marion's guerrillas effective even when many of his white troops were down with malaria or yellow fever.
The first black American to fight in the Marines was John Martin, also known as Keto, the slave of a Delaware man, recruited in April 1776 without his owner's permission by Captain of the Marines Miles Pennington of the Continental brig
USS ''Reprisal''. Martin served with the Marine platoon on the ''Reprisal'' for a year and a half and took part in many ship-to-ship battles including
boardings with hand-to-hand combat, but he was lost with the rest of his unit when the brig sank in October 1777.
At least 12 other black men served with various American Marine units in 1776–1777; more may have been in service but not identified as blacks in the records. However, in 1798 when the
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...
(USMC) was officially re-instituted,
Secretary of War
The secretary of war was a member of the U.S. president's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War", had been appointed to serve the Congress of the ...
James McHenry
James McHenry (November 16, 1753 – May 3, 1816) was a Scotch-Irish American military surgeon, statesman, and a Founding Father of the United States. McHenry was a signer of the United States Constitution from Maryland, initiated the recommend ...
specified in its rules: "No Negro, Mulatto or Indian to be enlisted".
Marine Commandant
William Ward Burrows instructed his recruiters regarding USMC racial policy, "You can make use of Blacks and Mulattoes while you recruit, but you cannot enlist them."
The policy was formulated to set a higher standard of unit cohesion for Marines, with the unit to be made up of only one race, so that the members would remain loyal, maintain shipboard discipline and help put down mutinies.
The USMC maintained this policy until 1942.
War of 1812
![Battle erie](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/01/Battle_erie.jpg)
During the
War of 1812
The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...
, about one-quarter of the personnel in the American naval squadrons of the
Battle of Lake Erie
The Battle of Lake Erie, sometimes called the Battle of Put-in-Bay, was fought on 10 September 1813, on Lake Erie off the shore of Ohio during the War of 1812. Nine vessels of the United States Navy defeated and captured six vessels of the Briti ...
were black, and portrait renderings of the battle on the wall of the nation's Capitol and the rotunda of Ohio's Capitol show that blacks played a significant role in it. Hannibal Collins, a freed slave and
Oliver Hazard Perry
Oliver Hazard Perry (August 23, 1785 – August 23, 1819) was an American naval commander, born in South Kingstown, Rhode Island. The best-known and most prominent member
of the Perry family naval dynasty, he was the son of Sarah Wallace A ...
's personal servant, is thought to be the oarsman in
William Henry Powell
William Henry Powell (February 14, 1823 – October 6, 1879), was an American artist who was born and died in New York City.
Powell is known for a painting of the Battle of Lake Erie, of which one copy hangs in the Ohio state capitol building ...
's ''Battle of Lake Erie''.
[Copes, p. 63. This is in some dispute. Se]
here
Collins earned his freedom as a veteran of the Revolutionary War, having fought in the
Battle of Rhode Island
The Battle of Rhode Island (also known as the Battle of Quaker Hill) took place on August 29, 1778. Continental Army and Militia forces under the command of Major General John Sullivan had been besieging the British forces in Newport, Rhode Isl ...
. He accompanied Perry for the rest of Perry's naval career, and was with him at Perry's death in
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...
in 1819.
No legal restrictions regarding the enlistment of blacks were placed on the Navy because of its chronic shortage of manpower. The law of 1792, which generally prohibited enlistment of blacks in the Army became the United States Army's official policy until 1862. The only exception to this Army policy was
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
, which gained an exemption at the time of its purchase through a treaty provision, which allowed it to opt out of the operation of any law, which ran counter to its traditions and customs. Louisiana permitted the existence of separate black militia units which drew its enlistees from freed blacks.
A militia unit, In Louisiana, the 2nd Battalion of Free Men of Color, was a unit of black soldiers from
Santo Domingo
, total_type = Total
, population_density_km2 = auto
, timezone = AST (UTC −4)
, area_code_type = Area codes
, area_code = 809, 829, 849
, postal_code_type = Postal codes
, postal_code = 10100–10699 (Distrito Nacional)
, websi ...
led by a Black free man and Santo-Domingue emigre Joseph Savary offered their services and were accepted by General
Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...
in the
Battle of New Orleans
The Battle of New Orleans was fought on January 8, 1815 between the British Army under Major General Sir Edward Pakenham and the United States Army under Brevet Major General Andrew Jackson, roughly 5 miles (8 km) southeast of the French ...
, a victory that was achieved after the war was officially over.
Blacks fought at the Battle of Bladensburg August 24, 1814, many as members of Commodore Joshua Barney's naval flotilla force. This force provided crucial artillery support during the battle. One of the best accounts is that by
Charles Ball
Charles Ball (real name Charles Gross; 1780 – ''unknown'') was an enslaved African-American from Maryland, best known for his account as a fugitive slave, ''Slavery in the United States'' (1836).
Autobiography
]
The main source for Ball's life ...
(born 1785). Ball served with Commodore Joshua at the Battle of Bladensburg and later helped man the defenses at Baltimore. In his 1837 memoir, Ball reflected on the Battle of Bladensburg: "I stood at my gun, until the Commodore was shot down… if the militia regiments, that lay upon our right and left, cold have been brought to charge the British, in close fight, as they crossed the bridge, we should have killed or taken the whole of them in a short time; but the militia ran like sheep chased by dogs." Barney's flotilla group included numerous African Americans who provided artillery support during the battle. Modern scholars estimate blacks made up between 15 and 20%, of the American naval forces in the War of 1812.
Just before the battle Commodore Barney on being asked by President James Madison "if his negroes would not run on the approach of the British?" replied: "No Sir…they don't know how to run; they will die by their guns first." The Commodore was correct, the men did not run, one such man was young sailor Harry Jones (no.35), apparently a free black. Harry Jones was wounded in the final action at Bladensburg. Due to the severity of Jones wounds, he remained a patient at the Naval Hospital Washington DC for nearly two months.
![Harry Jones black](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/39/Harry_Jones_black.._wound.._bladensburg_patient_no.35_naval_hospital_register_1814.jpg)
African Americans also served with the British. On April 2, 1814, Vice Admiral
Alexander Cochrane
Admiral of the Blue Sir Alexander Inglis Cochrane (born Alexander Forrester Cochrane; 23 April 1758 – 26 January 1832) was a senior Royal Navy commander during the Napoleonic Wars and achieved the rank of admiral.
He had previously captain ...
issued a
proclamation
A proclamation (Lat. ''proclamare'', to make public by announcement) is an official declaration issued by a person of authority to make certain announcements known. Proclamations are currently used within the governing framework of some nations ...
to all persons wishing to emigrate, similar to the aforementioned Dunmore's Proclamation some 40 years previous. Any persons would be received by the British, either at a military outpost or aboard British ships; those seeking sanctuary could enter His Majesty's forces, or go "as free settlers to the British possessions in North America or the West Indies".
[Morriss, p. 98.] Among those who went to the British, some joined the
Corps of Colonial Marines
The Corps of Colonial Marines were two different British Marine units raised from former black slaves for service in the Americas, at the behest of Alexander Cochrane. The units were created at two separate periods: 1808-1810 during the Napol ...
, an auxiliary unit of marine infantry, embodied on May 14, 1814. British commanders later stated the new marines fought well at Bladensburg and confirm that two companies took part in the burning of Washington including the White House. Following the Treaty of Ghent, the British kept their promise and in 1815 evacuated the Colonial Marines and their families to Halifax Canada and Bermuda.
1815 to 1840
"Despite Southern attempts to restrict their movements with the Negro Seaman Acts, African American sailors continued to enlist in the Navy in substantial numbers throughout the 1820s and 1830s." From the
Treaty of Ghent
The Treaty of Ghent () was the peace treaty that ended the War of 1812 between the United States and the United Kingdom. It took effect in February 1815. Both sides signed it on December 24, 1814, in the city of Ghent, United Netherlands (now in ...
to the Mexican-American War, African Americans made up a significant part of the peacetime navy.Data collected by Dr. Elnathan Judson USN, for his 1823 report, to the Secretary of the Navy,contains detailed information re the number of seamen vaccinated in the Boston area. This report which covers four months listed 161 men and boys of which, Dr. Judson enumerated 30 as black or 18.7% of the total. Commodore
William Bainbridge
William Bainbridge (May 7, 1774July 27, 1833) was a Commodore in the United States Navy. During his long career in the young American Navy he served under six presidents beginning with John Adams and is notable for his many victories at sea. He ...
in a 14 September 1827 letter to Secretary of the Navy
Samuel L. Southhard, reported 102 men had been received from the Philadelphia area of which 18 were Black or 17.6%. Bainbridge concluded by informing the Southard "I ordered the Recruiting Officer not to enter anymore until further notice." Data for 1839 was collected by Commodore
Lewis Warrington
Lewis Warrington (3 November 1782 – 12 October 1851) was an officer in the United States Navy during the Barbary Wars and the War of 1812. He later became a Captain. He temporarily served as the Secretary of the Navy. His highest rank w ...
and forwarded to the Secretary of the Navy as a memorandum with the number of recruits from 1 September 1838 to September 17, 1839. This document provides data for five naval recruiting stations which in total reflect 1016 men entered or naval service, "of which 122 were Black" or 12% of the total.
Mexican–American War
A number of African Americans in the Army during the
Mexican–American War
The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...
were servants of the officers who received government compensation for the services of their servants or slaves. Also, soldiers from the Louisiana Battalion of Free Men of Color participated in this war. African Americans also served on a number of naval vessels during the Mexican–American War, including the USS ''Treasure'', and the USS ''Columbus''.
The involvement of African Americans in this war was one where they were not included as actual soldiers. There were however, a few cases of African Americans joining in the fighting and these people became known as "Black Toms". Many slaves that were brought into assist the army officers escaped to Mexico. However, whenever the American Army would encounter these African Americans they viewed them as stolen property and dissolved them back into the racial hierarchy of the army.
American Civil War
![Company I of the 36th Colored Regiment](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1e/Company_I_of_the_36th_Colored_Regiment.jpg)
The history of African Americans in the
U.S. Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states t ...
is marked by 186,097 (7,122 officers, 178,975 enlisted) African-American men, comprising 163 units, who served in the
Union Army
During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...
during the Civil War, and many more African Americans served in the
Union Navy
), (official)
, colors = Blue and gold
, colors_label = Colors
, march =
, mascot =
, equipment =
, equipment_label ...
. Both free African Americans and runaway slaves joined the fight.
On the Confederate side, blacks, both free and slave, were used for labor. In the final months of the war, the Confederate Army was desperate for additional soldiers so the Confederate Congress voted to recruit black troops for combat; they were to be promised their freedom. Units were in training when the war ended, and none served in combat.
*
54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment
The 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that saw extensive service in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The unit was the second African-American regiment, following the 1st Kansas Colored Volunteer Infantry ...
Indian Wars
![Buffalo soldiers1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/Buffalo_soldiers1.jpg)
From 1863 to the early 20th century, African-American units were utilized by the Army to combat the
Native Americans during the
Indian Wars
The American Indian Wars, also known as the American Frontier Wars, and the Indian Wars, were fought by European governments and colonists in North America, and later by the United States and Canadian governments and American and Canadian settle ...
. The most noted among this group were the
Buffalo Soldiers
Buffalo Soldiers originally were members of the 10th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army, formed on September 21, 1866, at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. This nickname was given to the Black Cavalry by Native American tribes who fought in t ...
:
*
9th Cavalry Regiment
The 9th Cavalry Regiment is a parent cavalry regiment of the United States Army. It is not related to the 9th Kansas Cavalry Regiment of the Union Army. Historically, it was one of the Army's four segregated African-American regiments and was pa ...
*
10th Cavalry Regiment
The 10th Cavalry Regiment is a unit of the United States Army. Formed as a segregated African-American unit, the 10th Cavalry was one of the original "Buffalo Soldier" regiments in the post–Civil War Regular Army. It served in combat during t ...
*
24th Infantry Regiment
*
25th Infantry Regiment
At the end of the U.S. Civil War the army reorganized and authorized the formation of two regiments of black cavalry (the 9th and 10th US Cavalry). Four regiments of infantry (the 38th, 39th, 40th and 41st US Infantry) were formed at the same time. In 1869, the four infantry regiments were merged into two new ones (the 24th and 25th US Infantry). These units were composed of black enlisted men commanded by white officers such as
Benjamin Grierson, and occasionally, an African-American officer such as
Henry O. Flipper. The "Buffalo Soldiers" served a variety of roles along the frontier from building roads to guarding the U.S. mail.
These regiments served at a variety of posts in the southwest United States and
Great Plains
The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...
regions. During this period they participated in most of the military campaigns in these areas and earned a distinguished record. Thirteen enlisted men and six officers from these four regiments earned the
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...
during the Indian Wars.
Spanish–American War
![BuffaloSoldiers-SpanAmWar](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/BuffaloSoldiers-SpanAmWar.jpg)
After the Indian Wars ended in the 1890s, the regiments continued to serve and participated in the
Spanish–American War
, partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence
, image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg
, image_size = 300px
, caption = (clock ...
(including the
Battle of San Juan Hill
The Battle of San Juan Hill, also known as the Battle for the San Juan Heights, was a major battle of the Spanish–American War fought between an American force under the command of William Rufus Shafter and Joseph Wheeler against a Spanish fo ...
), where five more Medals of Honor were earned. They took part in the 1916 Punitive Expedition into Mexico and in the
Philippine–American War
The Philippine–American War or Filipino–American War ( es, Guerra filipina-estadounidense, tl, Digmaang Pilipino–Amerikano), previously referred to as the Philippine Insurrection or the Tagalog Insurgency by the United States, was an arm ...
.
Units
In addition to the African Americans who served in regular army units during the Spanish–American War, five African-American Volunteer Army units and seven African-American National Guard units served.
Volunteer Army:
* 7th United States Volunteer Infantry (Colored Troops)
* 8th United States Volunteer Infantry (Colored Troops)
* 9th United States Volunteer Infantry (Colored Troops)
* 10th United States Volunteer Infantry (Colored Troops)
* 11th United States Volunteer Infantry (Colored Troops)
National Guard:
* 3rd Alabama Volunteer Infantry (Colored Troops)
*
8th Illinois Volunteer Infantry (Colored Troops)
* Companies A and B, 1st Indiana Volunteer Infantry (Colored Troops)
* 23rd Kansas Volunteer Infantry (Colored Troops)
* 3rd North Carolina Volunteer Infantry (Colored Troops)
* 9th Ohio Volunteer Infantry (Colored Troops)
* 6th Virginia Volunteer Infantry (Colored Troops)
Of these units, only the 9th U.S., 8th Illinois, and 23rd Kansas served outside the United States during the war. All three units served in
Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...
and suffered no losses to combat.
Philippine–American War
After the
Treaty of Paris Treaty of Paris may refer to one of many treaties signed in Paris, France:
Treaties
1200s and 1300s
* Treaty of Paris (1229), which ended the Albigensian Crusade
* Treaty of Paris (1259), between Henry III of England and Louis IX of France
* Trea ...
, the islands of the Philippines became a colony of the United States. When the U.S. military started to send soldiers into the islands, native rebels, who had already been fighting their former Spanish rulers, opposed U.S. colonization and retaliated, causing an insurrection. In what would be known as the
Philippine–American War
The Philippine–American War or Filipino–American War ( es, Guerra filipina-estadounidense, tl, Digmaang Pilipino–Amerikano), previously referred to as the Philippine Insurrection or the Tagalog Insurgency by the United States, was an arm ...
, the U.S. military also sent colored regiments and units to stop the insurrection. However, due to the discrimination of African-American soldiers, some of them defected to the
Philippine Army
The Philippine Army (PA) ( Tagalog: ''Hukbong Katihan ng Pilipinas''; in literal English: ''Army of the Ground of the Philippines''; in literal Spanish: ''Ejército de la Tierra de la Filipinas'') is the main, oldest and largest branch of the ...
.
One of those that defected was
David Fagen
David Fagen (born 1875, date of death unknown) was an African-American soldier who defected during the Philippine–American War. He acquired the rank of captain in the Philippine Revolutionary Army.
Service
A native of Tampa, Florida, Fagen se ...
, who was given the rank of captain in the Philippine Army. Fagen served in the
24th Regiment of the
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
, but on November 17, 1899, he defected to the Filipino army. He became a successful guerrilla leader and his capture became an obsession to the U.S. military and American public. His defection was likely the result of differential treatment by American occupational forces toward black soldiers, as well as common American forces derogatory treatment and views of the Filipino occupational resistance, who were frequently referred to as "niggers" and "gugus".
After two other black deserters were captured and executed, President
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...
announced he would stop executing captured deserters.
As the war ended, the US gave amnesties to most of their opponents. A substantial reward was offered for Fagen, who was considered a traitor. There are two conflicting versions of his fate: one is that his was the partially decomposed head for which the reward was claimed, the other is that he took a local wife and lived peacefully in the mountains.
World War I and Interwar Period
![369th 15th New York](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5c/369th_15th_New_York.jpg)
When the war broke out, several African-Americans joined
Allied
An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
armies. Most notably,
Eugene Bullard
Eugene Jacques Bullard (born Eugene James Bullard; October 9, 1895 – October 12, 1961) was one of the first black American military pilots, although Bullard flew for France, not the United States. Bullard was one of the few black combat pilo ...
and
Bob Scanlon joined the
French Foreign Legion
The French Foreign Legion (french: Légion étrangère) is a corps of the French Army which comprises several specialties: infantry, Armoured Cavalry Arm, cavalry, Military engineering, engineers, Airborne forces, airborne troops. It was created ...
within weeks of the start of the war. Of the twelve African-Americans who joined the Legion at the start, only two survived the war.
The U.S. armed forces remained segregated through
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
as a matter of policy and practice, and despite the effort of Black leadership to overcome that discrimination. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (
NAACP
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&nb ...
) had been formed in 1909 to move Black equality of opportunity forward, but with the declaration of war in 1917 civil rights leader
W.E.B. Du Bois
William Edward Burghardt Du Bois ( ; February 23, 1868 – August 27, 1963) was an American-Ghanaian sociologist, socialist, historian, and Pan-Africanist civil rights activist. Born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, Du Bois grew up i ...
declared an acceptable fall-back in the effort. "First your country, then your rights!" became the NAACP slogan.
The optimistic belief was that by serving valiantly in the nation's war effort Blacks would gain the respect and equality that had been elusive thus far. But it was pitted against an underlying unwillingness by the War Department to become a vehicle for social change. Secretary of War
Newton D. Baker
Newton Diehl Baker Jr. (December 3, 1871 – December 25, 1937) was an American lawyer, Georgist,Noble, Ransom E. "Henry George and the Progressive Movement." The American Journal of Economics and Sociology, vol. 8, no. 3, 1949, pp. 259–269. w ...
had made it clear that, though African Americans would be fairly treated in the military, the department could not "undertake at this time to settle the so-called race question." Instead, the practices that limited equality and opportunity in civilian society were carried over to military society.
Prospective Black enlistees in the war effort were turned away, in large part because there were not enough segregated Black units to take them in. Those Blacks who were successfully enlisted were kept in the same restricted channels of their civil lives. Segregated transportation took them to segregated military bases and regiments that were rarely deployed to much more than the tasks of support and maintenance. And in those jobs they were subject to treatment of indignities by white officers such as eating in the rain, having no facilities to wash clothes or bath, no toilets and sleeping in tents with no floors. Still, many African Americans volunteered to join the military following America's entry into the war. By the time of the
armistice with Germany
The Armistice of 11 November 1918 was the armistice signed at Le Francport near Compiègne that ended fighting on land, sea, and air in World War I between the Entente and their last remaining opponent, Germany. Previous armistices ...
on November 11, 1918, over 200,000 African Americans had served with the
American Expeditionary Force
The American Expeditionary Forces (A. E. F.) was a formation of the United States Army on the Western Front of World War I. The A. E. F. was established on July 5, 1917, in France under the command of General John J. Pershing. It fought alon ...
on the Western Front, while 170,000 remained in the United States.
Though most African-American units were largely relegated to support roles and did not see combat, some African Americans played a notable role in America's war effort. For example, the
369th Infantry Regiment, known as the "Harlem Hellfighters", was assigned to the French Army and served on the front lines for six months. 171 members of the 369th were awarded the
Legion of Merit
The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...
.
![WWI_German_Propaganda_towards_African-American_Troops](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/22/WWI_German_Propaganda_towards_African-American_Troops.jpg)
Germany attempted to sway the African American troops with
propaganda
Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...
challenging their race-related rights back in the United States.
Corporal
Freddie Stowers of the
371st Infantry Regiment that was seconded to the 157th French Army division called the Red Hand Division in need of reinforcement under the command of the General
Mariano Goybet
Mariano Francisco Julio Goybet (17 August 1861 – 29 September 1943) was a French Army general, who held several commands in World War I.
Family
His family is an old family from Savoy in France. Its members were notaries, merchants, mayors, cap ...
was posthumously awarded a
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...
—the only African American to be so honored for actions in World War I. During action in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, Stowers had led an assault on German trenches, continuing to lead and encourage his men even after being twice wounded. Stowers died from his wounds, but his men continued the fight and eventually defeated the
German troops. Stowers was recommended for the Medal of Honor shortly after his death, but the nomination was, according to the Army, misplaced. In 1990, under pressure from
Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
, the
Department of the Army
The United States Department of the Army (DA) is one of the three military departments within the Department of Defense of the U.S. The Department of the Army is the federal government agency within which the United States Army (U.S.) is org ...
launched an investigation. Based on findings from this investigation, the Army Decorations Board approved the award of the Medal of Honor to Stowers.
[Kirkels, Mieke and Dickon, Chris (2020). Dutch Children of African American Liberators. McFarland Publications p. 26 ] On April 24, 1991–73 years after he was killed in action—Stowers' two surviving sisters received the Medal of Honor from President
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...
at the White House. The success of the investigation leading to Stowers' Medal of Honor later sparked a similar review that resulted in six African Americans being posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for actions in World War II.
Vernon Baker
Vernon may refer to:
Places
Australia
*Vernon County, New South Wales
Canada
*Vernon, British Columbia, a city
*Vernon, Ontario
France
* Vernon, Ardèche
*Vernon, Eure
United States
* Vernon, Alabama
* Vernon, Arizona
* Vernon, California
* ...
was the only recipient who was still alive to receive his award.
Units
Some of the African-American units that served in World War I were:
*
92nd Infantry Division
**
366th Infantry Regiment
*
93rd Infantry Division
**
369th Infantry Regiment ("Harlem Hellfighters"; formerly the 15th New York National Guard)
**
370th Infantry Regiment ("Black Devils", formerly the 8th Illinois)
**
371st Infantry Regiment
**
372nd Infantry Regiment
Support units included:
* Butchery Companies, Nos. 322 and 363
*
Stevedore Regiments, Nos. 301, 302 and 303d Stevedore Regiment and Stevedore Battalions, Nos. 701, 702
*
Army Corps of Engineers: Engineers Service Battalions, Nos. 505 to 567, inclusive (but skipping 531–532, 538, 537–563) (57 total; about 1008 personnel per battalion)
* Labor Battalions, Nos. 304 to 315, inclusive; Nos. 317 to 327, inclusive; Nos. 329 to 348, inclusive, and No. 357
* Labor Companies, Nos. 301 to 324, inclusive
* Pioneer Infantry Battalions, Nos. 801 to 809, inclusive; No. 811 and Nos. 813 to 816, inclusive.
A complete list of African-American units that served in the war is available.
African Americans Veterans faced heavy persecution when they returned home from
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and many
African American veterans were lynched after returning from WWI. The prediction of equality by W.E.B. Du Bois and the NAACP would not be realized, and racial antagonism was expanded by the claims that any talk of Black valor and positive contribution were lies meant to cover up cowardice and incompetence, which was counteracted by claims of prejudiced and harmful white leadership and the use of Blacks as cannon fodder for white troops that followed them into combat.
Experience of Soldiers in France
African Americans were typically placed into labour battalions with around 160,000 of the 200,000 African Americans who were shipped out to France in 1917 finding themselves placed in one. These labour battalions were viewed as being the "dregs of the military forces" and the men in them were "driven to the brink of physical and emotional exhaustion".
Jim Crow
The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws enforcing racial segregation in the Southern United States. Other areas of the United States were affected by formal and informal policies of segregation as well, but many states outside the Sout ...
was extended to the camps where the African American soldiers were stationed and white officers would frequently remind African American soldiers of this. The
370th Infantry Regiment were informed a black member of a labour battalion had recently been hanged in the same square the unit was now assembling in a small town outside the Lorraine region.
In support of an attempt to impose American racial policy on France, U.S. military authorities sent a memo to the mayors of the Meuse division upon the arrival of the African American 372nd Infantry Regiment (The "Red Hand") in 1918. It asked that the French not integrate the Black troops into French society:
The request was generally disregarded by the French.
The way they were treated by white Americans in France differed markedly from the way they were treated by French troops and civilians who dealt with them roughly as equals. This left the African Americans disillusioned.
African American soldiers interacted with colonial troops stationed in France, and they had already read about them in
African American newspapers
African-American newspapers (also known as the Black press or Black newspapers) are newspaper, news publications in the United States serving African-American communities. Samuel Cornish and John Brown Russwurm started the first African-Americ ...
. The French military had reframed the debate for African Americans at home, in that France recognized that Blacks had an "important combatant role in the defence of the nation". These stories and experiences fuelled African American racial pride which contributed to their mass disillusionment when they returned home.
YMCA
YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...
services in France were also segregated sixty African American y-secretaries, among them twenty-three African American women served the 200,000 black soldiers stationed in France, only three of these arrived before the armistice – including
Addie W. Hunton and
Kathryn M. Johnson. The YMCA work provided entertainment, recreation, and education to the vast majority of African American troops as they had more time on their hands since they served in labor battalions.
African American WWI veterans role in the civil rights movement:
According to the historian Chad L Williams, "African American soldiers' experiences in the war and their battles with the pervasive racial discrimination in the U.S. military informed their postwar disillusionment and subsequent racial militancy as veterans". Examples of this racial militancy can be seen in the prominent roles which some African American WWI veterans played in the civil rights movement. For example, William N. Colston, an African American veteran who had served in the 367th infantry during the war, published several essays in the US's leading radical African American magazine- the Messenger. These articles aimed to illustrate the experiences which African Americans soldiers had throughout the war. African American's wartime experiences also played a key role in the formation of the League for Democracy which was a Civil Rights movement formed by African American soldiers serving in the 92nd Division with its key aim being to combat racial discrimination within the military.
Second Italo-Abyssinian War
On October 4, 1935, Fascist Italy invaded
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
. Being the only non-colonized African country besides
Liberia
Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...
, the invasion of Ethiopia caused a profound response amongst African Americans. In New York City, clashes took place between African Americans and the Italian immigrant community, many of whom vocally supported Mussolini's invasion. A rally held at Madison Square Garden on Sept. 26, less than a week before the invasion, brought out more than 10,000 to hear civil rights leader
W.E.B. Du Bois
William Edward Burghardt Du Bois ( ; February 23, 1868 – August 27, 1963) was an American-Ghanaian sociologist, socialist, historian, and Pan-Africanist civil rights activist. Born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, Du Bois grew up i ...
,
Paul Robeson
Paul Leroy Robeson ( ; April 9, 1898 – January 23, 1976) was an American bass-baritone concert artist, stage and film actor, professional football player, and activist who became famous both for his cultural accomplishments and for his p ...
and others speak about the impending disaster. Samuel Daniels, head of the Pan-African Reconstruction Association, toured major American cities to recruit volunteers. African Americans organized to raise money for medical supplies, and several thousand volunteered to fight for the African kingdom.
Most volunteers were blocked from leaving the United States due to the American government's desire to remain neutral in the conflict.
Volunteer
John C. Robinson
John Cleveland Robinson (April 10, 1817 – February 18, 1897) had a long and distinguished career in the United States Army, fighting in numerous wars and culminating his career as a Union Army brigadier general of volunteers and brevet major ...
, a pilot and graduate of
Tuskegee University
Tuskegee University (Tuskegee or TU), formerly known as the Tuskegee Institute, is a private, historically black land-grant university in Tuskegee, Alabama. It was founded on Independence Day in 1881 by the state legislature.
The campus was d ...
, made his way to Ethiopia to assist with training pilots for Ethiopia's new air force. Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie soon personally named Robinson commander of the entire air force. Robinson was given the nickname the "Brown Condor" by Ethiopian forces for his service.
Many years later
Haile Selassie I
Haile Selassie I ( gez, ቀዳማዊ ኀይለ ሥላሴ, Qädamawi Häylä Səllasé, ; born Tafari Makonnen; 23 July 189227 August 1975) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974. He rose to power as Regent Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia ('' ...
would comment on the efforts: "We can never forget the help Ethiopia received from Negro Americans during the crisis. ... It moved me to know that Americans of African descent did not abandon their embattled brothers, but stood by us."
Spanish Civil War
When
General Franco
Francisco Franco Bahamonde (; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general who led the Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War and thereafter ruled over Spain from 193 ...
rebelled against the newly established secular
Spanish Republic
The Spanish Republic (), commonly known as the Second Spanish Republic (), was the form of government in Spain from 1931 to 1939. The Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931, after the deposition of King Alfonso XIII, and was dissolved on 1 A ...
, a number of African Americans volunteered to fight for Republican Spain. Many African Americans who were in the Abraham Lincoln Brigade had Communist ideals. Among these, there was
Vaughn Love
Vaughn may refer to:
Places in the United States
*Vaughn, California, former name of Bodfish, California
*Vaughn, Montana
* Vaughn, New Mexico
* Vaughn, Oregon
* Vaughn, Pennsylvania
* Vaughn, Virginia
* Vaughn, Washington
Name
*Vaughn (surname) ...
who went to fight for the Spanish loyalist cause because he considered
Fascism
Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy an ...
to be the "enemy of all black aspirations."
African-American activist and World War I veteran
Oliver Law
Oliver Law (October 23, 1900 – July 9, 1937) was an African-American communist and labor organizer, who fought for the Republic in the Spanish Civil War. He was the commander of the Abraham Lincoln Battalion for several days and commande ...
, fought in the
Abraham Lincoln Brigade
The Abraham Lincoln Brigade ( es, Brigada Abraham Lincoln), officially the XV International Brigade (''XV Brigada Internacional''), was a mixed brigade that fought for the Spanish Republic in the Spanish Civil War as a part of the Internationa ...
during the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...
James Peck was an African-American man from
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
who was turned down when he applied to become a military
pilot
An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...
in the US. He then went on to serve in the
Spanish Republican Air Force
The Spanish Republican Air Force was the air arm of the Armed Forces of the Second Spanish Republic, the legally established government of Spain between 1931 and 1939.
Initially divided into two branches: Military Aeronautics ('' Aeronáutica M ...
until 1938. Peck was credited with shooting down five
Aviación Nacional
A Caudron C.286 of the Nationalist Spanish Air Force
The terms "Aviación Nacional" ("Nationalist Aviation"), "Fuerza Aérea Nacional" ("Nationalist Air Force") and "Ejército Nacional del Aire" ("Nationalist Army of the Air") refer to military a ...
planes, two
Heinkel He-51s from the
Legion Condor
The Condor Legion (german: Legion Condor) was a unit composed of military personnel from the air force and army of Nazi Germany, which served with the Nationalist faction during the Spanish Civil War of July 1936 to March 1939. The Condor Legio ...
and three
Fiat CR.32 Fascist Italian fighters.
Salaria Kea
Salaria Kea O'Reilly (born 13 July 1917 in Milledgeville, Georgia – died 18 May 1990 in Akron, Ohio) was an American nurse and desegregation activist who volunteered in both the Spanish Civil War and the Second World War. was a young African-American nurse from
Harlem Hospital
Harlem Hospital Center, branded as NYC Health + Hospitals/Harlem, is a 272-bed, public teaching hospital affiliated with Columbia University. It is located at 506 Lenox Avenue in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City and was founded in 1887.
The hosp ...
who served as a military nurse with the
American Medical Bureau
The American Medical Bureau (AMB), also known as the American Medical Bureau to Save Spanish Democracy, was a humanitarian aid institution associated to the Lincoln Battalion, providing a medical corps, nursing systems for casualties, as well as ...
in the Spanish Civil War. She was one of the two only African-American female volunteers in the midst of the war-torn Spanish Republican areas. When Salaria came back from Spain she wrote the pamphlet "A Negro Nurse in Spain" and tried to raise funds for the beleaguered Spanish Republic.
World War II
The
Pittsburgh Courier
The ''Pittsburgh Courier'' was an African-American weekly newspaper published in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1907 until October 22, 1966. By the 1930s, the ''Courier'' was one of the leading black newspapers in the United States.
It was acqu ...
was one of the most influential African American newspapers of WW II, and the source of what came to be called the
Double V Campaign
The Double V campaign was a slogan and drive to promote the fight for democracy in overseas campaigns and at the home front in the United States for African Americans during World War II. The Double V refers to the "V for victory" sign prominen ...
. A letter to the editor of the paper in 1941 asked why a “half American” should sacrifice his life in the war and suggested that Blacks should seek a double victory. “The first V for a victory over our enemies from without, the second V for a victory over our enemies from within.” The idea would become a national cause, and eventually extend into a call for action in the factories and services that supported the war effort.
Despite a high enlistment rate in the U.S. Army, African Americans were still not treated equally. At parades, church services, in transportation and canteens the races were kept separate. A quota of only 48 nurses was set for African-American women, and the women were segregated from white nurses and white soldiers for much of the war. Eventually more black nurses enlisted. They were assigned to care for black soldiers. Black nurses were integrated into everyday life with their white colleagues.
![Phyllis mae Dailey](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/Phyllis_mae_Dailey.gif)
The first African-American woman sworn into the Navy Nurse Corps was Phyllis Mae Dailey, a Columbia University student from New York. She was the first of only four African-American women to serve as a Navy nurse during World War II.
Many black American soldiers served their country with distinction during World War II. There were 125,000 African Americans who were overseas in World War II (6.25% of all abroad soldiers). Famous segregated units, such as the
Tuskegee Airmen
The Tuskegee Airmen were a group of primarily African American military pilots (fighter and bomber) and airmen who fought in World War II. They formed the 332d Fighter Group and the 477th Fighter Group, 477th Bombardment Group (Medium) of the ...
and
761st Tank Battalion and the lesser-known but equally distinguished
452nd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion, proved their value in combat, leading to
desegregation
Desegregation is the process of ending the separation of two groups, usually referring to races. Desegregation is typically measured by the index of dissimilarity, allowing researchers to determine whether desegregation efforts are having impact o ...
of all U.S. armed forces by order of President
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...
in July 1948 via
Executive Order 9981
Executive Order 9981 was issued on July 26, 1948, by President Harry S. Truman. This executive order abolished discrimination "on the basis of race, color, religion or national origin" in the United States Armed Forces, and led to the re-integra ...
.
Benjamin O. Davis, Jr. served as commander of the Tuskegee Airmen during the war. He later went on to become the first African-American general in the
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...
. His father,
Benjamin O. Davis, Sr., had been the first African-American brigadier general in the Army (1940).
Doris Miller
Doris Miller (October 12, 1919November 24, 1943) was a United States Navy cook third class who was killed in action during World War II. He was the first Black American to be awarded the Navy Cross, the highest decoration for valor presented by ...
, a Navy mess attendant, was the first African-American recipient of the
Navy Cross
The Navy Cross is the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps' second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is eq ...
, awarded for his actions during the
attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, j ...
. Miller had voluntarily manned an
anti-aircraft
Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...
gun and fired at the Japanese aircraft, despite having no prior training in the weapon's use.
On April 14, 1943, Joseph C. Jenkins became the first African-American commissioned officer in the
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mult ...
. He was joined first by
Clarence Samuels
Lieutenant Junior Grade Clarence Samuels (June 11, 1900 – April 4, 1983), was the first Hispanic American of African descent photographer in the United States Coast Guard, to command a cutter, as well as the first one to be a commanding officer o ...
on August 31, 1943, and then by
Harvey C. Russell Jr. Harvey Clarence Russell Jr. was the vice president of PepsiCo and made history as the first Black officer of a major U.S. multinational corporation. He was also the Co-Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus Dinner. PepsiCo established the Glob ...
in February 1944.
In March 1944, the
Golden Thirteen
The Golden Thirteen were the thirteen African American enlisted men who became the first African American commissioned and warrant officers in the United States Navy.
History
Throughout the history of the United States until the end of World War ...
became the Navy's first African-American commissioned officers.
Samuel L. Gravely, Jr.
Samuel Lee Gravely Jr. (June 4, 1922 – October 22, 2004) was a United States Navy officer. He was the first African American in the U.S. Navy to serve aboard a fighting ship as an officer, the first to command a Navy ship, the first fleet comman ...
became a commissioned officer the same year; he would later be the first African American to command a US warship, and the first to be an admiral.
The
Port Chicago disaster
The Port Chicago disaster was a deadly munitions explosion of the ship SS ''E. A. Bryan'' that occurred on July 17, 1944, at the Port Chicago Naval Magazine in Port Chicago, California, United States. Munitions detonated while being loaded ont ...
on July 17, 1944, was an explosion of about 2,000 tons of ammunition as it was being loaded onto ships by black Navy sailors under pressure from their white officers to hurry. The explosion in Northern California killed 320 military and civilian workers, most of them black. It led a month later to the Port Chicago Mutiny, the only case of a full military trial for mutiny in the history of the U.S. Navy against 50 African-American sailors who refused to continue loading ammunition under the same dangerous conditions. The trial was observed by the then young lawyer
Thurgood Marshall
Thurgood Marshall (July 2, 1908 – January 24, 1993) was an American civil rights lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 until 1991. He was the Supreme Court's first African-A ...
and ended in conviction of all of the defendants. The trial was immediately and later criticized for not abiding by the applicable laws on mutiny, and it became influential in the discussion of desegregation.
During World War II, African-American soldiers served in all fields of service. In the midst of the
Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive (military), offensive military campaign, campaign on the Western Front (World War II), Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted fr ...
in December 1944, General
Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...
was severely short of replacement troops for existing all-white companies. Consequently, he made the decision to allow 2000 black servicemen volunteers to serve in segregated platoons under the command of white lieutenants to replenish these companies. These platoons would serve with distinction and, according to an Army survey in the summer of 1945, 84% were ranked "very well" and 16% were ranked "fairly well". No black platoon received a ranking of "poor" by those white officers or white soldiers that fought with them. These platoons were often subject to racist treatment by white military units in occupied Germany and were quickly sent back to their old segregated units after the end of hostilities in Germany. Despite their protests, these brave African-American soldiers ended the war in their old non-combat service units. Though largely forgotten after the war, the temporary experiment with black combat troops proved a success - a small, but important step toward permanent integration during the Korean War.
A total of 708 African Americans were
killed in combat during World War II.
In 1945,
Frederick C. Branch
Frederick Clinton Branch (May 31, 1922 – April 10, 2005) was the first African American, African-American officer of the United States Marine Corps.
Early life and education
Branch was born in Hamlet, North Carolina, the fourth son of an Africa ...
became the first African-American
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...
officer.
A
blue plaque
A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom and elsewhere to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving as a historical marker. The term i ...
commemorating the contribution of African-American soldiers based in
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
during World War II was installed by the
Nubian Jak Community Trust
Nubian Jak Community Trust (NJCT) is a commemorative plaque and sculpture scheme founded by Jak Beula that highlights the historic contributions of Black and minority ethnic people in Britain. The first NJCT heritage plaque, honouring Bob Marley, ...
at
RAF Carew Cheriton
Royal Air Force Carew Cheriton or more simply RAF Carew Cheriton is a former Royal Air Force station of Coastal and Training Command near Carew, Pembrokeshire. It was sited north west of Tenby. It was built on the site of RNAS Pembroke (aka ...
on the 75th anniversary of the
D-Day landings
The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...
, June 6, 2019.
The presence of African-American soldiers in the U.K. and subsequent encounters with the native population has been shown to have reduced the racial prejudice against black people if even decades later, and, for the most part, African American soldiers were more welcome in the countries of European Allies than U.S. officials wished them to be. But they were not welcome in some other parts of the world, which became a problem to be solved for Brig. Gen Dwight D. Eisenhower. In 1942, he told the War Department that, by his research, Black troops would not be welcomed for various reasons in Australia, Alaska, most of the south Caribbean nations, the British West Indies, Panama and Liberia. And U.S. military leaders themselves did not want them in Iceland, Greenland, Labrador and the British Isles. The War Department response to the information was mixed, and by 1944 the war had progressed into a need for all troops that could be deployed.
As in World War I, Black soldiers were primarily channeled to support labor, most of them as members of the
Quartermaster Corps
Following is a list of Quartermaster Corps, military units, active and defunct, with logistics duties:
* Egyptian Army Quartermaster Corps - see Structure of the Egyptian Army
* Hellenic Army Quartermaster Corps (''Σώμα Φροντιστών ...
. Among the most crucial and difficult of Quartermaster responsibilities was burial of the dead and the construction of temporary and permanent cemeteries. The best-known work of the Quartermaster Corps in World War II was the brief
Red Ball Express
The Red Ball Express was a famed truck convoy system that supplied Allied forces moving quickly through Europe after breaking out from the D-Day beaches in Normandy in 1944. To expedite cargo shipment to the front, trucks emblazoned with red ...
, which ferried food, supplies and fuel along the rapid advance of Allied forces from the
Normandy Invasion
Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norma ...
to the incursion into Germany. Six thousand trucks operating 24 hours a day, most with two African American drivers on circular routes carried 400,000 tons of supplies through increasingly liberated Europe between August 25 and November 16, 1944. The work was relentless, exhausting and dangerous, and credited with helping to bring about the ultimate success of the Normandy Invasion. A 1952 movie, ''The Red Ball Express'', brought more attention to the effort, but underplayed its African American aspect.
Units
Army:
*
92nd Infantry Division
**
366th Infantry Regiment
**
370th Infantry Regiment
*
93rd Infantry Division
**
369th Infantry Regiment
**
371st Infantry Regiment
*
2nd Cavalry Division
**
4th Cavalry Brigade
***
10th Cavalry Regiment
The 10th Cavalry Regiment is a unit of the United States Army. Formed as a segregated African-American unit, the 10th Cavalry was one of the original "Buffalo Soldier" regiments in the post–Civil War Regular Army. It served in combat during t ...
***
27th Cavalry Regiment
** 5th Cavalry Brigade
***
9th Cavalry Regiment
The 9th Cavalry Regiment is a parent cavalry regiment of the United States Army. It is not related to the 9th Kansas Cavalry Regiment of the Union Army. Historically, it was one of the Army's four segregated African-American regiments and was pa ...
***
28th Cavalry Regiment
* Non Divisional Units
** Barrage Balloon Unit
***
320th Barrage Balloon Battalion
The 320th Barrage Balloon Battalion was an African American United States Army unit that saw combat in Europe during World War II. This VLA (Very Low Altitude) barrage balloon battalion "was raised up in 1942 just a year after the Coast Artille ...
** Anti-Aircraft Artillery Unit
***
452nd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion
** Infantry Units
***
555th Parachute Infantry Battalion
** Cavalry/Armor Units
*** US Military Academy Cavalry Squadron
***
5th Reconnaissance Squadron
***
758th Tank Battalion
The 758th Tank Battalion was a tank battalion of the United States Army that served during World War II. The first armored unit to consist of African-American soldiers, the 758th was formed in 1941 and served in Italy.
History
On 13 January 194 ...
***
761st Tank Battalion
***
784th Tank Battalion
The 784th Tank Battalion, was a United States Army segregated combat tank battalion during World War II.
It was originally attached to the 5th US Tank Group that was based in Camp Claiborne, Louisiana during World War II. The 5th Tank Group als ...
** Field Artillery Units
*** 46th Field Artillery Brigade
*** 184th Field Artillery Regiment, Illinois National Guard
***
333rd Field Artillery Regiment
*** 349th Field Artillery Regiment
*** 350th Field Artillery Regiment
*** 351st Field Artillery Regiment
*** 353rd Field Artillery Regiment
*** 578th Field Artillery Regiment
***
333rd Field Artillery Battalion
*** 349th Field Artillery Battalion
*** 350th Field Artillery Battalion
*** 351st Field Artillery Battalion
*** 353rd Field Artillery Battalion
*** 578th Field Artillery Battalion
*** 593rd Field Artillery Battalion
*** 594th Field Artillery Battalion
*** 595th Field Artillery Battalion
*** 596th Field Artillery Battalion
*** 597th Field Artillery Battalion
*** 598th Field Artillery Battalion
*** 599th Field Artillery Battalion
*** 600th Field Artillery Battalion
*** 686th Field Artillery Battalion
*** 777th Field Artillery Battalion
*** 795th Field Artillery Battalion
*** 930th Field Artillery Battalion, Illinois National Guard
*** 931st Field Artillery Battalion, Illinois National Guard
***
969th Field Artillery Battalion
*** 971st Field Artillery Battalion
*** 973rd Field Artillery Battalion
*** 993rd Field Artillery Battalion
*** 999th Field Artillery Battalion
** Tank Destroyer Units
***
614th Tank Destroyer Battalion
*** 646th Tank Destroyer Battalion
*** 649th Tank Destroyer Battalion
*** 659th Tank Destroyer Battalion
*** 669th Tank Destroyer Battalion
*** 679th Tank Destroyer Battalion
*** 795th Tank Destroyer Battalion
***
827th Tank Destroyer Battalion
The 827th Tank Destroyer Battalion was a tank destroyer battalion of the United States Army active during the Second World War. It was activated in April 1942 as a segregated African American unit, deploying to Europe at the end of 1944 and atta ...
*** 828th Tank Destroyer Battalion
*** 829th Tank Destroyer Battalion
*** 846th Tank Destroyer Battalion
Army Air Corps:
*
332nd Fighter Group (
Tuskegee Airmen
The Tuskegee Airmen were a group of primarily African American military pilots (fighter and bomber) and airmen who fought in World War II. They formed the 332d Fighter Group and the 477th Fighter Group, 477th Bombardment Group (Medium) of the ...
)
*
477th Bombardment Group 477th may refer to:
* 477th Bombardment Squadron, inactive United States Air Force unit
*477th Fighter Group, the Air Force Reserve Command's first F-22A Raptor unit
* 477th Tactical Fighter Squadron, inactive United States Air Force unit
See also ...
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...
*
51st Defense Battalion
*
52nd Defense Battalion
* 63 USMC Depot and Ammunition Companies were segregated.
**16th Marine Field Depot
***7th Marine Depot Company
***11th Marine Ammunition Company
United States Navy
*
USS Mason (DE-529)
*
USS PC-1264
USS ''PC-1264'' was a built for the United States Navy during World War II. She was one of only two U.S. Navy ships to have a predominantly African-American enlisted complement during the war, the other being the .
''PC-1264'' was in service fo ...
* Naval Ordinance Battalions (stevedore)
United States
Navy Seabees
![34th-divers-1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/18/34th-divers-1.jpg)
* 34th Naval Construction Battalion
* 80th Naval Construction Battalion
* 15 USN Special Construction Battalions (stevedore) were segregated.
** 15th Special Naval Construction Battalion
** 17th Special Naval Construction Battalion
** 20th Special Naval Construction Battalion
** 21st Special Naval Construction Battalion
** 22nd Special Naval Construction Battalion
** 23rd Special Naval Construction Battalion
** 30th Special Naval Construction Battalion
In February 1942
CNO Admiral
Harold Rainsford Stark
Harold Rainsford Stark (November 12, 1880 – August 20, 1972) was an officer in the United States Navy during World War I and World War II, who served as the 8th Chief of Naval Operations from August 1, 1939 to March 26, 1942.
Early life an ...
recommended African Americans for ratings in the construction trades. In April the Navy announced it would enlist African Americans in the Seabees. Even so, there were just two CBs that were "
colored
''Colored'' (or ''coloured'') is a racial descriptor historically used in the United States during the Jim Crow, Jim Crow Era to refer to an African Americans, African American. In many places, it may be considered a Pejorative, slur, though it ...
" units, the 34th and 80th.
Both had white Southern officers and black enlisted. Both battalions experienced problems with that arrangement that led to the replacement of the officers. The men of the 34th went on a hunger strike which made national news. The Commander of the 80th had 19 enlisted dishonorably discharged for sedition. The
NAACP
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&nb ...
and
Thurgood Marshall
Thurgood Marshall (July 2, 1908 – January 24, 1993) was an American civil rights lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 until 1991. He was the Supreme Court's first African-A ...
got 14 of those reversed. In 1943 the Navy drew up a proposal to raise the number of colored CBs to 5 and require that all non-rated men in the next 24 CBs be colored. The proposal was approved, but not acted on.
The lack of stevedores in combat zones was a huge issue for the Navy. Authorization for the formation of cargo handling CBs or "Special CBs" happened mid-September 1942.
[This week in Seabee History, Sept 17–23, Seabee Online Magazine, NAVFAC Engineering Command, Wash. Navy Yard, DC]
live.mil/326-2/
/ref> By wars end 41 Special CBs had been commissioned of which 15 were "colored". They were the first fully integrated units in the U.S. Navy. V-J Day brought the decommissioning of all of them. The Special CBs were forerunners of today's Navy Cargo Handling Battalions of the Navy Expeditionary Logistics Support Group (United States)
Navy Expeditionary Logistics Support Group (NAVELSG) is an echelon IV command in the United States Navy and part of Navy Expeditionary Combat Command (NECC).
Mission
Navy Expeditionary Logistics Support Group (NAVELSG) is a vital enabler of Mari ...
. The arrival of 15 colored Special CBs in Pearl Harbor made segregation an issue for the Navy.[Historical Content Significance, Naval Aviation Supply Depot Hut 33 at Waiawa Gulch, Peral City, U.S. Dept of Interior, Nat. Park Service, p. 1]
/ref> For some time the men slept in tents, but the disparity of treatment was obvious even to the Navy. The 14th Naval District felt they deserved proper shelter with at least separate but equal barracks. Manana Barracks and Waiawa Gulch became the United States' largest colored military installation with over 4,000 Seabee stevedores segregated there. It was the site of racial strife to the point that the camp was fenced in and placed under armed guard. The Seabees would be trucked back and forth to the docks in cattle trucks. Two naval supply depots were located at Waiawa Gulch.
Of note were the actions of the 17th Special Naval Construction Battalion and the 16th Marine Field Depot on Peleliu
Peleliu (or Beliliou) is an island in the island nation of Palau. Peleliu, along with two small islands to its northeast, forms one of the sixteen states of Palau. The island is notable as the location of the Battle of Peleliu in World War II.
H ...
, September 15–18, 1944. On D-Day
The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as D ...
the 7th Marines
The 7th Marine Regiment is an infantry regiment of the United States Marine Corps based at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, California. Nicknamed the "Magnificent Seventh", the regiment falls under the command of the 1st M ...
were in a situation where there were not enough of them to man the lines and get the wounded to safety. Coming to their aid were the two companies of the 16th Marine Field Depot(segregated) and the 17th Special Seabee (segregated). That night the Japanese mounted a counter-attack at 0200 hours. The Field Depot Marines are recorded as again having humped ammunition, to the front lines on the stretchers they brought the wounded back on and picked up rifles to become infantrymen. By the time it was over nearly the entire 17th CB had volunteered alongside them. The Seabee record states that besides humping ammo and helping wounded they volunteered to man the line where the wounded had been, man 37mm artillery that had lost gun crews and volunteered for anything dangerous. The 17th remained with the 7th Marines until the right flank had been secured D-plus 3. According to the Military History Encyclopedia on the Web, were it not for the "Black Marine shore party personal" the counterattack on the 7th Marines would not have been repulsed.
*On Peleliu, the white shore party detachments from the 33rd and 73rd CBs received Presidential Unit Citations along with the primary shore party, 1st Marine Pioneers. The Commander of the 17th Special CB (segregated) received the same commendatory letter as the Company Commanders of the 7th Marine Ammo Co. (segregated) and the 11th Marine Depot Co.(segregated). Before the battle was even over, Major General Rupertus USMC wrote to each that: "THE NEGRO RACE CAN WELL BE PROUD OF THE WORK PREFORMED y the 11th Marine Depot Company/ 7th Marine Ammunition Company/ 17th CB THE WHOLEHEARTED CO-OPERATION AND UNTIRING EFFORTS WHICH DEMONSTRATED IN EVERY RESPECT THAT THEY APPRECIATED THE PRIVILEGE OF WEARING A MARINE UNIFORM AND SERVING WITH THE MARINES IN COMBAT. PLEASE CONVEY TO YOUR COMMAND THESE SENTIMENTS AND INFORM THEM THAT IN THE EYES OF THE ENTIRE DIVISION THEY HAVE EARNED A "WELL DONE"." The Department of the Navy made an official press release of a copy of the 17th CB's "Well Done" letter on November 28, 1944.
On Okinawa the 34th CB worked with the 36th CB constructing Awase Airfield
Awase Airfield or NAB Awase is a former World War II airfield on the Pacific coast of Okinawa.
History
World War II
The Awase area was captured during the first week of the Battle of Okinawa and was surveyed for possible airbase construction ...
once the rains allowed work to go forward. The 34th also built the Joint Communications Station at Awase.[Naval Construction Battalion cruisebook, Seabee Museum Archives website, 2020-01-22, p.1]
/ref> Today the Navy maintains a Low Frequency
Low frequency (LF) is the ITU designation for radio frequencies (RF) in the range of 30–300 kHz. Since its wavelengths range from 10–1 km, respectively, it is also known as the kilometre band or kilometre wave.
LF radio waves exh ...
communications station for submarines on the site created by the 34th CB.
* African American Seabees
Medal of Honor recipients
On January 13, 1997, President Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
, in a White House ceremony, awarded the nation's highest military honor—the Medal of Honor—to seven African-American servicemen who had served in World War II.
The only living recipient was First Lieutenant Vernon Baker
Vernon may refer to:
Places
Australia
*Vernon County, New South Wales
Canada
*Vernon, British Columbia, a city
*Vernon, Ontario
France
* Vernon, Ardèche
*Vernon, Eure
United States
* Vernon, Alabama
* Vernon, Arizona
* Vernon, California
* ...
.
The posthumous
Posthumous may refer to:
* Posthumous award - an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death
* Posthumous publication – material published after the author's death
* Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1987
* ...
recipients were:
* Major Charles L. Thomas
Charles Leroy Thomas (April 17, 1920 – February 15, 1980) was a United States Army Major (United States), major who was a company commander during World War II. In 1997, he was awarded the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest military decoration ...
* First Lieutenant John R. Fox
John Robert Fox (May 18, 1915 – December 26, 1944) was a United States Army first lieutenant who was killed in action after calling in artillery fire on the enemy during World War II. In 1997, he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, the ...
* Staff Sergeant Ruben Rivers
Ruben Rivers (1921 – November 19, 1944) was a United States Army Staff Sergeant#United States, staff sergeant who was killed in action while serving as a tank, tank company platoon sergeant during World War II. In 1997, he was awarded the Meda ...
* Staff Sergeant Edward A. Carter, Jr.
Edward Allen Carter Jr. (May 26, 1916 – January 30, 1963) was a United States Army sergeant first class who was wounded in action during World War II. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest military decoratio ...
Carter also has a Military Sealift Command
Military Sealift Command (MSC) is an organization that controls the replenishment and military transport ships of the United States Navy. Military Sealift Command has the responsibility for providing sealift and ocean transportation for all US m ...
vessel named after him.
* Private First Class Willy F. James, Jr.
* Private George Watson
Blue discharges
African-American troops faced discrimination in the form of the disproportionate issuance of blue discharge
A blue discharge (also known as a "blue ticket") was a form of administrative military discharge formerly issued by the United States beginning in 1916. It was neither honorable nor dishonorable. The blue ticket became the discharge of choice for ...
s. The blue discharge (also called a "blue ticket") was a form of administrative discharge created in 1916 to replace two previous discharge classifications, the administrative discharge without honor and the "unclassified" discharge. It was neither honorable nor dishonorable.[Jones, p. 2.] Of the 48,603 blue discharges issued by the Army between December 1, 1941, and June 30, 1945, 10,806 were issued to African Americans. This accounts for 22.2% of all blue discharges, when African Americans made up 6.5% of the Army in that time frame. Blue discharge recipients frequently faced difficulties obtaining employment and were routinely denied the benefits of the G. I. Bill
The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, commonly known as the G.I. Bill, was a law that provided a range of benefits for some of the returning World War II veterans (commonly referred to as G.I.s). The original G.I. Bill expired in 1956, bu ...
by the Veterans Administration
The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a Cabinet-level executive branch department of the federal government charged with providing life-long healthcare services to eligible military veterans at the 170 VA medical centers and ...
(VA).[Bérubé, p. 230.] In October 1945, Black-interest newspaper ''The Pittsburgh Courier
The ''Pittsburgh Courier'' was an African-American weekly newspaper published in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1907 until October 22, 1966. By the 1930s, the ''Courier'' was one of the leading black newspapers in the United States.
It was acqu ...
'' launched a crusade against the discharge and its abuses. Calling the discharge "a vicious instrument that should not be perpetrated against the American Soldier", the ''Courier'' rebuked the Army for "allowing prejudiced officers to use it as a means of punishing Negro soldiers who do not like specifically unbearable conditions". The ''Courier'' printed instructions on how to appeal a blue discharge and warned its readers not to quickly accept a blue ticket out of the service because of the negative effect it would likely have on their lives.
The House Committee on Military Affairs held hearings in response to the press crusade, issuing a report in 1946 that sharply criticized its use and the VA for discriminating against blue discharge holders.[Bérubé, p. 234.] Congress discontinued the blue discharge in 1947, but the VA continued its practice of denying G. I. Bill benefits to blue-tickets.
Integration of the armed forces
On July 26, 1948, President Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...
signed Executive Order 9981
Executive Order 9981 was issued on July 26, 1948, by President Harry S. Truman. This executive order abolished discrimination "on the basis of race, color, religion or national origin" in the United States Armed Forces, and led to the re-integra ...
integrating the military and mandating equality of treatment and opportunity. It also made it illegal, per military law, to make a racist
Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism ...
remark. Desegregation of the military was not complete for several years, and all-black Army units persisted well into the Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
. The last all-black unit was not disbanded until 1954.
In 1950, Lieutenant Leon Gilbert of the still-segregated 24th Infantry Regiment was court martialed and sentenced to death for refusing to obey the orders of a white officer while serving in the Korean War. Gilbert maintained that the orders would have meant certain death for himself and the men in his command. The case led to worldwide protests and increased attention to segregation and racism in the U.S. military. Gilbert's sentence was commuted to twenty and later seventeen years of imprisonment; he served five years and was released.
The integration commanded by Truman's 1948 Executive Order extended to schools and neighborhoods as well as military units. Fifteen years after the Executive Order, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara
Robert Strange McNamara (; June 9, 1916 – July 6, 2009) was an American business executive and the eighth United States Secretary of Defense, serving from 1961 to 1968 under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson. He remains the Lis ...
issued Department of Defense Directive 5120.36. "Every military commander", the Directive mandates, "has the responsibility to oppose discriminatory practices affecting his men and their dependents and to foster equal opportunity for them, not only in areas under his immediate control, but also in nearby communities where they may gather in off-duty hours." While the directive was issued in 1963, it was not until 1967 that the first non-military establishment was declared off-limits. In 1970 the requirement that commanding officers first obtain permission from the Secretary of Defense was lifted, and areas were allowed to be declared housing areas off limits to military personnel by their commanding officer.
Since the end of military segregation and the creation of an all-volunteer army, the American military saw the representation of African Americans in its ranks rise dramatically.
Korean War
Jesse L. Brown
Jesse LeRoy Brown (October 13, 1926 – December 4, 1950) was a United States Navy officer. He was the first African-American aviator to complete the United States Navy's basic flight training program (though not the first African-American Navy ...
became the U.S. Navy's first black aviator in October 1948. He died when his plane was shot down during the Battle of Chosin Reservoir
The Battle of Chosin Reservoir, also known as the Chosin Reservoir Campaign or the Battle of Lake Changjin (), was an important battle in the Korean War. The name "Chosin" is derived from the Japanese pronunciation "''Chōshin'', instead of t ...
in North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...
. He was unable to parachute from his crippled F4U Corsair
The Vought F4U Corsair is an American fighter aircraft which saw service primarily in World War II and the Korean War. Designed and initially manufactured by Chance Vought, the Corsair was soon in great demand; additional production contract ...
and crash-landed successfully. His injuries and damage to his aircraft prevented him from leaving the plane. A white squadron mate, Thomas Hudner, crash-landed his F4U Corsair
The Vought F4U Corsair is an American fighter aircraft which saw service primarily in World War II and the Korean War. Designed and initially manufactured by Chance Vought, the Corsair was soon in great demand; additional production contract ...
near Brown and attempted to extricate Brown but could not and Brown died of his injuries. Hudner was awarded the Medal of Honor for his efforts. The U.S. Navy honored Jesse Brown by naming a frigate after him—the USS ''Jesse L. Brown (FF-1089)''.
James H. Harvey (born July 13, 1923) became the U.S. Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...
's first African-American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...
jet fighter pilot to engage in combat during the Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
.[Cafe Rise Above. "James H. Harvey III'". https://cafriseabove.org/james-h-harvey-iii/]
Two enlisted men from the 24th Infantry Regiment (still a segregated unit), Cornelius H. Charlton
Cornelius H. Charlton (July 24, 1929 – June 2, 1951) was a soldier in the United States Army during the Korean War. Sergeant Charlton posthumously received the Medal of Honor for his actions near Chipo-ri, South Korea on June 2, 1951.
Born to ...
and William Thompson, posthumously received the Medal of Honor for actions during the war.
U.S President Harry Truman issued the order to desegregate the armed forces on July 26, 1948. Truman believed that passing this order would help end racial discrimination. In 1950, North Korea invaded South Korea and the United States entered to war. African American troops composed part of the task force.
On November 24, 1950, 300,000 Chinese troops stormed across the Yalu River, and the majority black 503rd Battalion found themselves directly in the line of fire. The ill-equipped unit lost the battle and many soldiers were killed or taken prisoner by the Chinese. The conditions in these prisons were cold with not enough food. The African American soldiers spent up to three years in the prisons. The Chinese captors believed that African Americans were particularly vulnerable to anti-American propaganda because of the discrimination they faced back home and in their units. As a result, the Chinese subjected African Americans to anti-capitalist and anti-imperial brainwashing more than their white counterparts.
About 600,000 African Americans served in the armed forces during the war and 5,000 died in combat. Many were awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, and Bronze Star.
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
saw many great accomplishments by many African Americans, including twenty who received the Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...
for their actions. African Americans were over-represented in hazardous duty and combat roles during the conflict, and suffered disproportionately higher casualty rates. Civil-rights leaders protested this disparity during the early years of the war, prompting reforms that were implemented in 1967–68 resulting in the casualty rate dropping to slightly higher than their percentage of the total population.[War within war](_blank)
The Guardian; September 15, 2001[Working-Class War: American Combat Soldiers and Vietnam: American Combat](_blank)
Christian G. Appy; University of North Carolina Press; p. 19.[''Fighting on Two Fronts: African Americans and the Vietnam War''; Westheider, James E.; New York University Press; 1997; pp. 11–16.][African-Americans In Combat](_blank)
/ref>
In 1967, President Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...
presented the Medal of Honor to U.S. Army Specialist Five Lawrence Joel
Lawrence Joel (February 22, 1928 – February 4, 1984) was a United States Army soldier who served in the Korean and Vietnam Wars. While serving in South Vietnam as a medic with the rank of specialist five assigned to 1st Battalion of the 503rd ...
, for a "very special kind of courage—the unarmed heroism of compassion and service to others." Joel was the first living African American to receive the Medal of Honor since the Mexican–American War. He was a medic who in 1965 saved the lives of U.S. troops under ambush in Vietnam and defied direct orders to stay to the ground, walking through Viet Cong
,
, war = the Vietnam War
, image = FNL Flag.svg
, caption = The flag of the Viet Cong, adopted in 1960, is a variation on the flag of North Vietnam. Sometimes the lower stripe was green.
, active ...
gunfire and tending to the troops despite being shot twice himself. The Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Winston-Salem is a city and the county seat of Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the second-largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region, the 5th most populous city in N ...
, is dedicated to his honor.
On August 21, 1968, with the posthumous
Posthumous may refer to:
* Posthumous award - an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death
* Posthumous publication – material published after the author's death
* Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1987
* ...
award of the Medal of Honor, U.S. Marine James Anderson, Jr.
Private First Class James Anderson Jr. (January 22, 1947 – February 28, 1967) was a United States Marine who posthumously received the Medal of Honor for heroism while serving in Vietnam in February 1967. When his Medal of Honor was awarded on ...
became the first African-American U.S. Marine recipient of the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions and sacrifice of life.
On December 10, 1968, U.S. Army Captain Riley Leroy Pitts became the first African-American commissioned officer
An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service.
Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer, or a warrant officer. However, absent context ...
to be awarded the Medal of Honor. His medal was presented posthumously to his wife, Eula Pitts, by President Lyndon B. Johnson.
Three out of the 21 African-American Medal of Honor recipients who served in Vietnam were members of the 5th Special Forces Group otherwise known as The Green Berets
The United States Army Special Forces (SF), colloquially known as the "Green Berets" due to their distinctive service headgear, are a special operations force of the United States Army.
The Green Berets are geared towards nine doctrinal mis ...
. These men are as follows: Sergeant First Class Melvin Morris
Melvin Morris (born January 7, 1942) is a United States Army veteran of the Vietnam War, a Special Forces (United States Army), Special Forces soldier, and a recipient of the Medal of Honor.
Early life, Military Career, Later Life
Morris was bor ...
, SFC. Eugene Ashley, Jr.
Eugene Ashley Jr. (October 12, 1930 – February 7, 1968) was a United States Army Special Forces soldier and a recipient of America's highest military decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his actions in the Vietnam War.
Ashley joined the Army in ...
, and SFC. William Maud Bryant.
Melvin Morris received the Medal of Honor 44 years after the action in which he earned the Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries.
*Distinguished Service Cross (Australia)
The Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) is a military decoration awarded to ...
. Sergeant Ashley's medal was posthumously awarded to his family at the White House by Vice President Spiro T. Agnew
Spiro Theodore Agnew (November 9, 1918 – September 17, 1996) was the 39th vice president of the United States, serving from 1969 until his resignation in 1973. He is the second vice president to resign the position, the other being John ...
on December 2, 1969.
Post-Vietnam to present day
In 1989, President George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...
appointed Army General Colin Powell
Colin Luther Powell ( ; April 5, 1937 – October 18, 2021) was an American politician, statesman, diplomat, and United States Army officer who served as the 65th United States Secretary of State from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African ...
to the position of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) is the presiding officer of the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The chairman is the highest-ranking and most senior military officer in the United States Armed Forces Chairman: app ...
, making Powell the highest-ranking officer in the United States military. Powell was the first, and is so far the only, African American to hold that position. The Chairman serves as the chief military adviser to the President and the Secretary of Defense. During his tenure Powell oversaw the 1989 United States invasion of Panama
The United States invasion of Panama, codenamed Operation Just Cause, lasted over a month between mid-December 1989 and late January 1990. It occurred during the administration of President George H. W. Bush and ten years after the Torrijos– ...
to oust General Manuel Noriega
Manuel Antonio Noriega Moreno (; February 11, 1934 – May 29, 2017) was a Panamanian dictator, politician and military officer who was the ''de facto'' List of heads of state of Panama, ruler of Panama from 1983 to 1989. An authoritaria ...
and the 1990 to 1991 Gulf War
The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...
against Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
. General Powell's four-year term as Chairman ended in 1993.
General William E. "Kip" Ward was officially nominated as the first commander of the new United States Africa Command
The United States Africa Command (USAFRICOM, U.S. AFRICOM, and AFRICOM), is one of the eleven unified combatant commands of the United States Department of Defense, headquartered at Kelley Barracks, Stuttgart, Germany. It is responsible for U. ...
on July 10, 2007, and assumed command on October 1, 2007.
Ronald L. Green
Ronald L. Green (born 1964) is a United States Marine who served as the 18th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps. He succeeded Micheal Barrett on February 20, 2015, and relinquished the post to Troy E. Black on July 26, 2019. As the Sergeant Major ...
, former Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, is African-American.
On January 20, 2009, Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
was inaugurated as President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
, making him ''ex officio
An ''ex officio'' member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term '' ex officio'' is Latin, meaning literally 'from the office', and the sense intended is 'by right ...
'' the first African-American Commander-in-Chief of the United States Armed Forces.
On August 6, 2020, Charles Q. Brown Jr. became the first African-American chief of a United States military service branch, when he took over as Chief of Staff of the Air Force.
On January 22, 2021, Lloyd Austin
Lloyd James Austin III (born August 8, 1953) is a retired United States Army four-star general who, since his appointment on January 22, 2021, has served as the 28th United States secretary of defense. He is the first African American to serv ...
became the first African-American Secretary of Defense.
Military history of African Americans in popular culture
The following is a list of notable African-American military members or units in popular culture.
See also
*
* Afro-Asian
Afro-Asians, African Asians or simply Black Asians, often referred to as Blasians, are persons of mixed Asian and African ancestry. Historically, Afro-Asian populations have been marginalised as a result of human migration and social conflict ...
* Military history of the United States
* United States Colored Troops
The United States Colored Troops (USCT) were regiments in the United States Army composed primarily of African-American (colored) soldiers, although members of other minority groups also served within the units. They were first recruited during ...
* List of African American Medal of Honor recipients
The Medal of Honor was created during the American Civil War and is the highest military decoration presented by the United States government to a member of its armed forces. Recipients must have distinguished themselves at the risk of their own l ...
* Frederick C. Branch
Frederick Clinton Branch (May 31, 1922 – April 10, 2005) was the first African American, African-American officer of the United States Marine Corps.
Early life and education
Branch was born in Hamlet, North Carolina, the fourth son of an Africa ...
* Benjamin O. Davis
* Martin Delany
Martin Robison Delany (May 6, 1812January 24, 1885) was an abolitionist, journalist, physician, soldier, and writer, and arguably the first proponent of black nationalism. Delany is credited with the Pan-African slogan of "Africa for Africans."
...
* Daniel "Chappie" James, Jr.
* National Association for Black Veterans
The National Association for Black Veterans (NABVETS) is a nationally certified Veterans Service Organization and a United States Department of Veterans Affairs claims representative. NABVETS has membership and chapters throughout the United State ...
* List of African-American astronauts
African-American astronauts are Americans of African descent who have either traveled into space or been part of an astronaut program.
African-American astronauts
Traveled into space
Never traveled into space
Often cited as the first ...
* African-American discrimination in the U.S. Military
African Americans
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denot ...
* Racial segregation in the United States Armed Forces
A race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 1500s, when it was used to refer to groups of vari ...
* Hispanics in the United States Marine Corps
Hispanics in the United States Marine Corps, such as Private France Silva who during the Boxer Rebellion became the first Marine of the thirteen Marines of Latin American descent to be awarded the Medal of Honor, and Private First Class Guy Gabal ...
Notes
References
* Bérubé, Allan (1990). ''Coming Out Under Fire: The History of Gay Men and Women in World War Two''. New York, The Penguin Group. (Plume edition 1991).
*
* Jones, Major Bradley K. (January 1973). "The Gravity of Administrative Discharges: A Legal and Empirical Evaluation"
The Military Law Review
' 59:1–26.
* McGuire, Phillip (ed.) (1993). ''Taps for a Jim Crow Army: Letters from Black Soldiers in World War II''. University Press of Kentucky. .
* Morriss, Roger (1997). ''Cockburn and the British Navy in Transition: Admiral Sir George Cockburn, 1772–1853''. Columbia, South Carolina: University of South Carolina Press.
* Shilts, Randy (1993). ''Conduct Unbecoming: Gays & Lesbians in the U.S. Military Vietnam to the Persian Gulf''. New York, St. Martin's Press.
Further reading
*
*
*
*
*
* Dickon, Chris, and Kirkels, Mieke. (2020).
''Dutch Children of African American Liberators: Race, Military Policy and Identity in World War II and Beyond''
United States: McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers.
* Dixon, Chris (2018).
African Americans and the Pacific War, 1941–1945: Race, Nationality, and the Fight for Freedom
'. Cambridge University Press.
*
*
*
*
* Knauer, Christine (2014). ''Let Us Fight as Free Men: Black Soldiers and Civil Rights''. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.
*
*
*
*
* Sutherland, Jonatha. (2004). ''African Americans at War: An Encyclopedia''. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO.
* White, Steven (2019).
World War II and American Racial Politics: Public Opinion, the Presidency, and Civil Rights Advocacy
'. Cambridge University Press.
; Navy specific
* Aptheker, Herbert. "The Negro in the Union Navy". ''Journal of Negro History'' (1947): 169–200. .
* Bennett, Michael J. ''Union Jacks: Yankee Sailors in the Civil War: Yankee Sailors in the Civil War'' (University of North Carolina Press, 2005)
* Bureau of Naval Personnel
. Washington, 1947. 103 pp.
* Davis, Michael Shawn
''"Many of Them Are Among My Best Men": The United States Navy Looks at Its African American Crewmen, 1755–1955''
PhD dissertation, Kansas State University (2011). With detailed bibliography, pp. 216–241.
* Jackson, Luther P. "Virginia Negro Soldiers and Seamen in the American Revolution". ''Journal of Negro History'' (1942): 247–287. .
* Langley, Harold D. "The Negro in the Navy and Merchant Service—1789–1860 1798". ''Journal of Negro History'' (1967): 273–286. . .
*
* Miller, Richard E. "The Golden Fourteen, Plus: Black Navy Women in World War One". ''Minerva: A Quarterly Report on Women and the Military'' 8.3&4 (1995): 7–13.
*Nelson, Dennis D. ''The Integration of the Negro into the U.S. Navy, 1776–1947'' (NY: Farrar Straus, 1951)
* Ramold, Steven J. ''Slaves, Sailors, Citizens: African Americans in the Union Navy'' (2002)
* Reddick, Lawrence D. "The Negro in the United States Navy During World War II". ''Journal of Negro History'' (1947): 201–219.
* Schneller, Robert J. Jr. ''Blue & Gold and Black: Racial Integration of the U.S. Naval Academy'' (Texas A&M University Press, 2008)
* Sharp, John G. M., ''The Recruitment of African Americans in the U.S. Navy 1839'', Naval History and Heritage Command, 2019.https://www.history.navy.mil/research/library/online-reading-room/title-list-alphabetically/r/the-recruitment-of-african-americans-in-the-us-navy-1839.html Retrieved March 6, 2019.
* Valuska, David L. ''The African American in the Union Navy, 1861–1865'' (Garland Pub., 1993)
* Williams, Charles Hughes III
''"We Have ... Kept the Negroes' Goodwill and Sent Them Away": Black Sailors, White Dominion in the New Navy, 1893–1942''
PhD Dissertation. Texas A&M University, 2008.
External links
* McDaniels III, Pellom
African American Soldiers (USA)
in
1914–1918 online. International Encyclopedia of the First World War
* Sheffer, Debra J.
Racism in the Armed Forces (USA)
in
1914–1918 online. International Encyclopedia of the First World War
*
*
*
*
*
Black Confederates documentary book
*
*
*
* ttp://www.kshs.org/exhibits/flags/flags4.htm The "Colored" Soldiers, Kansas Historical Society*
*
{{Tuskegee Airmen
Articles containing video clips
History of racial segregation in the United States
Seabees