African American artillery squad in Belgium cph

The Double V campaign was a slogan and drive to promote the fight for democracy in overseas campaigns and at the

home front Home front is an English language term with analogues in other languages. It is commonly used to describe the full participation of the British public in World War I who suffered Zeppelin raids and endured food rations as part of what came t ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

for

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 denotes descendants of ens ...

during

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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. The Double V refers to the " V for victory" sign prominently displayed by countries fighting "for victory over

aggression Aggression is overt or covert, often harmful, social interaction with the intention of inflicting damage or other harm upon another individual; although it can be channeled into creative and practical outlets for some. It may occur either reacti ...

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

, and tyranny," but adopts a second "V" to represent the double victory for African Americans fighting for freedom overseas and at home. The campaign first appeared in the

African-American newspaper African-American newspapers (also known as the Black press or Black newspapers) are news publications in the United States serving African-American communities. Samuel Cornish and John Brown Russwurm started the first African-American perio ...

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 ...

'' on February 7, 1942. Being the largest circulated black newspaper with around 350,000 copies circulated during the war; hence other black newspapers followed suit including the Chicago Defender and the Amsterdam Star News in embracing the motto and symbol of Double V. The slogan was prompted by a response to the letter, "Should I Sacrifice to Live 'Half American? written by 26-year-old reader James G. Thompson. It was also in a response to Franklin D. Roosevelt encouraged five editors of the top black newspapers in the United States to reduce their discontent and apathy of the war; to which they did not reduce their discontent but changed to the two pronged approach of the Double V campaign. Pitched as "Democracy – Double Victory, At Home – Abroad", the campaign highlighted the risks black soldiers and civilians took while participating in America's struggle against the

Axis powers The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...

while being denied their rights as full American citizens back home. African-American soldiers fighting abroad in the Second World War were still subject to segregation within the armed forces, despite fighting on land that did not hold the same

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 ...

ideology which was especially soldiers from the North, as they were denied a part on the front line; instead being subjugated to menial roles due to prejudices about their abilities. It was not until July 28, 1948 when President Harry S. Truman put forth Executive Order 9981 that ordered the integration of the armed forces. Among African-Americans, the Double V campaign had a 91% approval rating and was supported by various organizations, such as North Carolina A&T State University and United Automobile Workers. Contributing factors to the campaign's success were the discrimination that black soldiers experienced in the military who drew connections between the United States' treatment of blacks to Nazi Germany's treatment of Jews in a case study comparing Georgia to Germany finding similarities, as well as wartime injustices such as the Port Chicago disaster and

Agana race riot The Agana Race Riot (December 24–26, 1944) took place in Agana, Guam, as the result of internal disputes between white and black United States Marines. The riot was one of the most serious incidents between African-American and European-Ameri ...

that underscored the necessity for victory at home. The campaign also played a role at home in encouraging defense industries to hire African-American employees who left the

South South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...

in large numbers for the urban

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north ...

and West Coast during the Second Great Migration to help the nation's

war effort In politics and military planning, a war effort is a coordinated mobilization of society's resources—both industrial and human—towards the support of a military force. Depending on the militarization of the culture, the relative si ...

Response to African Americans in the Second World War

After the Japanese attack at the American naval base in

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the ...

, America sent in the 369th Division to defend the

territory of Hawaii The Territory of Hawaii or Hawaii Territory ( Hawaiian: ''Panalāʻau o Hawaiʻi'') was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from April 30, 1900, until August 21, 1959, when most of its territory, excluding ...

from air attacks, the response from Hawaiians towards the African American soldiers varied greatly. The territory was a volatile combination of racial tension and extreme state power as it had not yet joined the American union, which wouldn't happen until 1959. Hawaii did not have the engrained segregation found within America at this time and although stereotyping minorities did occur, Hawaii is considered today to have been more progressive on the issue of race than that of mainland America. There was no established place for African Americans as Jim Crow segregation laws within American had kept white and black people in separate social spheres. Racially driven stereotypes towards African Americans did exist on the island and included rumours spread by non-African American soldiers that black soldiers had tails. Within the military racial conflict did exist as white soldiers refused to recognise the higher ranking black officers. The discrimination African Americans experienced within the military in Hawaii fueled their fight to see the "Double V" campaign succeed. However, their experience of life within a community that didn't have such established racial ideas demonstrates what a double victory could achieve.

Role of the press

The African American community had to create their own newspapers to spread information about their community and heritage as white newspapers wouldn't include black issues, and these newspapers and their influence increased during the war as they had to relay information about the war to their readers. The black press emerged as a space for rhetorical expression and a vibrant space for black social, political and cultural activity which was its primary function. It reflected the frustrations of the black community which were often more radical than the press itself. The press had a vital role in spreading and creating the idea of Double V in an effort to get more readers and black men to enroll in the army and support the war effort, as it was not a "white man's war" and if black people did not support the war effort and help America win it could be problematic to win equality back home. Especially as the black press had been criticised for its lack of sufficient patriotism, hence they created the Double V Campaign to counter this and promote patriotism among African Americans; despite the hypocrisy of the US government. However, newspapers such as the Chicago Defender and Pittsburgh Courier also detailed discrimination and racism which African American troops were facing abroad during the war. Difficulty was therefore found in maintaining emphasis on the importance of African American involvement in the war at a time where discrimination was apparent both in conscription and the wartime labour force.

Results of the campaign

The Double V Campaign had limited success as while it promoted patriotism and support for the war effort among African Americans, especially as the allies won the war, it fostered a narrow appreciation for the complexity of African American wartime situations and did not address or impact the underlying structure of

institutional racism Institutional racism, also known as systemic racism, is a form of racism that is embedded in the laws and regulations of a society or an organization. It manifests as discrimination in areas such as criminal justice, employment, housing, health ...

of America. The campaign was also not a unifying force as many white, Southern newspapers and journalists criticised the slogan and characterised it as a dangerous revolution hence the government tried to get the black press to cease agitation in an effort for greater rights. However it is also considered to be a turning point within African American history which led to unity among the black population in regards to achieving this double victory in the long run. The slogan and wartime protests marked a key development within black protest movements and aided in laying the groundwork for the future

Civil Rights Movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...

. The campaign naturally died down by 1943 and the Pittsburgh Courier just mentioned the successes of the campaign from that point on; the campaign had not fully achieved its goal as discrimination was still legal after the war in America despite the efforts of African American soldiers. In this regard the White House has also failed to respond to progressive change within the African American population.

References

External links

Should I Sacrifice to Live 'Half American?'
written by James G. Thompson and published in the ''Pittsburgh Courier'' on January 31, 1942. American propaganda during World War II United States home front during World War II

Response to African Americans in the Second World War

Role of the press

Results of the campaign

See also

References

Further reading

External links