Military history of African Americans

African Americans, both

In response, and because of manpower shortages, Washington lifted the ban on black enlistment in the Continental Army 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 with French forces. At least 5,000 African-American soldiers fought as Revolutionaries, and at least 20,000 served with the British.

Peter Salem and Salem Poor are the most noted of the African-American Patriots during this era, and Colonel Tye 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,^[4] 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.^{[citation needed]}

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

During the War of 1812, about one-quarter of the personnel in the American naval squadrons of the Battle of Lake Erie 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's personal servant, is thought to be the oarsman in William Henry Powell's Battle of Lake Erie.^[9] Collins earned his freedom as a veteran of the Revolutionary War, having fought in the Battle of Rhode Island. He accompanied Perry for the rest of Perry's naval career, and was with him at Perry's death in Trinidad in 1819.^[10]

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, 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.^{[citation needed]}

A militia unit, In Louisiana, the 2nd Battalion of Free Men of Color, was a unit of black soldiers from Santo Domingo led by a Black free man and Santo-Domingue emigre Joseph Savary offered their services and were accepted by General Andrew Jackson in the Battle of New Orleans, a victory that was achieved after the war was officially over.^[11]

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 (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, could 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."^[12] 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.^[13]

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."^[14] 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.^[15]

African Americans also served with the British. On April 2, 1814, Vice Admiral

"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."[21] From the Treaty of Ghent 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.^[22] Commodore William Bainbridge 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."^[23] Data for 1839 was collected by Commodore Lewis Warrington 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.^[24]

Mexican–American War

A number of African Americans in the Army during the Mexican–American War 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.^[11]

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.^[25]

American Civil War

The history of African Americans in the

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.[27]

• 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment

Indian Wars

From 1863 to the early 20th century, African-American units were utilized by the Army to combat the

• 9th Cavalry Regiment
• 10th Cavalry Regiment
• 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.^[29]

These regiments served at a variety of posts in the southwest United States and Great Plains 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 during the Indian Wars.^[30]

The Spanish-American War

The brief but significant Spanish-American War lasted a mere 4 months, from May to August of 1898, beginning three months after one of America's first battleships, the USS Maine, was blown up in Havanna Harbor. Victory in this war marked the emergence of America as a world power, ousting Spain from Cuba and Puerto Rico, and taking over former Spanish possessions in the Pacific of Guam, Hawaii and the Philippines. ^[31]

This conflict also holds a vital place in the military history of African-Americans, since African Americans could then enlist as full-fledged members of the U.S.Navy, were considered sailors, and performed a wide array of duties onboard ship. "At that time [1898] as it had been since the Continental Navy in the American Revolution [1775], Black sailors were an integral part of the crew," said Rear Admiral Sam Cox, director of Naval History and Heritage Command, in a speech commemorating the 125th anniversary of the Maine. "There was no segregation at the enlisted ranks." Admiral Cox admits that 'this had more to do with how hard it was to recruit anyone, of any race, for a life of danger and hardship at sea," than that the Navy itself was such a progressive institution ^[32] but nonetheless it remains in sharp contrast to the abrupt, rigid segregation of the Navy in WW1, beginning in 1919, when African-Americans were refused navy enlistment altogether. ^[33]

However, in this earlier era, the USS Maine, one of America's proud first battleships, had among its crew of 350, some 30 black sailors, including several able seamen, 5 black chief petty officers and the pitcher for the USS Maine's baseball team. When the Maine catastrophically exploded in Havanna Harbor on Feb. 15, 1898 under mysterious circumstances, 260 Navy men drowned or died within hours from severe injuries from the blast - twenty-two of them from the African-American crew. ^[34]

Two African-American sailors were recipients of the Medal of Honor at that time: one honored just before the war officially started (conflicts remained high in the three months after the Maine explosion until war was declared) and another sailor for his actions at the Battle of Santiago de Cuba, as U.S. warships played a central role in this final defeat of the Spanish which ended the Spanish-American War. ^[35]

The Battle of Santiago de Cuba, better known to Americans as the Battle of San Juan Hill, also employed a victorious and thoroughly integrated U.S. Army, whose 8000 troops included 1,250 black soldiers, with black and white American soldiers fighting side by side. It's notable also for being the only battle which included all four of the Buffalo Soldiers, the only black regiments who remained in action after the Civil War. Five Black soldiers from these regiments were awarded the Medal of Honor from this battle alone, acknowledging that it was they who had done the most difficult fighting. ^[36]

The declaration of the Spanish-American War found the Army caught up short, with only 28,000 men in ranks. Quickly, a call for volunteers, National Guard units and more enlistees brought the number up to 220,000 -- of these, some new 5000 volunteers were black. These men were formed into five African-American Volunteer Army units and seven African-American National Guard units. ^[37] Of these volunteer army units, the 8th Illinois Infantry Regiment |8th Illinois]] Volunteer Infantry ^[38] fought in Cuba.

No African-American Marines were in this conflict as the U.S. Marine Corps did not accept African Americans until World War II.

Philippine–American War

After the Treaty of Paris, 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 U.S. military also sent African-American regiments and units to stop the insurrection. However, due to the discrimination of African-American soldiers, some of them defected to the Philippine Army.

One of those that defected was David Fagen, who was given the rank of captain in the Philippine Army. Fagen served in the 24th Regiment of the U.S. Army, but on November 17, 1899,^[39] he defected to the Filipino army.^[40] 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".^[41]

After two other black deserters were captured and executed, President Theodore Roosevelt announced he would stop executing captured deserters.^[42] 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.^[43]

World War I and the interwar period

When the war broke out, several African-Americans joined Allied armies. Most notably, Eugene Bullard and Bob Scanlon joined the French Foreign Legion 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.^{[44]: 6–10}

The U.S. armed forces remained segregated through

Furthermore, Du Bois also argued that the so called 'double consciousness' (a phrase coined by himself in the early 1900's) became more pronounced with this return of troops. African American soldiers who had fought for American and European freedom and democracy overseas now returned to the segregated and discriminatory American society's, intensifying their awareness of their dual identity.

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 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."^[46] 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. It was also clear that the drafting system favoured young white men over young black men, for various reasons. The Georgia selective service system 1917, saw a local draft board sending a new detailed classification questionnaire to all registrants.^[47] This helped to pick out the men deemed perfect to draft but often overlooked healthy African American men. For example Marvin Kirk, a 21 year old African American man with no wife or children, who did not seek exemption from the draft and was in good health, did not get called up for service until August 11, 1917.^[47] The Coweta County local board and its selective service system operated in the assumption that Black men did not have the agency to join the US military during WW1. Kirk had a draft number of 395 and the Coweta draft board reached up all the way to number 1283 to fill its 1917 quota, meaning Kirk was not in danger of being conscripted until all men in classes I and II were called.^[47] It was also common for African American men to face disputes for them to be drafted during WW1, from White Southern planters, opposing on the grounds that it would affect their regional agricultural economy by removing labourers and allowing them to serve in the war instead.^[48]

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.

The most graphic reminder of Jim Crow remaining during the war and after the soldiers returned came in the form of lynching.[50] African American soldier Wilbur Little was lynched in Georgia after returning from fighting for wearing a uniform in public and refusing to take it off.^[55] This confirmed the message that the sacrifices of black soldiers for European freedom would not equate to racial progression.

Not all American public opinion was anti-African American when the black soldiers returned home. In New York, 3000 of the Harlem Hellfighters were greeted with a parade.

Germany attempted to sway the African American troops with propaganda challenging their race-related rights back in the United States.^[57]

Corporal

• 92nd Infantry Division^[60]
  • 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)^[61][62]
  • 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.^[63]

A complete list of African-American units that served in the war is available.^[64]

African Americans Veterans faced heavy persecution when they returned home from

African Americans were typically placed into labor 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 labor 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".[65] Jim Crow 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 labor battalion had recently been hanged in the same square the unit was now assembling in a small town outside the Lorraine region.^[66]

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:^[67]

The question is of great importance to the French people and even more so to the American towns, the population of which will be affected later when the troops return to the United States. It therefore becomes necessary for both the colored and white races that undue mixing of these two be circumspectly prevented.

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.^[68] African American soldiers interacted with colonial troops stationed in France, and they had already read about them in

YMCA 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.^[70]

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".^[71] 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.^[72]

Treatment of African Americans during WW I and its effects on the civil rights movement

The disillusionment which African American soldiers felt after they returned to the US after World War I contributed to the increasing momentum of the civil rights movement. Black US soldiers failed to escape from the arm of Jim Crow whilst they were serving in World War I, and domestically, their fellow African Americans faced the same discrimination within the US. This poor treatment, aided by the end of the war, contributed to calls for the passage of laws like the Greater Liberia Act.

The greater Liberia Act called for relocation of African Americans to Liberia and surrounding territories,^[73] arguing that racial separatism would improve the lives of both black and whites. Black nationalist Florence Kenna, who fought for the passing of the Greater Liberia Act, acknowledged that mass emigration of African Americans to Liberia would be an opportunity to escape the deep routed discrimination they faced. This observation was aided by the extension of Jim Crow to the US military and the reality that African Americans would still be treated as second class citizens despite their service for the US in WW I.^[73]

Deteriorated diplomatic ties with other nations during the inter-war period

As previously mentioned, the mistreatment of numerous African Americans upon their return home after World War I, coupled with the economic downturn and the demobilisation of millions of troops, resulted in a discontented population. This mistreatment and discrimination against African American soldiers and the domestic racial violence, such as the Red Summer of 1919, had international implications. Other nations, especially those with non-white populations, took notice of these issues and began to view the United States through a more critical lens. The diplomatic tensions resulting from racial issues strained relations with countries that had non-white populations. In particular, Japan is highlighted as an example. The mistreatment of African Americans and racial violence may have been seen by other nations as contradictory to the democratic and egalitarian principles that the U.S. claimed to uphold . Japan, being one of the countries with a non-white population, might have been particularly sensitive to racial issues. These diplomatic tensions strained international relations, as the racial issues raised questions about the United States' commitment to principles of equality and human rights. Impacting trade, alliances (as demonstrated by the disagreements over racial issues at the 1919 Paris Peace Conference), and overall perceptions of the U.S. on the global stage. Historians such as David Kennedy briefly mentions this in his book ''Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929–1945",^[74] arguing that America isolated itself from cultures and ideas within this Interwar Period largely due to the treatment of African-Americans, or in this case the returning soldiers.

Second Italo-Abyssinian War

On October 4, 1935, Fascist Italy invaded

Volunteer John C. Robinson, a pilot and graduate of Tuskegee University, 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.^[79]

Many years later

The

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, they were kept separate. Historians have acknowledged that the U.S. military functioned to impose domestic views on race overseas by discouraging local populations from interacting with African American troops, and punishing African Americans for interracial sexual encounters.[86]

Stuttgart and preceding effects

The Stuttgart incident took place during the height of WW2 with around a thousand German women and girls herded into underground tunnels and sexually assaulted over the course of several days.^[86] African troops were quick to be blamed, despite uncertainty over the ethnic and national origin of the soldiers in question. Some later reports to U.S senators saw that the soldiers were wearing US army uniforms and were mistaken for African Americans.^[86]

This incident had the potential to threaten a peaceful post war occupation or post war deal with Germany, therefore the US military adopted tactics of blaming the sexual violence exclusively on African American soldiers, which enabled extraordinary violence to be inflicted on Black GI's. This was paired with the down play of sexual crimes committed by elite White soldiers during WW2, contributing to the discrimination towards Black US soldiers.^[86]

The FEPC's argument after the Stuttgart incident

The Stuttgart incident and other incidents of interracial sexual encounters provided weaponization for segregationist and predominantly White Southern politicians to fight against steps taken to lessen discrimination in the US military and federal organisations.^[86] Established by executive order in 1941, the FEPC banned discrimination in federal employment on the basis of race, colour, creed, or national origin, with black activists eager to see it established by congressional legislation as a permeant entity.^[86]

Politicians like Senator James O Eastland, however, saw this development in the FEPC not only as an insult to the returning white soldier but also a gateway for communist and immoral influence within federal government. Here discriminatory treatment toward African American soldiers and employees is shown by Senator Eastland projecting the narrative of sexualised violence to make a connection between soldiers of colour that were accused of rape, and the black veterans who were given beneficiaries of the FEPC.^[86] Claiming in his own words that the same 'racial characteristics are common to the members of the same race', referring to Black Americans.^[86]

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.

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.^[87]

African-American Soldiers in WW2 Combat

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 and 761st Tank Battalion and the lesser-known but equally distinguished 452nd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion,^[88] proved their value in combat, and 2800 black troops who volunteered as replacements in the winter of 1944 not only served their country, but also their people in the fight desegregation of all U.S. armed forces, done by order of President Harry S. Truman in July 1948 via Executive Order 9981 in the middle of the Korean War.

Black Americans in the Navy

The Navy, with its WASP, white-shoe tradition, was the least hospitable to men of color of any of the armed services. Having barred African-Americans from enlisting in the Navy at all since 1919, at the opening of WW2, black men could not be sailors, not serve in combat units, not serve overseas, nor step one foot onto a fleet capital ship unless they had a separate "Stewards" rating. "The Navy was firm, and mostly successful" notes the naval curator for National World War Museum, "in its efforts to keep African Americans in menial roles." For many, enlisting in the Navy was a rude awakening to an even more segregated and demeaning life than they'd had as civilians. They slept in separate quarters, were treated poorly and their "Steward" branch gave limited opportunity for advancement - known as the "Messman" Branch. Serving in the Navy for a black man meant literally serving: they waited on tables, did the cooking and cleaned up after white officers. [89] In fact, white sailors weren't allowed to join the Messman Branch, which might also contain Chinese or Filipinos. ^[90]

However, in a world war being fought on a planet of two-thirds water, the Navy was bound to change. By June, 1942, enlisted black men were given sailor rates, if not sailor status and by June, 1945, as the Navy hopped from island to bloody island, 165,000 black men (and some women) were serving overseas. Of these, 72,000 were still in Steward class, but others were put on some construction jobs or work in shore stations.

The Port Chicago disaster on July 17, 1944, was an explosion of about 2,000 tons of ammunition as it was being loaded onto ships by black Navy stevedores under pressure from their white officers who were having a contest to see how quickly the men could load the ammo by hand, rather than using the lift. This obvious violation of safety regulations, instigated entirely by white officers, led to a massive explosion that killed 320 military and civilian workers, most of them black. The blatant disregard for the black Navy men's safety led to the Port Chicago Mutiny, the only case of a full military trial for mutiny in the history of the U.S. Navy. This was against 50 black stevedores who refused to continue loading ammunition under the same dangerous conditions. The trial was observed by the then-young lawyer and future Supreme Court JusticeThurgood Marshall and ended in conviction of all of the defendants. But the trial was immediately criticized for not abiding by the applicable laws on mutiny, and became influential in the discussion of desegregation.^[91]

Even

The Coast Guard offered opportunities to actually get on boats, and on April 14, 1943, Joseph C. Jenkins became the first African-American commissioned officer in the United States Coast Guard. He was soon joined by Clarence Samuels on August 31, 1943, and then Harvey C. Russell Jr. in February 1944.^[93]

In March 1944, Paul Richmond, a member of the Naval Reserve and a recent Annapolis graduate, under Commander Armstrong, set up a Naval officer training school in the Great Lakes Naval Training Center for black men to become commissioned Naval officers in a mere two and a half months, paralleling the "90-day-wonders" for Army officers.

World War Two began with the individual branches having their own air corps, as they were know and these were as segregated as everything else in the army. Benjamin O. Davis Jr. served as commander of the Tuskegee Airmen, whose story of determination to fly in an army air corps that woldn't hear of it. He later went on to become the first African-American general in the United States Air Force. His father, Benjamin O. Davis Sr., was the first African-American brigadier general in the Army (1940).

Black Men in Combat

African-American soldiers might have been allowed to carry rifles, but they weren't allowed to shoot them

And May, 1944, George Patton, charging across France, and desperate for more tanks for his Third Army, was told by the War Dept. the only tank unit left in the entire country was the 761st, who were "Negro,' "Who the hell asked for color?" Patton snapped, "I asked for tankers." And he got them. [98]" The 800 men of the 761st tank group consisted of 54 M4 Sherman tanks in three companies and called themselves the "Black Panthers," a panther as their insignia. Patton welcomed them with typical bluntness: "Men, you are the first Negro tankers ever to fight in the American army. I would never have asked for you if you were not good. I have nothing but the best in my army. I don’t care what color you are as long as you go up there and kill those Krauts." By the end of the war, the 761st were known as Patton's Panthers; they had been in combat for 183 continuous days, fought in four major Allied campaigns in six different countries, starting with the Battle of the Bulge, and had inflicted more than 130,000 casualties on the enemy. Eight black enlisted men received battlefield commissions (meaning they were given a higher rank on the battlefield) while 391 received decorations for heroism, including one Medal of Honor awarded posthumously to Sergeant Ruben Rivers, who threw himself in front of a burning tank to save the other tankers; there were seven Silver Stars, 56 Bronze Stars, 246 Purple Hearts. Three officers and 31 enlisted men had been killed in action, and 22 officers and 180 enlisted men had been wounded. In 1998, the 761st Tank Battalion received a much delayed Presidential Unit Citation. https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/article/pattons-panthers-the-story-of-the-761st-tank-battalion/

In the meantime, the volunteer infantrymen in their increasingly-less segregated platoons worked out so well that an Army survey of 256 of their white officers (in the summer of 1945; this was Eisenhower further under-the-table exploration of integrated infantry, still a very sensitive topic) found that "100 percent of the officers and 98 percent of the enlisted men responded positively that Blacks, fighting side by side with Whites, had performed well," as ^[99]. And 86 percent of White officers and 92 percent of White platoon sergeants and men stated that Black soldiers fought “just the same” or “better than White troops.” What's more, their commanders reported surprise on how well the men from these two races got along, particularly when fighting side by side.

These black infantry volunteers continued to fight with the First Army into Germany right through V-E Day. Then half were let go; the other half, despite their protests, returned to the grind of "support jobs," still essential in mopping up what was left of Europe. Of the 900,000 African Americans in the US Army, deployed in over a thousand units to North Africa, Italy, Europe, and the Pacific, these volunteers were part of the very few —only 3 percent — who were in combat outfits, and of those, even fewer engaged in actual combat. ^[100][101]

Though largely forgotten after the war, this temporary expedient of turning to underused black troops after The Battle of the Bulge killed 69,000 Americans was a key, if unknown, step toward finally integrating the troops, which occurred in 1948, after the Korean War had begun.

These black combat units - pilots, tank units, infantrymen - proved, beyond question, the combat worthiness of the black soldier.

The true death toll of black Americans who served their country in WW2 is murky and controversial and will never truly be known. The actual combat deaths tallied is under a thousand ^[102] but the casualties inflicted in war include from more than deaths in battle; they include the missing, the captured, succumbing to illnesses in war-related places like malaria in the jungle, proximity to explosives handled by truckers and stevedores, aerial bombing, terrible burns from oil fires in hangars and on decks, drowning in torpedoed ships with young "Messmen" deep in the galley - with 2 million African-Americans serving in every theater of the war, the true casualty rate is surely in the thousands. Also uncounted in the death toll are the 57,000 Filipinos who died defending an American possession, the Philippine Islands, its independence declared in 1946. ^[103]

Officer training continued to expanded to create hundreds of African-American officers in all branches. Before the U.S. entered the war in 1941, there were only five black officers. By the end of the war, there were 7,000 In 1945, Frederick C. Branch became the first African-American United States Marine Corps officer. However, in the still-segregated military, African-American officers were not allowed to command white troops^[104] until Truman integrated the troops in 1948.

A

The presence of African-American soldiers in the U.K. and subsequent encounters with the native population have been shown to have reduced the racial prejudice against black people, if only, in some cases, decades later,[108] 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. In the U.K especially, generally all GIs were commended for their generosity and bravery, and in some cases, the British public gained a special affection for African American soldiers that were thought to have better manners than the white Americans.^[104]

As in World War I, Black soldiers were primarily channeled to support labor, most of them as members of the

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
    • 27th Cavalry Regiment^[111]
  • 5th Cavalry Brigade
    • 9th Cavalry Regiment
    • 28th Cavalry Regiment^{[111][112][113]}
• Non Divisional Units
  • Barrage Balloon Unit
    • 320th Barrage Balloon Battalion
  • 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
    • 761st Tank Battalion
    • 784th Tank Battalion
  • Field Artillery Units
    • 46th Field Artillery Brigade ^[114]
    • 184th Field Artillery Regiment, Illinois National Guard
    • 333rd Field Artillery Regiment^[115]
    • 349th Field Artillery Regiment [116]
    • 350th Field Artillery Regiment ^[117]
    • 351st Field Artillery Regiment ^[118]
    • 353rd Field Artillery Regiment ^[119]
    • 578th Field Artillery Regiment ^[120]
    • 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
    • 828th Tank Destroyer Battalion
    • 829th Tank Destroyer Battalion
    • 846th Tank Destroyer Battalion

Army Air Corps:

• 332nd Fighter Group (Tuskegee Airmen
  )
• 477th Bombardment Group

United States Marine Corps

• 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
• Naval Ordinance Battalions (stevedore)

United States Navy Seabees

• 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

• 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.[133] 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 [by 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"."^[134][135] 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.^[136]

On Okinawa the 34th CB worked with the 36th CB constructing

• African American Seabees^[138][139]

Medal of Honor recipients

On January 13, 1997, President Bill Clinton, 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.^[140]

The only living recipient was First Lieutenant Vernon Baker.

The

• Major Charles L. Thomas
• First Lieutenant John R. Fox
• Staff Sergeant Ruben Rivers
• Staff Sergeant
  Edward A. Carter, Jr. Carter also has a Military Sealift Command
  vessel named after him.
• Private First Class
  Willy F. James, Jr.
• Private
  George Watson

African-American troops faced discrimination in the form of the disproportionate issuance of

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.^[146] Congress discontinued the blue discharge in 1947,^[147] but the VA continued its practice of denying G. I. Bill benefits to blue-tickets.^[144]

Discrimination faced by African American Soldiers

African American soldiers were frequently subjected to discrimination during their service in the US military during World War 2. This practice was prevalent abroad and it was also prevalent domestically, and it was particularly prevalent in the Southern United States.

According to detailed accounts which were given during World War 2, near St Louis, a white lieutenant ordered Black GI's who were seated in front of the black car to give their seats to fifteen Italian prisoners of war who were being transported by rail.^[148]

The press frequently excluded African American soldiers from advertisements, newsreels and war reports. Additionally, black soldiers were not given any awards for their contributions to the war effort. In February 1944, black leaders complained to the Bureau of Motion pictures, an official of the NAACP sent a letter and a petition was signed by 1053 people who protested against the exclusion of coloured American troops from films as well as from the OWI's media, stating, 'one tenth of men and women in our armed forces and in our culture are coloured Americans and by the laws of chance they should appear more often in your releases.^[148]

The FEPC and Civil rights activism

African Americans and the role which they played during the US's war effort received more attention during the civil rights movement, due to discrimination charges and radicalised political attitudes as a result of the treatment which they received while they were in the service.

African Americans turned to the FEPC to profile discrimination charges during WW2, with a million African Americans holding defence jobs at this time. The NAACP helped claimants bring claims of peonage in the rural south, and violations of due process rights in employment in the north to the department of justice, and cases developed by the FEPC were pushed higher by unfair employment, highlighting the governments responsibility.^[149] This governmental issue combined with wartime racial discrimination helped to advance radicalism projecting the civil rights movement.^[149]

A coalition of black troops who opposed 'Hitlerism at home' boosted enrolment in the NAACP. The prolonged discrimination which was faced by African American soldiers included more than 240 violent racial incidents in forty seven cities around the country in 1943.^[149]

Judge William Hastie, the civilian aide for race relations in the war department, received thousands of letters which detailed the bad treatment of African American troops. In his letters, one soldier described camp Livingston in Louisiana by referring to it as a 'hell hole', he wrote the following, 'brother if you're coloured you don't stand a chance down here.'^[149] Another letter by an African American soldier stated, 'even German prisoners of war have more opportunities' than us.'^[149]

Integration of the armed forces

On July 26, 1948, President Harry S. Truman signed Executive Order 9981 integrating the military and mandating equality of treatment and opportunity. It also made it illegal, per military law, to make a racist remark. Desegregation of the military was not complete for several years, and all-black Army units persisted well into the Korean War. The last all-black unit was not disbanded until 1954.

In 1950, Lieutenant Leon Gilbert of the still-segregated 24th Infantry Regiment was court martialled 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 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."^[150] 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.^[151]

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.^[152]

Korean War

Two enlisted men from the 24th Infantry Regiment (still a segregated unit), Cornelius H. Charlton 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.^[155] 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.^[155] 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.^[155]

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.^[156]

Vietnam War

The Vietnam War saw many great accomplishments by many African Americans, including twenty who received the Medal of Honor 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.^{[157][158][159][160]}

In 1967, President Lyndon B. Johnson presented the Medal of Honor to U.S. Army Specialist Five Lawrence Joel, 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 gunfire and tending to the troops despite being shot twice himself. The Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, is dedicated to his honor.^[161]

On August 21, 1968, with the

Paris Davis received the Medal of Honor 58 years after the action in which he earned the Silver Star and the Purple Heart. He had been twice previously nominated for the Medal of Honor, but both times the paperwork relating to his nominations had disappeared.

From the Post-Vietnam War era to the present day

In 1989, President George H. W. Bush appointed Army General Colin Powell to the position of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, 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 to oust General Manuel Noriega and the 1990 to 1991 Gulf War against Iraq. General Powell's four-year term as Chairman ended in 1993.^{[citation needed]}

General William E. "Kip" Ward was officially nominated as the first commander of the new United States Africa Command on July 10, 2007, and assumed command on October 1, 2007.^{[citation needed]}

Ronald L. Green, former Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, is African-American.^{[citation needed]}

On January 20, 2009,

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.^{[citation needed]}

On January 22, 2021, Lloyd Austin became the first African-American Secretary of Defense.^{[citation needed]}

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

• African-American mutinies in the United States Armed Forces
• Afro-Asian
• Military history of the United States
• United States Colored Troops
• List of African American Medal of Honor recipients
• Frederick C. Branch
• Benjamin O. Davis
• Martin Delany
• Daniel "Chappie" James, Jr.
• National Association for Black Veterans
• List of African-American astronauts
• African-American discrimination in the U.S. Military
• Racial segregation in the United States Armed Forces
• Hispanics in the United States Marine Corps

Notes

References

• ISBN 0-452-26598-3
  . (Plume edition 1991).
• Copes, Jan M. (Fall 1994). "The Perry Family: A Newport Naval Dynasty of the Early Republic". Newport History: Bulletin of the Newport Historical Society. 66, Part 2 (227). Newport, RI: Newport Historical Society: 49–77.
• ISBN 0-94-527406-8
  .
• Crawford, Michael J.; Hughes, Christine F., eds. (2002). The Naval War of 1812: A Documentary History, Vol. 3. Washington: Naval Historical Center (
  ISBN 978-0-16-051224-7
  .
• Hughes, Christine F.; Brodine, Charles E., eds. (2023). The Naval War of 1812: A Documentary History, Vol. 4. Washington: Naval Historical Center (GPO).
  ISBN 978-1-943604-36-4
  .
• 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.
  ISBN 0-8131-0822-5
  ..
• Morriss, Roger (1997). Cockburn and the British Navy in Transition: Admiral Sir George Cockburn, 1772–1853. Columbia, South Carolina: University of South Carolina Press.
  ISBN 1-57003-253-X
  .
• ISBN 0-312-09261-X
  .
• Taylor, Alan (2013). The Internal Enemy Slavery and War In Virginia. 1772–1832. New York: WW Norton & Company.

Further reading

• Alt, William E.; Alt, Betty L. (2002). Black Soldiers, White Wars: Black Warriors from Antiquity to the Present. Praeger.
  ISBN 978-0-275-97621-7
  .
• Buckley, Gail (2001). American Patriots: The Story of Blacks in the Military from the Revolution to Desert Storm. Random House.
  ISBN 978-0-375-76009-9
  .
• ISBN 978-0-7643-3233-3
  .
• David, Jay; Crane, Elaine (1971). The Black Soldier. William Morrow and Company, Inc.
  ISBN 978-0-688-06037-4
  .
• Delmont, Matthew (2022). Half American: The Epic Story of African-Americans Fighting World War II at Home and Abroad. New York: Viking.
  OCLC 1289239822
  .
• 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.
• Fletcher, Marvin E. (1974). The Black Soldier and Officer in the United States Army 1891–1917. University of Missouri.
  ISBN 978-0-8262-0161-4
  .
• Foner, Jack D. (1974). Blacks and the Military in American History. Praeger.
• Gibson, Truman K. Jr.; Steve Huntley (2005). Knocking Down Barriers: My Fight for Black America. Northwestern University Press.
  ISBN 0-8101-2292-8
  .
• Höhn, Maria; Martin Klimke (2010). A Breath of Freedom: The Civil Rights Struggle, African American GIs, and Germany. Palgrave Macmillan.
  ISBN 978-0-230-10473-0
  .
• Knauer, Christine (2014). Let Us Fight as Free Men: Black Soldiers and Civil Rights. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.
• Lindenmeyer, Otto (1970). Black and Brave: The Black Soldier in America. McGraw-Hill Book Company.
  ISBN 978-0-07-037876-6
  .
• Nell, William C. (1855). The Colored Patriots of the American Revolution.
• ISBN 9780842025867
  .
• Scott, Emmett J. Scott's Official History of The American Negro in the World War
  . Retrieved February 9, 2014.
• Sutherland, Jonatha. (2004). African Americans at War: An Encyclopedia. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO.
  ISBN 978-1-57607-746-7
• 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.
  JSTOR 2714852
  .
• 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. The Negro in the Navy in World War II . 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.
  JSTOR 2715325
  .
• Langley, Harold D. "The Negro in the Navy and Merchant Service—1789–1860 1798". Journal of Negro History (1967): 273–286.
  JSTOR 2716189
  .
• Miller, Richard E. (2004). The Messman Chronicles: African Americans in the U.S. Navy, 1932–1943. Naval Institute Press.
  ISBN 1-55750-539-X
  .
• 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

Wikimedia Commons has media related to African American soldiers.

This section's use of external links may not follow Wikipedia's policies or guidelines. Please improve this article by removing excessive or inappropriate external links, and converting useful links where appropriate into footnote references. (April 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

• 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.
• "African Americans in the U.S. Army". U.S. Army.
• "Blacks in the U.S. Army: Then and Now". U.S. Army.
• "Story of America's Black Patriots". U.S. Army. Archived from the original on September 26, 2010. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
• Simpson, Diana (compiled by) (February 1999). "African-Americans in Military History". Air University Library, Maxwell Air Force Base.
• "Black History at Arlington National Cemetery". Historical Information. arlingtoncemetery.org. An unofficial website. Archived from the original on 2000-08-17. Retrieved 2007-07-04.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
• Black Confederates documentary book
• "Black Military World".
• "Black Military History: African Americans in the service of their country". Father Ryan High School. Archived from the original on 2007-04-03. Retrieved December 23, 2005.
• "A Chronology of African American Military Service: From the Colonial Era through the Antebellum Period". Archived from the original on 2009-10-02.
• First Kansas Colored Infantry flag, Civil War, Kansas Museum of History
• The "Colored" Soldiers, Kansas Historical Society
• African Americans in World War II: Legacy of Patriotism and Valor (1997) is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive
• "The Tuskegee Airmen of World War II at Pritzker Military Museum and Library".