Military
Buffalo Soldiers
The Buffalo soldiers were the 9th and 10th Cavalries formed by the U.S. Army in 1866 and mostly composed of freed slaves and Civil War vets. They patrolled the Mexican border, participated in the Spanish American War, and in the U.S. expedition to the Philippines. The Buffalo Soldiers were disbanded in the 1950’s when President Truman integrated the armed forces. There were nearly two dozen African-American recipients of the highest U.S. decoration for military valor just in the 9th and 10th cavalry.
When a woman, Cathay Williams, wanted to enlist in the army as a Buffalo Soldier, she posed as a man and joined the Thirty-Eighth Infantry. As a result, she became the first and the only known female Buffalo Soldier.
For more information:
http://www.buffalosoldier.net
369th Army Infantry
The 369 th Infantry (formerly the 15th Regiment New York Guard), more familiarly know as the “Harlem Hellfighters,” was one of the first regiments to arrive in France during World War I, and among the most highly decorated when it returned. The 369 th helped repel the German offensive and launch a counteroffensive at a crucial moment in the war. With the French, the Harlem Hellfighters fought at Chateau-Thierry and Belleau Wood. All told, they spent 191 days in combat, longer than any other American unit in the war. The extraordinary valor of the 369 th earned them fame in Europe and America. They were the first Americans awarded the Croix de Guerre, and they were not the only Harlem Hellfighters to win awards; 171 of its officers and men received individual medals and the unit received a Croix de Guerre for taking Sechault.
Tuskegee Airmen
Before 1940, African Americans were barred from flying for the U.S. military. Civil rights organizations and the black press exerted pressure that resulted in the formation of an all African-American pursuit squadron based in Tuskegee, Alabama, in 1941. They became known as the Tuskegee Airmen.
The “Tuskegee Airmen” refers to all who were involved in the so-called “Tuskegee Experiment,” the Army Air Corps program to train African Americans to fly and maintain combat aircraft. The Tuskegee Airmen included pilots, navigators, bombardiers, maintenance and support staff, instructors, and all the personnel who kept the planes in the air.
The Tuskegee Airmen overcame segregation and prejudice to become one of the most highly respected fighter groups of World War II.
For more information:
http://tuskegeeairmen.org
The Women’s Army Corps 6888th Postal Battalion
The women’s Army Corps 6888 th Battalion, also known as the “Six Triple Eight,” was a World War II unit. Comprised of approximately 850 black women, it was the only such unit in World War II and was formed during the days when the U.S. armed services were segregated. Besides nurses, these women were the only black women to serve in the U.S. military overseas during World War II.
The group was charged with handling military mail, and was based at a boarding school in Birmingham, England. For the morale of soldiers in wartime, there’s only one thing that counts more than somewhere to sleep or something to eat, and that’s mail from home – holiday greetings, or perhaps a photograph of a newborn child. The group broke all records for redistribution of mail to front line troops.
555th Paratroopers – Triple Nickel
This was a segregated unit of WWII paratroopers. Called the “Triple Nickel,” some of them wore charms made of three buffalo nickels – once again, buffalo soldiers. They were denied the opportunity to win medals and promotions in the European theater because they were black. They were assigned to highly dangerous “fire jumping” duty, putting out fires in the western U.S. At the time, it was suspected that Japanese saboteurs were setting these dangerous brush and forest fires. After the war, the 555 th was broken up and the men were integrated into white paratroop units.
For more information:
http://www.triplenickle.com/
761st Tank Battalion – Dog Company
The 761st Tank Battalion is probably the most famous of the World War II tank battalions comprised of African Americans. The 761 st Tank Battalion was activated on April 1, 1942, at Camp Claibourne, La., and deployed to Europe, landing at Omaha Beach in France on Oct. 10, 1944.
Later referred to as the Black Panther Tank Battalion, the 761st was attached to the XII Corps' 26th Infantry Division, assigned to Gen. George S. Patton Jr.'s Third Army, an army already racing eastward across France and committed to combat on Nov. 7, 1944. As a result of their great fighting abilities they spearheaded a number of Patton's moves into enemy territory. They forced a hole in the Siegfried Line, allowing Patton's 4th Armored Division to pour through into Germany. They fought in France , Belgium , and Germany , and were among the first American forces to link up with the Soviet Army (Ukranians) at the River Steyr in Austria .
For more information:
http://www.761st.com
Desegration of the Armed Forces – President Harry S. Truman
During World Ward II, U.S. troops fought to defend freedom and human rights. But to many African Americans in the armed forces, those were noble ideals rather than reality. American society – and the military – were still racially segregated. Nearly one million African Americans fought during World Ward II, but they served in all-black units, separated from white troops. And very few blacks served as officers.
When the war ended, civil-rights leaders demanded that blacks receive fair treatment throughout American life, including the military. Congress was reluctant to address the problem, so in 1948, President Harry S. Truman took action. With Executive Order 9981, Truman decreed the end of segregation in the armed forces.
During the next few years, the U.S. military integrated its forces. In the Korean War, which began in 1950, blacks and whites fought side by side on the battlefield, and African-American officers commanded white troops. Successful integration of the military helped pave the way for other civil-rights reform.
The 1st Kansas Colored Volunteer Infantry Regiment was the first African American regiment from a northern state to join the U.S. Army during the Civil War in 1863. Sgt. William H. Carney of the 54th Massachusetts Volunteers was the first black to earn the Congressional Medal of Honor. He was one of 20 blacks who fought during the Civil War to receive Congressional Medals of Honor, although the honor was not awarded until May 23, 1900 .
1954--- Benjamin O. Davis Jr. was the first black general in the U.S. Air Force.
1979--- The first black general in the Marine Corps was Frank E. Peterson, Jr. Hazel Johnson was appointed the first black woman general.
|
