Black America and the Great War (1914-1918)

Making the world “safe for democracy”

• Woodrow Wilson said there was a moral imperative to do this

• Dragged Europe and all colonies and assorted powers from around the world into a nasty war

• Average American thought it would benefit us to remain in isolation

• DuBois encouraged Black men to volunteer for service

Racism in the US military; French military allyship

• Send black men out first

• French included black American soldiers on the warfront compared to the American military

• American black men soliders were assigned to do not-so meaningful work in the American army

The New York 369th Regiment: The “Harlem Hellfighters”