COMPARE: Segregated Regiments

• In World War One, segregated units were used to separate white soldiers from their black counterparts. This sentiment was implemented again in the second world war. However, soldiers of color fought with renewed energy as they sought to eliminate the racist tendencies of both the Nazi Party against the Jews, as well as their own counterparts against themselves.

“I am in receipt of my draft-reclassification notice. Please be informed that I am ready to serve in any unit of the armed forces of my country which is not segregated by race. Unless I am assured that I can serve in a mixed regiment and that I will not be compelled to serve in a unit undemocratically selected as a Negro group, I will refuse to report for induction.”

— Winfred Lynn, 1942

CONTRAST: Justice on the Homefront

• While black leaders on the homefront during the first world war were mainly focused on supporting the war effort more generally, many black Americans during World War II called out the hypocrisy of America as a nation.   After all, it claimed to abhor racism against Jews while actively supporting it with Jim Crow laws and segregation at home.

  • WWI: Alice Dunbar-Nelson, fundraised for the war effort for WWI and encouraged black men to enlist.

  • WWII: Langston Hughes, used WWII as inspiration for his many race-related poems.

“Because my mouth Is wide with laughter And my throat Is deep with song, You do not think I suffer after I have held my pain So long? Because my mouth Is wide with laughter You do not hear My inner cry? Because my feet Are gay with dancing You do not know I die?”

— Langston Hughes

CONTRAST: Freedom Abroad

• While in WWI, most black soldiers were (unfairly) drafted into service and wanted nothing more to return home from their time overseas. However, black soldiers in WWII often enjoyed their time in Germany as the Germans who they freed were highly appreciative of the resources and jazz music they provided after years of brutal Nazi rule.

“They said blacks couldn’t be pilots and wouldn’t make good military men. We proved them wrong. We distinguished ourselves in every way possible. We made that red tail famous.”

— Lieutenant Colonel Hiram Mann, Tuskegee Airmen

COMPARE: Roles in the War

• Similarly to World War One, black soldiers in the second world war were confined primarily to supporting roles in supply units. With the exception of the war’s final months, black soldiers generally could not partake in combat such as flying planes or operating tanks, much as they had been restricted from these jobs during WWI.

“Congress makes the following findings: (1) On June 25, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order No. 8802 establishing the Fair Employment Practices Commission and opening the doors for the very first African-Americans to enlist in the United States Marine Corps.”

— Congressional Act to give the Congressional Gold Medal to the Montford Point Marines

CONTRAST: War Heroes

• While many black heroes in WWI were famed for their brave hand-to-hand combat or their assistance of white soldiers, black soldiers in WWII often gained support for serving in the Air Force during the war’s later years. The foremost of these were the Tuskegee Airmen, including Benjamin O. Davis, Jr., a commander of this group and eventually the first black army general.

COMPARE: Postwar Treatment of Black Soldiers

• Following WWI, black soldiers were surprised and disappointed to find that they were not able to earn the honors they deserved as veterans due to their race, leading to an upsurge in Civil Rights advocacy. After the second world war, a similar sentiment of reinvigoration occurred after black soldiers witnessed the respect they were treated with abroad, many joining organizations such as the NAACP to continue the fight for civil rights.

Summary and Conclusion

• Though the treatment of black Americans was certainly improved in WWII, it was far from perfect. Soldiers in the second world war still faced significant challenges due to the continued use of segregated units, their restriction to predominantly non-combat units, and racism from their white counterparts at home.

• However, during WWII, black soldiers were respected much more overseas and continued the fight for racial justice on the homefront following the war’s end. During the war, black activists focused more on civil rights than on the war effort as a whole, unlike during WWI.

• Black involvement and success in World War II directly helped to spark the Civil Rights movement that swept the country during the later part of the 20th century.

• The bravery displayed by black soldiers in every wing of the army is representative of how they overcame the struggles they were met with throughout the course of American history.

• Time and time again, they exceeded expectations forced upon them by their white counterparts and served their country despite the lack of support at home.