From Slavery to Freedom
th
9 ed.
Chapter 18
Double V for Victory
Reframing the Arsenal of
Democracy
 Blacks in the Armed Forces
 September 1940 black leaders submitted seven
point program outlining minimum essentials for
treatment of blacks in the military
 All available black reserves be used to train recruits
 Black recruits receive same training as white recruits
 Acceptance based on ability not race
 Specialized personnel be integrated
 Blacks appointed to draft boards
 Discrimination abolished in Navy and Army Air Corps
 African American appointments to serve as assistants to
secretaries of war and navy
2
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Reframing the Arsenal of
Democracy
 War Department issued statement that African
Americans would be received in army
proportionally to its population in the country
 Did not call for integrated troops
 Under pressure, Roosevelt appointed promoted
Colonel Benjamin O. Davis to brigadier general
 Appointed other blacks to significant positions
 Blacks did not benefit from America’s industrial
mobilization
 Prejudice rampant
3
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Reframing the Arsenal of
Democracy
 The March on Washington in 1941
 A. Philip Randolph planned all-black march on
Washington; emphasized new style of activism
 Large scale direct action demanding defense jobs and
an integrated military
 Government officials alarmed at the march’s
growing momentum attempted to discourage it
 Randolph called off the march only after
Roosevelt issued Executive Order 8802
prohibiting discrimination in employment in the
defense industry and the government
4
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
A. Philip Randolph rallies black Americans throughout
the nation to march on Washington in 1941
5
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Reframing the Arsenal of
Democracy
 Executive Order 8802
 Clause prohibiting discrimination required in all
defense contracts
 Fair Employment Practices Committee (FEPC)
established to receive and investigate complaints
 No power to impose punishment
 White employers opposed order
 Did not overturn Jim Crow in the South
6
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Reframing the Arsenal of
Democracy
 Hastie and Discrimination in the Armed
Forces
 William Hastie authored report revealing ways
blacks were underutilized and discriminated
against in the armed forces
 Found they were overwhelmingly assigned unskilled
and menial duties
 War Department believed integrating troops was
neither practical nor desirable
7
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
In Military Service
 In Military Service
 After 1940 passage of Selective Service Act,
more than 3 million blacks registered for
potential service
 Served in a variety of ways despite
discrimination
 Participation in administration of Selective Service Act
reduced discrimination
8
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
In Military Service
 Black Women in the Military
 More than 4,000 enlisted in Women’s Army
Corps
 Protracted effort of black nurses to gain respect
 Passage of Draft Nurse Bill ended army’s
discriminatory policy
9
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Lt. Harriet Pickens and
Ens. Frances Wills
10
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
In Military Service
 Tuskegee: Black Airmen
 In late 1940, government announced plan to train
African American pilots in Tuskegee, Alabama
 Some objected to segregation; others saw it as progress
 Nearly 2,000 black men completed pilot or
support skills training
 The Navy, the Marines, and Officer Training
 Not until 1942 did the Navy and Marines begin
to loosen exclusionary policies
 African Americans agitated for opportunity to
become commissioned officers
11
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
In Military Service
 Overseas Service—Europe
 Half a million African Americans saw overseas
service during World War II
 Twenty-two black combat units participated in
European ground operations
 January 1945 troops integrated into unit to fight on
German soil
 Troops remained segregated in Mediterranean
Theater
12
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Cpl. Carlton Chapman, tank machine gunner
13
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
In Military Service
 Service in the Pacific
 African Americans active in the war in the
Pacific and East Asia
 Service in the Navy
 In July 1943, thousands of blacks trained to
perform numerous technical tasks and given
appropriate ratings
 Service in the Merchant Marine
 Far less segregated and discriminatory
 Four black captains with integrated crews
14
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
In Military Service
 Racism at Home
 Black soldiers targets of racist acts at home
 Lynching; terrorizing; segregation
 Felix Hall
 Racism on military bases – USO, PXs, theaters
 Black press covered treatment of black soldiers
and helped to mobilize agitation on home front
 War Department issued order of July 8, 1944,
forbidding segregation in recreational and
transportation facilities
15
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
In Military Service
 Racial Clashes
 Riots and clashes took places both on and off
military posts as African Americans attempted to
resist segregation and discrimination
16
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
In Military Service
 Recognition for Service
 African Americans received significant
recognition for their military service during
the war
 Dorie Miller; Private George Watson
 Executive Order 9981 signed by Harry S.
Truman in July 1948 ended racial segregation
in the armed forces
17
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Dorie Miller
18
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Keeping the Home Fires Burning
 Keeping the Home Fires Burning
 Blacks prepared for employment by federal
training programs but plagued by discriminatory
hiring practices
 The Work of the FEPC
 The FEPC began to slowly turn tide for black
workers
 Demonstrated instrumental role of government in
changing employment practices
 Black leaders began to push to make the FEPC
permanent
19
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
African Americans in wartime industry: Women
at welding plant in New Britain, Connecticut
20
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
African Americans in wartime industry: Men at
shipyard in Baltimore, Maryland
21
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Keeping the Home Fires Burning
 Support for the War Effort
 African Americans gave generously to war effort
at home
 Purchased bonds
 Active in Office of Civilian Defense Initiatives
 Black-White Conflict at Home
 Black migration to North and West grew at fever
pitch in 1940s
 Detroit race riot finally put to rest after
Roosevelt issued state of emergency and sent
soldiers
22
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Crystal Bird Fauset, special assistant,
Office of Civilian Defense
23
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Keeping the Home Fires Burning
 The Problem of Low Morale
 Low morale a worry to black leaders
 Launched media campaign to build black morale
and inform whites about role of blacks in the war
effort
 Radio was extremely effective medium
 War Department used black artists,
photographers, and film writers to tell stories
of black bravery and patriotism
24
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Keeping the Home Fires Burning
 The Problem of Low Morale
 Publicity did not assuage black resentment
toward military segregation
 William Hastie resigned over issue in 1943
 Black journalists covering the war from abroad
wrote about black heroism in the war and white
racism in the armed forces
25
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.