The Battle of the Bulge Association (BOBA) and WWII American Experience will observe Black History Month by examining the role of African Americans in the military, with special attention to WWII and President Truman’s 1947 decision to desegregate the Army.
This presentation will occur at the first meeting of BOBA’s first Dwight D. Eisenhower chapter. The meeting will be held at 2 pm, Saturday, February 14 at the World War II American Experience, 845 Crooked Creek Rd. Leon Reed, the BOBA Vice President for Chapters and organizer of the new Gettysburg chapter, will make the presentation.
“Gettysburg is a natural location to study the Battle of the Bulge,” said Reed. “Not only is it the home of the decisive battle of our other great conflict, but here we are surrounded by reminders of our WWII legacy – one of the country’s great WWII museums; General Eisenhower’s home; hush hush POW interrogation and spy training centers; the Letterkenny Chapel, built by Italian POWs; and the art deco armory on W. Confederate Ave. from which many 28th Division soldiers deployed.”
President Harry S Truman’s 1947 decision to desegregate the military came at the height of the Jim Crow era and against a background of severe discrimination against African Americans throughout the Army and in society. Despite participating in every United States armed conflict, black soldiers have often had to struggle to be accepted into combat positions. Despite a few well-known top-performing outfits, like the Tuskegee Airmen and 761st (“Black Panthers”) Tank Battalion, most African American soldiers in World War II were assigned to rear echelon, non-combat positions such as driving trucks, unloading ships, and providing showers for combat troops.
One exception came during the Battle of the Bulge, when shortages were so severe that black troops were offered a chance to volunteer for combat positions. The experiment went well – black soldiers performed well and were welcomed by the white infantrymen they joined – and did much to convince army commander Dwight D. Eisenhower that the time had come to integrate the armed services. Despite growing acceptance of the idea among some civilian and military leaders, the actual efforts to desegregate the military met resistance and were not entirely completed until Eisenhower’s presidency.
The event is open to the public. The chapter’s organizing meeting takes place at 2 pm while the presentation will start at 3 pm.
