SAT., FEBRUARY 27. 1982 THE CAROLINA TIK& -1
BLACK HISTORY MONTH SPFdAI. SECTION. PART III
(Continued from Page 18) :
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r
Chappie James, Brigadier General in the Air Force
WW !, Colonel Charles Young, Ihe only surviving
black West Point graduate,, was sixth in line for
elevation to the rank of Brigadier General.
Although recommended for promotion by the
board of examiners, he was declared medically unfit
for combat service and was forced to retire. To pro-
ve the physicians -wrong, he rode horseback from
his home, in Ohio to Washington, D.C. Never
theless, he was retired on June 30, 1917. :
, Five days before the Armistice, he was recalled
and placed in charge of trainees (at, his old rank).
, He then was sent by the government to Liberia to-
organize that country's army. Colonel Young died
of a fever while vacationing in Nigeria in 922.
Prejudice was also evident in the manner of the'
handling of the two black combat divisions, the
92nd and 93rd. (Interestingly, the four Regular Ar
my Regiments, who were seasoned veterans, did not
see combat duty. The question as to "why" has;
never been effectively answered.)''---'--'.''.1 . ;
The normal procedure in preparation for war is
to train combat divisions as a unit; In the case of the
v two black divisions, this was not done. The reason:
Given the attitude of the white population living
ner the training, area, plus the influx Of 27,000
black soldiers, the potentiality for another ,
Brownsville of gigantic proportion was not to be
risked. Consequently, the soldiers were not united
as a Division until they Teahched Europe. When
they landed at France, the 92nd (composed of the
365th through 368th' Regiments) was under
American command: The 93rd irnmnospd nf lh
369th through the 372nd Regiments) was separated. '.'
into us various regiments and placed under French
command. .
The most famous of the eight regiments was
"The Fighting 369th" which grew out of the 8th Il
linois and well-stocked with "New Yorkers from the
15th. Also part of this unit was their band, led by
Captain James Reese Europe and with Noble Sisle
as drurn major.
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f . , --- A vi ; y ; -
The Nation's
Security
Depends On
Black Soldiers
The military prowess
of a country obviously
dciermincs its position as
a world power and a
strong military is vital to
a country's security. "In
this context, bjack
Americans have played a
significant role in secur
ing the nation's future as
a world leader. But not
without a long, con
troversial struggle," says
Tony Brown on "The
Other Battle," the com
ing edition of Tony
Brown's Journal, the na
tion's top-ranked black
affairs television pro
gram. "
The scries, the longest
running national pro
gram of i5;kmd, has '
been funded by Pepsi-:
Cola Company for seven
consecutive years, and
can be seen on public
television (PBS). It will
siari in this area on
Channel 4 on March 2.
"The Other Battle"
recounts the evolution of
the black soldier and his
historic battle to fight
;iikl die in America's
defense. The program
details the evploils of the
all black 369th Infant rv
during WWI: the "2nd
Division during WWII:
ilic'onlv black W Admit
lo serve overseas during
WWII; and the black '
liulninu men of the
Korean and Vietnam
Wars.
' 'fhe. program also
details black participa
tion in the nation's arm
ed forces from the pre-;
Revolutionary period to
i lie Vietnam War. "The
country historically, up
until WWII, resisted the
iccriiiimcni of blacks in
i lie armed serv ices. 1 1
was feared that men who
waded tliiouuli blood to
vicioiv would become
nunc militant . This al
titiiicle has also
prevented an adequate
and accurate presenta
tion of the combat per
formance of black
milium units' and I heir
eonit ibtitions to
America's security," ex
plains fonv Brown.
I he absence of this
outstanding record in
Xineriea's history books
is voiced by Novella
Anls, one of the women
who served in the 6888th
Central Postal Directory
liatialiou during WWII:
"We are a part of history
and if von look back
through history, you'
lind that the black has
been omitted from
history. We loo served in
the u !f. It's just like
i hey i gel I he 92nd.,
Ihev "jci the 93'rd.
nil of i iio.,c
sidefed one of the best
units in the women's ar
my, it was the only
overseas unit thai did not
and has not '.until this
date received a cita
tion. If you have a fireplace,
make sure the damper fits
tightly and is free of debris
for safe and energy-efficient
winter use.'
Sgt. Henry Johnson in a Victory Parade aboard a troop ship
front lines in the Champagne section for 191 con- ment was awarded the Croix de Guerre, and sixteen
secutive days without losing a trench, retreat int. an Distineuished Service Crosses.
Landing in Brest, France they remained in the inch, or surrendering a prisoner. The entire, regi- The" 371st and 372nd were brig jed with the
. r (Continued un page zv)
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