Let Us Fight as Free Men: Black Soldiers and Civil Rights

1. Fighting for Respect

C h a p t e r 1 Fighting for Respect For A. Philip Randolph, it was a fight with ‘‘gloves off.’’1 The black labor leader was no longer willing to accept the mistreatment African Americans experienced on a daily basis. Long before America’s direct involvement in the Second World War, Randolph was among the many African Americans who vehemently articulated their growing impatience and dissatisfaction with their social and political status in the United States. The war created millions of new jobs, especially in war industries. But despite the need for workers in all lines of work, discrimination and segregation continued. Moreover, the military intended to uphold segregation based on the discriminatory and oppressive ‘‘separate but equal’’ doctrine. African Americans now advocated most vigorously for a modification of employment regulations to ensure equal employment opportunities for blacks and the desegregation of the armed services. They attempted to capitalize on the correlations between segregation at home and fascist oppression abroad. In the light of the vastly growing criticism of fascism, their demands seemed more pressing than ever before. Racism in the armed forces, according to the African American Carolina Times, was ‘‘downright dumbness’’ in an international war in which Americans wanted to distinguish themselves as a democratic country.2 Blacks’ frustration grew, spurring their activism against the perpetuation of inequality.3 In an attempt to push President Franklin D. Roosevelt to improve the lot of African Americans and make America live up to its own standards, Randolph founded the March on Washington Movement (MOWM), one of the most prominent and groundbreaking grassroots movements at the time. He was convinced that a mass demonstration in Washington would 14 Chapter 1 be the most effective way to fight the employment inequalities in government and government-related industries as well as the military segregation faced by African Americans.4 Based on Gandhian principles of nonviolent protest,5 the ‘‘first crisis concerning the racial management of the war’’6 fought injustices in the labor market and in the military. The movement’s slogan, ‘‘We loyal Negro-American citizens demand the right to work and fight for our country,’’7 represented its unique rhetoric, which paired American patriotism with severe social criticism and used unprecedented strategies in the fight for equality and civil rights. The movement’s primary goal was to instigate the issuance of an executive order by the president that would abolish racial discrimination in the armed forces and national defense industry, something Roosevelt was reluctant to do. According to Randolph, the president continued to treat African Americans as ‘‘half-men,’’ and patience was no longer an option in breaking Roosevelt’s reluctance.8 Many African Americans hailed and supported Randolph’s call for an African American mass march on Washington. They were impressed with its unprecedented radicalism and hoped it would be effective in the struggle for fair employment and equality.9 The significance of Randolph’s campaign lay in its expression of black agency; it was about making change happen rather than waiting for white cooperation and support . Building and showing racial pride and self-reliance were essential elements of the march.10 The federal government initially demanded that the march be canceled, contending that it would only stir racial hatred. Yet the campaign organizers remained unwilling to comply with President Roosevelt’s request; this, along with the rising number of African Americans planning to participate in the demonstration, began to worry government officials and the president . Randolph continued to vouch for blacks’ Americanism, patriotism, and willingness to ‘‘fight for Uncle Sam!’’ However, it was essential to rid society of African Americans’ status as ‘‘half-men; as semi-citizens, begging for a pittance.’’11 Using rhetoric of manhood, Randolph demanded recognition and respect for black men, and called for black civil rights. His calls grew increasingly impatient. He informed Roosevelt that 100,000 people were planning to participate in the march and that only issuance of an executive order that banned all racial discrimination in the war industries and armed forces could prevent the march from taking place.12 Despite serious reservations within the government, the president acquiesced to the demands, at least partly. Fighting for Respect 15 On June 25, 1941, President Roosevelt issued Executive Order 8802 that prohibited employment discrimination based on race, creed, color, or national origin in federal agencies and war-related industries. The order furthermore established the Fair Employment...