Robert
Baden-Powell, writer of Scouting for Boys
and founder of the Boy Scouts organization in England in 1910, stated “An
invaluable step in character training is to put responsibility on the
individual.”
Trustworthiness,
obedience, loyalty, and responsibility are just a few characteristics that
define a true Scout. These qualities are exactly what the Office of War
Information, created in 1941 by Franklin D. Roosevelt, needed for distribution
of war posters across towns and cities in the United States. The work and
diligence of Scout organizations played a key role in conserving materials for
the war effort and providing propaganda materials in local businesses for the
American public.
Boy Scouts display a recruitment poster at a local store.
Many Scouts distributed posters, by the thousands to local
stores. In October 1942, the first poster was issued for Columbus Day, which
celebrated the 450th year of the Columbus voyage. Over 2,300
communities joined the program, by 1942, with new posters produced every two
weeks. In 1943, the Boy Scouts were named the “Official Dispatch Bearers” with
participation of approximately 1,600,000 members. Also, in 1941, Franklin D.
Roosevelt signed an executive order, which banned discrimination against
government and defense workers. Due to Roosevelt’s order, African-American
troops received the same war posters to distribute in their communities. Other
organizations that participated in the program were the Outdoor Advertising
Association of America, the Association of American Railroads, and Western
Union.
Scouts also contributed on the home front by conserving
materials for the war effort such as aluminum, paper, rubber, and milkweed
(used to fill life jackets). Scouts were responsible for going door-to-door
collecting substances. Between March and April of 1944, Scouts collected over
300,000 tons of wasted paper. The
War Production Board gave 299, 936 Scouts the Eisenhower Award for their
contributions in collecting paper products.
Scouts collecting scrap metal during the Second World War.
“Truly,
ours is a circle of friendships, united by our ideals.” –Juliette Gordon Low,
founder of the Girl Scouts of America
The
Girl Scouts organization started in 1912 in a meeting of eighteen girls in
Savannah, Georgia. Juliette Gordon Low developed an outdoor and educational
program in order to develop character and confidence in young girls.
During
the Second World War, the Girl Scouts collected scrap metals, fat, and
clothing. They also grew Victory Gardens, participated in Farm Aide projects,
and managed bicycle couriers. During the war, young girls had the opportunity
to participate in new programs, such as the Defense Institutes, in which they
learned survival skills.
Girl Scouts collecting fat or lard outside a local shop.
Due
to rationing of certain ingredients, including butter and sugar, the Girl
Scouts stopped production of the famous Girl Scout cookies in 1941. Until 1945,
Girl Scouts distributed calendars to the public.
The
efforts of Scouts throughout the Second World War boosted morale among the
American public. They provided tons of materials for supplies sent overseas
throughout the war. For example, Girl Scouts collected 1.5 million pieces of
clothing for war refugees, according to author Sarah Sundin. The achievements
by Scouts were monumental for the U.S. home front commission.
Discussions of the American women who participated in
World War II has a tendency to revolve around the Women’s Army Corps (WACs),
Women’s Nurse Corps, or of the thousands of women who worked in defense plants
all across the country, who had picked up where their husbands, sons, and
fathers had left off. While most people have basic understandings of women’s
participation in the Navy via the WAVES and in the Air Corps via the WASPS during
World War II, less is known about the women who started it all – the women who
paved the way for female service in the United States military.
For this Women’s History Month, it is important to pay
tribute to the women who opened the door to and began conversations about
women’s involvement, treatment, and equality in the United States. When
thinking of the World War II generation of women who had a great influence on
our position in society today, my thoughts ran to Eleanor Roosevelt and the many
Rosie the Riveters. However, this post is dedicated to all the unsung heroes,
such as the lovely Jacqueline (Jackie) Cochran, who not only was a founder of
the Women’s Army Service Pilots (WASPs) during World War II, but also helped
normalize women in aviation in America. Jackie Cochran’s story is lesser known
and for someone who was instrumental in American aviation and military history,
she deserves to be recognized on this platform and many others.
Jacqueline Cochran was born May 11, 1906 in Florida. Soon
an orphan, Jackie spent much of her childhood living with a foster family and
grew up in poverty. As a teenager, Jackie began training to be a beautician,
and as a young adult, made her way up the social ladder while residing in New
York City and working in a prestigious salon on Saks Fifth Avenue. In 1932,
Jackie married millionaire financier Floyd Odlum, which provided her the means
and supported her in pursing other interests, such as taking flying lessons. In
her 1953 autobiography, Jackie stated that, “at that moment, when I paid for my first
lesson, a beauty operator ceased to exist and an aviator was born."
By the time World War II broke out in 1939 in Europe, Jackie had
already established herself within the aviation community, having set and broke
various flying records. Believing that she and other female pilots could put
their passion and skill to good use serving their country, Jackie appealed to
First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt to create a “squadron of female pilots…who [in the
eventual U.S. involvement in the conflict] could fly military aircraft on
support missions, releasing men for combat duty.” However, it was not until
1941 and 1942 did Jackie see her dream of flying for the military come to fruition.
After being inspired by the female pilot squadrons utilized in England, Jackie
returned to America and with the blessing of President Roosevelt, “hand-picked
25 American women recruits” to implement female aviation into the U.S. Army Air
Corps by ferrying planes. After their success, Jackie was asked to organize a
program for training women pilots in the United States. In 1943, Cochran’s
program became known as the Women’s Air Force Service Pilots (WASPs).
The WASPs boasted impeccable flying records, and in “January 1944, the
War Department announced that the Army Air Forces women's fatal and non-fatal
accident rates were lower than the men's.” Cochran and the WASPs continued to
train and fly non-combative missions for several months more, but the end of
1944 and the turn of the war in the Allies’ favor deemed the WASPs’ service
obsolete and unnecessary. Jackie hoped that Congress would make the WASPs an
official branch of the U.S. military, but this dream was not to be. The WASPs
were grounded and absolved on December 20, 1944.
Jackie’s flying career did not end with the disbandment of her
creation, the WASPs. After the war, she continued to fly and break more
records. She competed in many races, such as the Bendix Race, “coming in second
with a time of four hours and 52 minutes.” Moreover, the 1950s saw further
aviation accomplishments for Jackie, including record speeds for “propeller
driven aircraft” and becoming the “first woman to break the sound barrier.”
Jackie continued to derive passion for flying until her health and her
husband’s death began to inhibit her career. After Floyd died in 1976, Jackie,
who was aged 70 at the time, saw her health deteriorate further, and she passed
away on August 9, 1980. Jacqueline Cochran loved flying until the day she died,
and was instrumental in creating more roles for women in not only the U.S. Air
Force, but within the aviation community as a whole. If Jackie had been alive
in 2009, it would have pleased her immensely to witness President Obama sign the
bill that awarded Congressional Gold Medals to veterans of the WASPs.
When it comes to studying the impact American women had in
World War many historians look solely at the numbers. Historians look at the
number of women who joined the work force, the number of planes, ships,
bullets, parachutes, bandages, and any other necessity these women produced
that made Allied victory possible. Yet,
these women who took up new jobs in fields they never imagined, had an impact
on history that goes beyond Allied production and victory. These women, who
stayed behind to support the war effort by joining the work force, also
witnessed the transformation of America, specifically the transformation of
small towns that became centers for war production. Such a case can be made for
the town of Mobile, Alabama.
Like so many American towns, Mobile went from a small,
sleepy American city to a booming war production hub seemingly overnight.
Before World War II began the work force in Mobile was around 17,000 men and few
women. By 1943 Brookley Air Field would employ that many civilians by the end
of the War and local ship building industries would employ over 30,000 workers
by 1944. Before World War II women’s occupations were limited to administrative
or teaching jobs where the average salary was around $800 a year. With the
onset of war came a demand for ships, planes, artillery, and endless demands for
support supplies. These goods required the skilled labor of welders and
mechanics. At Huntersville or Redstone Arsenals women found jobs on assembly
lines that paid around $1,400 annually. Shipyards in Mobile also hired laborers,
paying $3,600 annually. These jobs provided unimaginable salaries and the
chance for many to move to a new city and start a new life.
One such woman was Emma Bell Petcher. After graduating high
school Petcher wanted a chance to put her love of mechanics to the test.
Petcher breezed through the mechanics tests and secured a job working on
airplanes. Petcher is just one example of women moving to take advantage of
defense jobs in America. These women saw not only the value of their work and
impact, but the American economy transform from the depths of the Great
Depression to the vibrant booming economy of World War II. The economic boom
would continue in the 1950’s with the War’s ed. It was due to the help of the
six million women who entered the workforce that this economic boom was
possible.
With workers came families. This caused the population of
Mobile to more then double during the War from 110,805 in 1940 to 201,369 in
1944. With the great influx of workers came a housing shortage unseen in
Mobile’s history. People were living in tents in vacant lots. Boarding houses
would have four men per room or rent beds to multiple men and women with
differing shifts. Oftentimes both men and women in the same family would take
up a defense job, leaving childcare a much-needed commodity in Mobile. Thus,
women ushered in and witnessed the evolution of day care in America. Day care
centers were viewed as patriotic, promoting a safe place for loving mothers to
leave their children as they went off and produced items needed to win the War.
Women who manned and operated day care centers were viewed as protectors of
liberty and praised for providing a service that allowed women to help win the
War. Day care was not a practice forgotten after the War. Women would continue
to use and work at day care centers after the War and into the later part of
the twentieth century showing how the War gave women the tools needed to pursue
both career and family.
The women of Mobile during World War II also witnessed
many domestic events and policies that would help shape the remainder of the 20th
Century. Mobile’s location in the Deep South made Mobile subject to Jim Crow
laws. These racial regulations kept many black American citizens from taking
advantage of defense jobs in the early days of war production. However, on June
25, 1941 President Roosevelt issued Executive Order 8802, banning racial
discrimination in the defense industry. This was the first step toward equal
opportunity employment in America, and women of all races, in Mobile witnessed
the unrest and success this order brought. After the order was issued many
small fights broke out in shipyards and factories in Mobile. Governor Chauncey
Sparks called out 150 state guards to keep the peace, this created a precedent
of having to use police and state troops to keep the peace as integration began
and established itself in the defense industry. Segregated workspaces brought a
peace and successful routine to the workforce in Mobile. However, Americans
such as Thurgood Marshall and A. Philip Randolph were pushing to make the Fair
Employment Practice Committee a permanent fixture in the Federal Government. It
was the women of America, who stayed behind to serve and work who witnessed
these milestone moments that would reshape America in the 1950s and 1960s.
The women of World War II Mobile gave their all to help
American men win victory across the globe. The hundreds of thousands of hours
spent in factories and shipyards gave the Allies and edge the Axis powers
simply could not match. Yet, the women of Mobile also witnessed several key
events and practices put into place during World War II that would shape the
remainder of the twentieth century. Advancements in training, work assignments,
childcare, and civil rights gave women new platforms to stand on after the War
ended. These issues would also go on to be displayed on the national stage in
the post-modern era. While it is important to remember and note the millions of
supplies American women built and assembled to help the Allies win the war, it
is equally important to note the transformation they witnessed and played a
role in during World War II.
Originally, Presidents’ Day was established on February
22, for George Washington’s birthday, in honor of his presidency. In the late
1960s, Congress passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Act in order to create more
three-day weekends for the workforce. The official date, as the third Monday in
February, was chosen to honor both George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, who
was born on February 12. In 1971, President Richard Nixon implemented the
official holiday. Today, we hold this day to honor all of our presidents past
and present. Today, I want to reflect on a fundamental leader for the D-Day
invasion and President, Dwight D. Eisenhower.
Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Forces, Chief
of Staff of the Army, President of Columbia University, and President of the
United States, Dwight D. Eisenhower held many accomplishments, which reflected
his exceptional influence and character. We hold his sculpture here at the
D-Day Memorial in honor of his courageous leadership in the preparation and
invasion on June 6, 1944. In this reflection on President Eisenhower, I want to
highlight his characteristics, which made “Ike” a humble and true leader.
David and Ida Eisenhower nicknamed all seven of their
sons either “Big Ike” or “Little Ike.” Dwight D. Eisenhower was born on October
14, 1890 in Denison, Texas. When his father found a job at the Belle Springs
Creamery, the family moved to Abilene, Kansas, where Eisenhower spent his
childhood. An all-around, hardworking student, Ike enjoyed the outdoors, such
as hunting and fishing, and playing baseball and football. He was known as a
superb poker player, in which he developed skills of observation and assessed
the other player’s mannerisms. From 1909 to 1911, he worked at the Belle
Springs Creamery (produced ice, cheese, butter, and ice cream), with his father
and uncle, in order to pay for his older brother, Edgar’s college tuition at
the University of Michigan.
Belle Springs Creamery
In 1911, Ike won an appointment to the U.S.
Military Academy at West Point, where he placed 2nd out of 8
candidates on the examinations. While at West Point, he continued to play
baseball and football. He almost was discharged from West Point due to a
serious leg injury playing football and by injuring his leg, riding horseback.
The chairman of the board overrode the ruling and allowed Ike to continue at
West Point. He graduated 61st out of 164, and after became a 2nd
Lieutenant at Fort Sam Houston in Texas, where he trained recruits for WWI.
Also, he worked for the first Army Transcontinental Motor Convey, the Tank
Corps, and the Battle Monuments Commission. By the Second World War, these
experiences made Eisenhower an exceptional and recognizable leader.
Eisenhower in uniform from West Point.
Dwight D. Eisenhower’s most prominent position came when
he was named Supreme Commander of Operation Overlord, the largest amphibious
assault in American history. From his success in the North African and Italian
campaigns to his leadership in the Philippines and Far East Section of the War
Plans Division, Eisenhower proved an exceptional leader. This led to his
appointment as Supreme Commander, given and approved by Chief of Staff, George
C. Marshall.
During preparations for the D-Day invasion,
Eisenhower spent a considerable amount of time in the field talking to
thousands of soldiers during their training sessions in England. He spoke to
each solider as an individual, which boosted morale among the ordinary
soldiers. He stated, “Morale is the greatest single factor in successful war."
from Crusade in Europe, pg. 210.
In my opinion, Eisenhower’s “Order of the
Day” solidified the objective for the D-Day invasion by identifying the terms of
bravery and victory. Here is the video below of his “Order of the Day”:
Here is a famous image of
Supreme Commander Eisenhower speaking with men from Company E, 502nd
Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division. Specifically,
his conversation was with Lt.
Wallace C. Strobel about fly-fishing in Michigan.
The
invasion was scheduled for June 5, 1944, but due to storms, the invasion was
delayed to June 6, 1944. Eisenhower though, wrote in a letter on June 5 (actually
dated July 5, we can understand the mistake, he had a lot to handle this day),
Eisenhower accepted the blame if the Normandy invasion failed. He wrote, “My
decision to attack at this time and place was based upon the best information
available. The troops, the air, and the Navy did all that bravery and devotion
to duty could do. If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt it is mine
alone.” The Allies were victorious on D-Day and secured close to 850,000 men by the end of June in Normandy, France.
He returned home as Chief of Staff for the Army, and
served as President of Columbia University from 1948-1953. His experience and
heroic leadership in the eyes of fellow Americans made him a successful
Republican candidate for President in 1952. He ran against Democrat, Adlai
Stevenson, and won the electoral vote 442 to 89. Even though historians debate
the overall success of his presidency, Eisenhower led the nation for two terms,
1953-1961, and had many substantial accomplishments. Listed below just name a
few:
Established the
First Interstate Highway System in 1956
Secured Civil
Rights legislation
Sent Federal
troops to Little Rock, Arkansas during integration of Little Rock Central High
School in 1957
Agreed to an
armistice, which ended fighting in the Korean Conflict
“Waged-peace” in
order to solidify U.S. and Soviet relations
Emphasized nuclear strength
during the Cold War
Campaign button used in 1952.
He stated on January 21, 1953: "My first day at the President's Desk. Plenty of worries and difficult problems. But such has been my portion for a long time - the result is that this just seems (today) like a continuation of all I've been doing since July '41 - even before that!"
We honor and recognize Ike for his humble and courageous way of leadership during the largest amphibious assault, which changed the course of history. We honor his leadership as
President and cannot forget the crucial role he made in the lives of not only the
soldiers, but for future generations. From his roots in Abilene, Kansas to the
most prestigious role as President of the United States, Ike stated in his homecoming speech in 1945: "The proudest thing I can claim is that I am from
Abilene."
After suffering from two major attacks, Eisenhower died
on April 2, 1969 at the Walter Reed Army Hospital in D.C. due to suffering from
two major heart attacks in 1965 and 1968. He is buried at the Eisenhower Center
in Abilene, Kansas.
-Lindsay
Resources:
Stephen Ambrose, The Victors: Eisenhower and His Boys: The Men of World War II
Hayden Furrow, D-Day Veteran,
during a school program at the
National D-Day Memorial
What better day to share one of my favorite love stories
than Valentine’s Day? I’ve always been a sucker for a good love story whether it’s
a book, movie, TV show, or real life. I guess you can say that I am a bit of a
romantic, even though it is hard to see unless you get me on the topic. Well
today, I want to share a video about one of our volunteers, who is also a D-Day
veteran, on his 70th wedding anniversary which occurred just a few days
ago. Hayden Furrow is one of the sweetest men you will ever meet and his
enthusiasm for sharing his story with the next generation endears him to me as
an educator—it’s an experience that our school visitors will never forget. But every
time I see him and he mentions his wife, Katie, he lights up like he’s back in
his youth and you can tell how deeply he cares for her. Recently, a local TV
station aired an interview of the Furrows on their milestone wedding
anniversary, as seen at this link. I hope you enjoy the video as much as I did and that
their story is a reminder of the good things that life can bring.
This week, we are featuring another blog by another one
of our spring interns, Meika. She is a senior at Hollins University in Roanoke,
Virginia and is double majoring in history and political science with
aspirations to earn an M.A. in Public History and then work in history museums,
historic sites, or historical societies. She’s a long-time enthusiast of World
War II and we are excited to have her on board this spring! I hope you enjoy
her blog on the African American women who served in the Army Nurse Corps
during World War II.
African American women were not
immune to the United States’ public call to arms after America entered World
War II in 1941. Women who lived in a racially segregated and discriminatory
country were willing and eager to join the Allied fight against tyranny and
oppression in Europe. American white women are remembered for their heroic
services during World War II as WACs, WAVES, nurses, factory workers, planters
of Victory Gardens, and bandage rollers. Stories of their service are
well known and constantly perpetuated during elementary school lessons of Rosie
the Riveter. However, the story of black women who also served their country
during World War II are less well known. One of the ways through which American
black women contributed during the war was through their participation in the
Army Nurse Corps.
Due to the racial segregation and discrimination in the United
States, black women found it difficult to join the ranks of the would-be 60,000
women in the Army Nurse Corps (ANC) during World War II. Even though the
candidates had the same training and education as most of the white women who
were admitted, government quotas placed limits on the number of black women who
were allowed to join the ANC in 1941. In
subsequent years due to the influence of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, quotas
for black nurses to join the Army Nurse Corps began to loosen up and completely
abolish the quota system in 1944.
A black
nurse treating a German P.O.W. in England, 1944.
Though their numbers were small in comparison to the 60,000 white
nurses, the less than 600 black nurses eventually admitted to the ANC were
happy to finally be able to serve their country. Despite their segregation,
discrimination, and occasionally rudimentary jobs assigned to them, black
nurses in the Army Nurse Corps were able to see a bit of the world during their
service. Though black nurses were largely restricted to serving only in
hospitals and aid stations occupied by black military men, a demand for medical
care brought black nurses to England, Burma, Africa, and such faraway places
such as Liberia and Australia, and other locations in the Pacific. Other nurses
remained in or returned to the United States to work in convalescent, general,
and station hospitals.
In addition to serving the black troops, black nurses were also
provided medical care for German prisoners of war in England and in as obscure
places as Arizona in the United States. Due to labor shortages in the United
States, the government made use of a free source of labor: German prisoners of
war, and thus transported them from Europe to work on farms or other labor
sites.
The work given and sacrifice
made by black nurses during World War II not only achieved progress for black
nurses in the form of increased federal funding and recognition, but they also inspired
a new generation of nurses. Following the eradication of the quota system in
1944, over 2,000 young black women enrolled in the Cadet Nurse Corps program
and other nursing schools. The 600 African American nurses in the Army Nurse
Corps deserve to become part of the narrative of American women who served
during World War II and I hope that further research can be conducted and
further recognition duly awarded.
I’m excited to introduce a new contributor to our blog, Olivia. She is one of my spring interns and is working on her Masters of Art in
History at Liberty University. Her primary field is Modern American Military
History focusing on leadership in World War II and the Korean Conflict. Her
work seeks to bring to light those leaders and subordinates whose impact is
often overlooked or undervalued. She has also presented at several conferences
and won an award for her work on the Japanese American Nisei Soldiers. I am
very excited to have Olivia on board and hope you enjoy her post on treatment
of African Americans in Nazi Germany!
The horrors afflicted by Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945
are ingrained in the world’s memory with the tragedy and loss still present in
the minds of people around the globe. While the atrocities Nazi Germany
afflicted on groups such as the Roma and Jewish communities are well known
there are other groups, which also suffered at the hand of Nazi controlled
Germany. One of these lesser-known groups the black and mulatto citizens of in
reach of Nazi Germany.
Before
World War I there were not many black German citizens living in Germany. When
Germany lost World War I the Treaty of Versailles stated Germany was so give up
her colonies in land that is present day Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Ghana,
Togo, Cameroon, and Namibia. With the loss of these military outposts, military
men and German colonial students, artisans, writers, and performers both white
and black returned to Germany. Many military and colonial leaders also brought
with them a system of deep racism and discrimination of black citizens. The
Treaty of Versailles also stated troops were to occupy the Rhineland region of
West Germany. The French assigned 200,00 soldiers both nationals and colonials
to occupy the Rhineland. Racist propaganda groups in Germany quickly moved to
compound the situation in order to spread racism and discrimination against
blacks in the Rhineland and Germany. Propaganda viewed the black colonial French
soldiers as rapist and carriers of disease. Other special interest groups
blamed black soldiers for all of the unrest, rape, and murder of German women
by the occupying forces, causing panic and uproar. This escalated and even resulted
in Pope XV asking for the removal of black French troops and people writing to
US President Woodrow Wilson demanding the removal of the black colonial troops.
Even before Hitler’s rise to power, discrimination began with forbidding black
citizens from holding any type of government jobs or roles in the military.
Interracial marriage was also banned in Germany and all of its holdings.
However,
with the rise of Hitler’s power in 1933 came wide spread persecution and further
discrimination was implemented against blacks and mulattos living in Germany
and the territories Hitler acquired. While there was never a program of
systematic elimination, treatment of black citizens varied in levels of
severity from discrimination and isolation to sterilization and medical
experimentation. In Mein Kamph, Hitler stated that, “Jews had brought Negros
into the Rhineland with the clear aim of running the hated while race by the
necessarily-resulting bastardization.” In this statement Hitler used the
previous post World War I tensions to push the German people to accepted racism
and discrimination.
By 1937 the Germans decided something had to be done
about the approximately 800 mixed raced children living in the Rhineland which
Hitler deemed “an insult to the German Nation. Therefore, a committee created
Commission Number 3, giving the German government power to start sterilizing
mixed race children deemed “Rhineland Bastards”. As many as 400 German African
mulatto children were gathered and sterilized, many with out the parents
knowledge beforehand. Hans Hauck was a teenager at the time this organization
was commissioned and was serialized by the Nazis. Hauck recalled in the
documentary, “Hitler’s Forgotten Victims,” he was serialized without
anesthesia. Once his procedure was completed he was given a certificate
validating his procedure and told to avoid sex with German women. At the same
time women who were found pregnant with mixed babies were forced to have
abortions. At the same time, persecution
was also happening to the small population of full black German citizens.
Under Hitler’s rule all black citizens were banned from
universities and in some cases the subjects of anthropological and medical
studies, there were also cases of murder and abuse. Such is the case of
Hilarius Gilges. Gilges was a 24-year-old native of Dusseldorf and an artist.
In June of 1933 approximately a dozen SS officers attacked Gilges, captured,
tortured, and killed the young man for his race identity and political
affiliations. Today his life is memorialized in a plaza in Düsseldorf as the
first marked death in Düsseldorf under the Nazi oppression. Others with similar
stories are shared in published works such as Born to Witness: Growing Up Black
in Nazi Germany, which tales the story of Hans Massaquoi who grew up during the
War in Germany.
At the time Hitler and the Nazi’s came to power there
were approximately 25,000 black or mulatto citizens in Germany out of
population of 65 million. Taking into account the low population proportion of
black and mixed German citizens during Hitler’s rule combined with the world
wide level of accustomed prejudice and discrimination toward men and women with
African heritage at the time it, is easy to see how the plight of those souls
tortured and maimed by Nazi practices went unheard of for so many years.
However, the policies of hatred and abuse toward those deemed “impure” or “a
threat to the master race” practiced by Nazi Germany goes beyond the treatment
of Roma, Jews, and Russians. The torment and pain Nazi Germany inflicted on the
population of men, women, and children with African decent deserves to be told
in shared with the same hope of never allowing such a travesty to occur in our
lifetime and in future generations.
