African Americans in WW2

American History Hit

History Hit

America, History

4.5 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 10 November 2022

⏱️ 39 minutes

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Summary

The experience of African Americans in World War 2 was, to say the least, a gross double standard. While fascism was confronted in the name of liberty and justice, those same ideals were denied to African Americans, who suffered racism and segregation, at home and on the front line. As Matthew Delmont tells Don, to African Americans, what was happening in Europe and elsewhere was an ugly reminder of the prejudice and bigotry they faced in their own nation.

Produced by Benjie Guy. Mixed by Aidan Lonergan. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	It's November 7th, 1944. The US Army's 761 tank battalion is leading an attack on the German
0:11.2	held town of Morville LLevic in northeast France.
0:15.0	Inside the town, the lead Sherman tank, commanded by Sergeant Roy King,
0:20.0	is knocked out by a German Penserfe Faust, an anti-tank rocket launcher.
0:26.3	Two of King's crew are wounded but are dragged to safety behind the tank.
0:31.0	King and his remaining crew take out the soldier with the Penser Faust, as well as those
0:35.2	manning and nearby anti-tank gun.
0:38.3	Not far away, Tank Commander Staff Sergeant Reuben Rivers encounters a German roadblock.
0:43.7	Under heavy enemy fire he leaps out of his tank,
0:46.7	attaches a cable to the roadblock,
0:48.8	jumps back in, and pulls the obstacle off the road.
0:51.6	The tank column is able to resume its advance and
0:55.9	eventually captures the town. King and Rivers would both be killed in action
1:00.7	several days later. Rivers posthumously received the silver star for his conduct.
1:06.4	The 761st, also known as the Black Panthers, was a segregated African American Tank
1:11.9	Battalion, just part of the 1 million African-Americans
1:15.3	who served in World War II, without whose efforts the Allies would surely not have won the
1:19.4	war, but who were forced to serve under conditions on befitting their determined commitment,
1:24.4	and in many cases extreme valor. Hello and welcome to the American history hit I'm Don Wildman. The experience of
1:40.4	black America in World War II was, to say the least, a gross double standard.
1:47.0	While the malevolent forces of global fascism and anti-Semitism were being aggressively
1:51.9	confronted overseas in defense of liberty, justice, in simple
	...

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