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2015
Soldiers and Civil Rights: The Impact of World War II on Jacksonville's African American Community, 1954-1960
Bryan Higham University of North Florida, [email protected]
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Suggested Citation Higham, Bryan, "Soldiers and Civil Rights: The Impact of World War II on Jacksonville's African American Community, 1954-1960" (2015). UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations. 560. https://digitalcommons.unf.edu/etd/560
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SOLDIERS AND CIVIL RIGHTS: THE IMPACT OF WORLD WAR II ON JACKSONVILLE'S AFRICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY, 1945-1960
By
Bryan Arch Wayne Higham
A thesis submitted to the Department of History in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree in
Master of Arts in History
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH FLORIDA
COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES
APRIL 2015
Unpublished work © Bryan Arch Wayne Higham
i
The thesis of Bryan Higham is approved:
______
Dr. Gregory F. Domber
______
Dr. James Broomall
______
Dr. Alan Bliss
Accepted for the History Department:
______
Dr. Charles Closmann, Dept. Chair
Accepted for the College of Arts and Sciences:
______
Dr. Barbara Hetrick, Dean
Accepted for the University:
______
Dr. John Kantner, Dean of the Graduate School
ii
Dedication
My fellow veterans- As the following pages will demonstrate, our time in the military is only the first chapter of our legacy.
iii
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank my mentor and research supervisor, Dr. Gregory Domber, for his patience, support, and commitment throughout this process. Despite his busy schedule, Dr.
Domber aided me throughout both the research and writing process. The leadership that he has provided has helped me develop the necessary skills of a historian. I would not have achieved the successes that I have without his help and guidance.
I would also like to thank Dr. James Broomall for not only agreeing to be a part of my defense board, but for the guidance he provided in Dr. Domber's absence. Dr. Broomall's help was instrumental in the early stages of this process, especially with the historiography.
Furthermore, I need to thank Dr. Alan Bliss for agreeing to be a part of my defense board.
His understanding of the Civil Rights Movement and local history was important in aiding my development and elevation of the final form of this project. In actuality, I believe nearly every member of the UNF History department faculty has taken time to provide me with some form of constructive feedback, and for that, I am thankful.
Lastly, I would like to thank my wife, Camille. She provided invaluable help during both the research and editing portions. Her skills as a lawyer were instrumental when helping me analyze several documents. Most importantly, she was patient and supportive during this long and trying process. Without the contributions of any one of these people, I would not have been able to produce the final product that I did.
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Table of Contents
Title Page ...... i
Certificate of Approval ...... ii
Dedication ...... iii
Acknowledgements ...... iv
Abstract ...... vi
Chapter 1: Introduction ...... 1
Chapter 2: Setting the Stage ...... 16
Chapter 3: Fighting the War ...... 35
Chapter 4: Bringing it All Home ...... 56
Chapter 5: Conclusion...... 74
Bibliography ...... 83
Vita ...... 97
v
Abstract
This research explores the role of returning African American veterans in the Civil Rights
Movement in Jacksonville from 1945-1960. Black World War II veterans not only faced the typical challenges of returning to civilian life, but took up the fight for equality as well. While this work acknowledges existing arguments about black veterans in the Civil Rights Movement, it emphasizes and analyzes the importance of their military benefits and experience. The mechanizing revolution that occurred in the United States military in this era had a lasting impact on the soldiers fighting as well as communities back home, Jacksonville included. This changing military dynamic necessitated an increase in support positions, meaning African American soldiers received training in various fields like combat, supply, and intelligence. This training translated into useful skills in the postwar period. The experiences of black soldiers while overseas also played a pivotal role, especially their interaction with foreign cultures. Often foreigners referred to black soldiers as "American" leaving off any racial distinction. Additionally, black veterans were able to attend college in unprecedented numbers because of their GI Bill benefits. Ernest Jackson earned undergraduate and legal degrees, and led the attack on segregation in Jacksonville. Elcee Lucas also went to school after exiting the service but used his military skills to orchestrate voter registration drives, and organize political campaigns. With their new skills and education, these men were not only able to organize and lead others but were equipped with the tools necessary to challenge the institutions that subverted their equality, greatly influencing the path of the Civil Rights Movement. Through their efforts, black veterans helped expose inadequacies with the existing structures and laws, thus adding to the justification for the later civil rights tactics that intentionally challenged and broke Jim Crow laws.
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Chapter 1: Introduction
"The things that a trained soldier must know, and the way in which they are done, will be taught you as rapidly as you can absorb them. The basic military information is described and explained in this handbook so that it may be available constantly to you during the first weeks of your service. By mastering the contents your future progress will be much more rapid." Basic Field Manual: Soldier’s Handbook, 19411
Speaking during the Civil War as African Americans were enlisting in the Union Army,
Fredrick Douglas said, "Once let the black man get upon his person brass letters US, let him get an eagle on his button, and a musket on his shoulder, and bullets in his pocket, and there is no power on earth or under the earth which can deny that he has earned the right of citizenship in the United States."2 This notion of a connection between military service and citizenship rights still rang true well into the twentieth century when African Americans took up arms against their country's enemies in World War II. One of history's greatest ironies is that while America pushed democratic ideals abroad in the fight against fascism, it denied a substantial body of its own citizenry equal rights at home. To remedy this, black veterans began their civil rights efforts almost immediately upon their return home. However, these men do not fit into the traditional narrative of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s, from the
Montgomery bus boycott to the March on Selma through Freedom Rides, all culminating in the
1 Basic Field Manual: Soldier's Handbook, FM 21-100 (Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office, 1941), III. 2 Frederick Douglass, "Should the Negro Enlist in the Union Army?" speech, National Hall Philadelphia, July 06, 1863. 1
Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1965.3 African American World War II veterans utilized a different set of tactics than the direct action and non-violent civil disobedience to segregation and
Jim Crow laws that typified the movement during Martin Luther King’s era. Instead of the
“illegal” methods such as sit-ins and marches, black World War II veterans challenged the existing structures through legal means, exposing the flaws in the system, providing justification for the later civil rights tactics.
This project seeks to explore the role and establish the importance of black World War II veterans in the Civil Rights Movement between the years of 1945 and 1960 in Jacksonville,
Florida. During their military tenure, black service members gained invaluable training that translated to useful skills towards their civil rights endeavors. An individual's unique military training allowed him to contribute to the Civil Rights Movement in a way that he would have been unlikely to be able to before. Men who served in rear support positions, like the supply branch, obtained professional and organizational skills relevant to both civilian businesses and activist groups. Additionally, men who served in direct support positions like reconnaissance became proficient in hands on skills that required them to collect and collate information into useful products while dealing with the stress of working in close proximity of combat actions.
Lastly, combat training, even the baseline weapons training that all soldiers received, gave black soldiers weapons proficiency and knowledge of tactics that would be useful in protecting their communities from white vigilantes. Furthermore, the benefits extended to black veterans
3 Some examples of works covering this more traditional narrative include; Numan V. Bartley, The Rise of Massive Resistance: Race and Politics in the South During the 1950's (Baton Rouge, LA: Louisiana State University Press, 1969); David J. Garrow, Protest At Selma: Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1978); Aldon D Morris, The Origins of the Civil Rights Movement: Black Communities Organizing for Change (New York: The Free Press, 1984); David J. Garrow, Bearing the Cross:Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (New York: William Morrow and Company, 1986); Richard H King, Civil Rights and the Idea of Freedom (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992). 2 through the Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944 enabled them to gain a higher education as well as increased opportunities to purchase homes.
This project seeks to establish the connections between these portions of the black veterans' experience and the postwar movement to increase African Americans’ civil rights. The historiography later in this chapter will outline what specific areas of scholarship this project is both drawing and building upon. Furthermore, that section will illustrate a gap in the scholarship that this project seeks to fill. Chapter two will portray what the city of Jacksonville was like in the prewar period and how World War II affected the city. That section will demonstrate that
Jacksonville was a changing landscape that was providing increased opportunities for the city's black community. Chapter three will analyze the different modes of military training as well as the impact of foreign cultures on African American enlistees. Black soldiers gained new skills and training that would prove useful in the postwar environment. Chapter four examines specific veterans and their impact on Jacksonville's Civil Rights Movement. This section will illustrate how these specific black veterans utilized their military training and benefits to challenge the postwar power structures. Chapter five will act as a concluding section, bringing all the elements of the chapters together. This section will assert that World War II provided the circumstances for black veterans to act as leaders and begin a renewed civil rights charge. These veterans acted within the existing structures, exposing the inadequacies and racial biases, providing the justification for later generations of activists.
In terms of narrative technique this study focuses on three central case studies to gain insight into the important roles African American veterans played once they returned from the conflict. Jacksonvillians Elcee Lucas, Ernest Jackson, and Samuel Bruce embodied this broader trend of returning from war to play a significant role in the Civil Rights Movement in Northeast
3
Florida. Elcee Lucas served in the U.S. Army as reconnaissance officer in the European Theater of Operations.4 After his homecoming, he orchestrated a pivotal voters' registration drive, and acted as a campaign manager for African American political candidates. Ernest Jackson also served in the Army in both the European and Pacific Theaters, where he received wounds that left him permanently disabled.5 He then returned home to earn a law degree and challenge segregation and inequality in the judicial system, arguing cases both in Florida and around the country. Samuel Bruce spent World War II in the U.S. Marine Corps and came back to
Jacksonville to advance African American conditions by running for City Council in 1959, a role that Ernest Jackson also embraced.6
Using these three veterans as case studies, this thesis investigates the connection between
African Americans veterans of World War II and the Civil Rights Movement nationally and applies these patterns to explain the progress of the Civil Rights Movement in Jacksonville,
Florida, in the fifteen years immediately following the end of World War II. The broader purpose of the project is to, first, illuminate Jacksonville’s place in this story, as an incredibly underexplored area on this subject matter. Second, this project specifically substantiates and illustrates broad claims from scholars about the importance of returning black veterans' in the postwar landscape. Lastly, this project discusses why World War II stands out as the pivotal point from the other previous conflicts that black soldiers had taken part in. In order to help address these issues, this work will engage a body of scholarship about how World War II changed African Americans and their grassroots role in the broader Civil Rights Movement, as
4 Abel A. Bartley, Keeping the Faith: Race, Politics, and Social Development in Jacksonville, Florida, 1940-1970 (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2000), 37. 5 Ibid., 47. Narrowing down Ernest Jackson's specific role in the military has been extremely difficult. There are four black Ernest Jacksons from the Jacksonville area that served in the Army during World War II. Some of these records were destroyed in the 1973 fire at the National Personal Records Center in St. Louis, Missouri. Furthermore, the records that I have received do not appear to be the same Jackson, and I have therefore excluded them from this work. 6 Ibid., 52. 4 well as provide a unique breakdown and analysis of how relevant military skills and training transferred back to civilian life.
Historiography
Given the parameters of this project, it directly relates to two separate historiographies: scholarship on political and social developments in Jacksonville and changing views of the modern Civil Rights Movement.
The city of Jacksonville in Florida provides a unique opportunity as the setting for this study. In the mid twentieth century, Jacksonville was a large Southern city with a substantial
African American population. Furthermore, Jacksonville was both an important industrial production and military site. These aspects do not make Jacksonville anomalous among
Southern cities; it actually makes it more similar. However, where Jacksonville is unique is the limited amount of research that scholars have conducted with it as the focal point. The most prominent and relevant to this study is Abel Bartley's Keeping the Faith: Race. Politics and
Social Development in Jacksonville, Florida, 1940-1970. Dr. Bartley's work examines the political aspect of Jacksonville's civil rights movement from 1940 to 1970, focusing on key individual leaders from within the community. This work offers an in-depth examination of the black activism and at times the white response. Keeping the Faith does an excellent job illustrating the exceptional caliber of leadership within Jacksonville that allowed the black community to continually challenge the existing white power structures. However, Dr. Bartley's area of focus leaves out any substantial discussion of the impact of World War II on
Jacksonville, as well as how the key activists developed into successful leaders.
5
James Crooks is another historian that has written quite extensively about Jacksonville.
His work Jacksonville: The Consolidation Story from Civil Rights to the Jaguars is a thorough political and social examination of the city. Crooks focuses heavily on consolidation, which places the beginning of his work in the 1960s, leaving out any substantial discussion of black
World War II veterans.7
While not traditional scholarly works, Robert Saunders and Rodney Hurst both wrote books about their personal experiences with Civil Rights in Florida. Saunder's Bridging the Gap is his account of working with the NAACP and the struggles that they endured across the state, often at times including Jacksonville.8 Rodney Hurst's It was Never About a Hot Dog and a
Coke is his recollections of the rise of passive resistance tactics in Jacksonville.9 Both of these works are important when considering the study of civil rights in both Florida and Jacksonville, however they both focus on the traditional areas of civil rights activism, underemphasizing the period before 1960 and the role of veterans in Northeast Florida.
Another key work concerning Florida and Civil Rights is Old South, New South, or Down
South: Florida and the Modern Civil Rights Movement. This work is a collection of essays that seeks to re-examine some of the previous notions about the passive nature of Florida's Civil
Rights Movement. It explains that previous scholarship depicted Florida with "moderate exceptionalism" and that "black residents abstained from many of the mass-and direct-action protests found in other southern states."10 These essays focus on different locations across the state, mainly concerning events surrounding Brown v. Board of Education or the Civil Rights
7 James B. Crooks, Jacksonville: The Consolidation Story, from Civil Rights to the Jaguars (Gainesville, FL: University Press of Florida, 2004), 18,22, 24-27, 35-40. 8 Robert Saunders, Bridging the Gap: Continuing the Florida NAACP Legacy of Harry T. Moore, 1952-1966 (Tampa, FL: University of Tampa Press, 2000). 9 Rodney Hurst, It was Never About a Hot Dog and a Coke: : A Personal Account of the 1960 Sit-in Demonstrations in Jacksonville, Florida and Ax Handle Saturday (Livermore, CA: WingSpan Press, 2008). 10 Irwin Winsboro, ed., Old South, New South, or Down South: Florida and the Modern Civil Rights Movement (Morgantown, WV: West Virginia University Press, 2009), 12. 6
Act of 1964 or the Voting Rights act of 1965. The only essays within this work that mention
Jacksonville are by Dr. Bartley and are variations of the work previously mentioned. There is some mention of World War II throughout the essays, but no mention of veterans, even when
Bartley discusses Ernest Jackson, one of the key veterans in this study. Even when seeking to overturn older notions in the field and create a more complete narrative, scholars have overlooked the role of black World War II veterans. Moreover, using Jacksonville as the base for research provides the opportunity to contribute to an understudied field.
As for the second historiographic record that this project intersects, the Civil Rights
Movement is a complicated and influential event in American history; as a result, historians have focused in on it heavily, constantly establishing new veins of scholarship and focus. Any work that seeks to contribute to this field must engage several of these areas. First, there is the issue of periodization. Some scholars argue that the Civil Rights Movement was not merely a ten or twenty year phenomenon, but actually a much longer process, reaching back at least to the first decades of the twentieth century. In her article, "The Long Civil Rights Movement and the
Political Uses of the Past" Jacquelyn Hall explains that by placing the beginning of the Civil
Rights movement in 1954 with the ruling on Brown v. Board of Education, the traditional narrative “ensures the status of the classical phase as a triumphal moment in a larger American progress narrative, yet it undermines its gravitas."11 To rectify this, Hall seeks to place the Civil
Rights Movement as early as the 1930s with the emergence of the New Deal, and lasting well into the 1970s.12 However, in her article, Hall, not only attempts to expand the timeline of the
Civil Rights Movement but also emphasizes that it was a national movement, not just a Southern
11 Jacquelyn Dowd Hall, "The Long Civil Rights Movement and the Political Uses of the Past," The Journal of American History 91, no.4 (March 2005): 1234. 12 Ibid., 1235. 7 issue.13 By expanding the scope of the Civil Rights movement, Hall takes it out of isolation and establishes it as a long-term phenomenon that is not only influenced by other events in this era, but is also an influencing force.
In Defying Dixie: The Radical Roots of Civil Rights, 1919-1950, Glenda Gilmore engages and expands upon Hall's work involving the long Civil Rights Movement. Gilmore is in direct conversation with Hall's work when she states, "By giving the movement a 1950s start, we discount the forces that generated and sustained human rights during the 1930s and 1940s and privilege its religious, middle class, and male roots."14 In her work, Gilmore focuses on the earlier decades of the movement, even expanding Hall's initial timeline from the conclusion of
World War I. Additionally, as the title suggests, Gilmore places the radical aspect of the early
Civil Rights Movement at the center of her study. Gilmore explores the connection between
African Americans and their association with communism and its ideals and argues that in their effort to bring about change, black Southerners looked outside their community for support.
Additionally, communists in America saw race relations in the South as an opportunity to spread their ideology. Many prominent activists even ventured to Russia to experience what a
"raceless" society was like for themselves.15
By exposing a radical element, Gilmore helps create a broader vision of what constituted the movement. While many whites may have loathed an organization like the National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), its moderation became something to tolerate in the face of the Communist alternative.16 Recognizing that the Civil
Rights Movement contained several groups with varying ideologies is an important concept,
13 Ibid., 1234,1239-1240. 14 Glenda Elizabeth Gilmore, Defying Dixie: The Radical Roots of Civil Rights, 1919-1950 (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2008), 9. 15 Ibid., 44,48, 138-141. 16 Ibid., 124,167,258-259. 8 because it helps illustrate Hall's idea that the Civil Rights Movement was not just a brief, intense, and unified movement in the American narrative. This is an extremely important concept, especially when attempting to incorporate World War II veterans into the narrative. They were a specific group of people who utilized specific tactics that differentiated them from those that came before and after them.
Gilmore also adds to the scholarship regarding the opportunities that World War II provided for the advancement of civil rights. First, the events in Germany gave activists something with which to compare black treatment in the American South. One example includes the comparisons activists made between the hate filled speech and motivations of Adolf Hitler and Georgia Governor Eugene Talmadge.17 This type of comparison helped place things in perspective for blacks and whites. This tactic of appealing to America’s broader wars in the name of democracy also created an opportunity to influence more moderate white Southerners.
Additionally, increased federal involvement in war production provided the possibility for activists to demand measures by the government to ensure everybody had an equal chance at employment. Activists succeeded when President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 8802, which prevented racial discrimination in the defense industry. This also led to the establishment of the Fair Employment Practices Commission. While the accomplishments of these measures are debatable, Gilmore argues that the importance is not in their success but in the fact that through them the federal government acknowledged discrimination as an injustice.18
John Dittmer's work Local People: The Struggle for Civil Rights in Mississippi is an excellent example of another method in which scholars can examine the Civil Rights Movement: utilizing social history focused on a specific region to understand the role of average people
17 Ibid., 352. 18 Ibid., 362-363. 9 during the struggle for civil rights. Most importantly, Local People provides valuable insight into the role of grassroots organizations, by focusing on the ground-up development of the movement. In Local People, he argues, "[T]he period beginning with World War II and ending with the Chicago Democratic Convention in 1968 encompasses the most intensive and comprehensive period of grass-roots organization and protest in the state's history; as a result of that campaign, Mississippi experienced more sweeping changes in the area of race relations during those three decades than at any time since the end of the Civil War."19 Dittmer acknowledges the importance and influence of outside forces, such as national headquarters of organizations like the NAACP and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC); however, he argues that the actions of local people and leaders produced lasting results. Dittmer illustrates this best when he discusses the formation of the Council of Federated Organizations
(COFO) by Aaron Henry, an activist who worked his way up the ranks of the local NAACP chapter.20 Often, various protest groups like the SCLC and NAACP were in competition with one another, and could often lead to counterproductive efforts.21 However, it was a local man,
Aaron Henry who was able to create a united and therefore more effective base for action through his establishment of COFO. Furthermore, it was the thousands of local men and women who braved the polls that helped solidify change, not the visiting college students for summer campaigns.
Additionally, Dittmer explores the juxtaposition of efforts to gain access to power at the ballot box versus direct action, i.e. peaceful protest. Throughout his work, Dittmer illustrates that while activists could pursue both strategies together, movement leaders often only had the
19 John Dittmer, Local People: The Struggle for Civil Rights in Mississippi (Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1994), 423. 20 Ibid.,118-119 21 Ibid., 78-79. 10 resources to focus on one or the other, frequently causing divides.22 While Dittmer does not seek to diminish the importance of either of these tactics, he concludes that suffrage efforts were more important because he recognizes that "[t]he major victory of the movement, however, had been the substantial reduction in the use of terror to control the state's black population, a direct result of the black electorate's increasing political influence."23
Dittmer's work predates Hall's article by several years, and as a result is void of any substantial discussion of a longer Civil Rights Movement. Except for a brief discussion concerning the immediate action of returning World War II veterans, Local People takes place entirely after the Brown v. Board of Education case. Additionally, aside from the discussion of the traditional fears of miscegenation, there is little discussion of masculinity and gender roles in
Dittmer's work.
Another important strand in the historiography underlying this project is work that directly frames the events of World War II within the struggle for civil rights. Maggie
Morehouse's work Fighting in the Jim Crow Army: Black Men and Women Remember World
War II is a study of black service members during World War II. Morehouse's work keeps the majority of the discussion framed within the wartime period, and has little discussion tying these events to later pushes. She does not substantially engage with the idea of a long Civil Rights
Movement. Morehouse does, however, try to connect black World War II veterans to the broader Civil Rights Movement when she states near the end of her work, "In the nationwide movement for civil rights and black power, the black veterans of World War II became foot soldiers in the fight for equality."24 While Morehouse is ahead of her time in this assessment, it
22 Ibid., 107-108. 23 Ibid., 426. 24 Maggie M. Morehouse, Fighting in the Jim Crow Army: Black Men and Women Remember World War II (Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2000),207. 11 is more of a sweeping claim that she does little to substantiate. This is where Morehouse has left the discussion open for other scholars.
Nonetheless, Morehouse provides an insightful examination of African Americans’ experiences from the beginning of the conflict to the end, which is useful for this project. In the work, Morehouse crafts the image of the average recruit as not necessarily activists but very much aware of the racial situation.25 Morehouse continues to recreate what training was like for black soldiers, and couples that with government policy concerning black soldiers. Wherever black soldiers went, racial disputes followed.26 Additionally, the author illustrates the political battle to get African Americans to serve in combat and the results of when they finally did. One point that Morehouse makes abundantly clear is that in addition to fighting the Axis powers, black soldiers also had to fight institutional racism and military polices.
The author does continue to examine the post war period for black veterans and the challenges that faced them. Overall, Morehouse establishes the challenges and discrimination that black service members endured during World War II, and that those were experiences that resonated with veterans in the postwar period. Black soldiers returned home to segregation, but had a new sense of pride and purpose.27 Morehouse states that, "Newly acquired skills and life- lessons prepared black veterans for a new life in America."28 However, Morehouse does not adequately explain what those specific skills were and how they aided veterans in their postwar endeavors.
Christopher Parker is one scholar who embraces the challenge of connecting aspects of black veterans' experience in World War II to post-conflict civil rights endeavors. Parker’s
25 Ibid., 6-11. 26 Morehouse, Fighting in the Jim Crow Army, 87-123. 27 Ibid., 196-199, 202. 28 Ibid., 207. 12 work, Fighting for Democracy: Black Veterans and the Struggle Against White Supremacy in the
Postwar South, revolves around the idea that African Americans "fighting on behalf of democracy ultimately resulted in black veterans fighting for democracy."29 Parker outlines several concepts that catalyzed African Americans into action. First, service abroad provided interaction with foreign cultures where many black soldiers experienced equality among whites.
These experiences among foreign whites helped African American servicemen realize that equality was possible, and that the current state of affairs back home was merely a construction.
Second, Parker argues that military service provided financial stability.30 A steady federal paycheck and military benefits placed some black veterans in the position to ascend into the middle and upper classes in the postwar period. Another key point that Parker makes about black veterans is that their service created an attachment to American ideals, which they then saw necessary to fulfill.31 African Americans at the time were just as susceptible to the rhetoric and propaganda that imbued nationalism and pride in the citizenry. The military uniform is the physical embodiment of those ideals and Parker argues that their belief in these ideals motivated them to act when they returned home.32
Parker further explains that when African American soldiers returned they had expected equality, they thought that their service alone might facilitate the process. When they realized that this was not the case, they recognized the fact that they were going to have to actively fight for their equality.33 According to Parker, black veterans were more likely than their civilian counterparts to challenge segregation and vote despite the risk of white retaliation, as well as be
29 Christohper S. Parker, Fighting for Democracy: Black Veterans and the Struggle Against White Supremacy in the Postwar South (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2009),6. 30 Parker, Fighting for Democracy, 71-73, 99. 31 Ibid., 84. 32 Ibid., 40, 193. 33 Ibid., 129-141. 13 engaged in civil rights groups and activities.34 Parker even illustrates that given the opportunity, black veterans were willing to volunteer their children as the ones to push school integration.35
Ultimately, Parker concludes that veterans were much more active in civil rights efforts because of the transformative experience of serving in the military, because of the activist mindset drilled into military personnel as well as their experiences overseas.36 Parker does an exemplary job illustrating the transformation black veterans endured, but like Morehouse fails to explicate the impact of their training and benefits.
Additionally, World War II proved a pivotal event in the concept of black masculinity.
Steve Estes' work I am a Man!: Race, Manhood, and the Civil Rights Movement is an analysis of the changing notions of black masculinity from pre-World War II to the late twentieth century.
When defining manhood, Estes explains that it "entailed an economic, social, and political status ideally achievable by all men. A man was the head of the household: he made enough money to support his family as the primary if not the only breadwinner."37 As outliers of the traditional definition of masculinity, Estes points out that African Americans struggled to obtain these basic rights.
For Estes the service of African Americans during World War II fostered the masculinizing process. While African Americans have served in the United States military in nearly every conflict since the Civil War, World War II saw the largest numbers of black soldiers and the establishment of a large standing Army in which African Americans could continue to take part. While the idea of full citizenship as a reward for military service is not a new concept
34 Ibid., 128-129, 130-131, 152-153. 35 Ibid., 168. 36 Ibid., 196-198. 37 Steve Estes, I Am a Man: Race, Manhood, and the Civil Rights Movement (Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 2005),7. For a more exhaustive study on the origins and identity of American masculinity, see Michael Kimmel's Manhood in America: A Cultural History. While Kimmel's work is not integral to this study, his definitions and concepts of American masculinity (predominately white) are important to understand. This is especially true when trying to place black masculinity within the larger context. 14 in scholarship, Estes does provide a unique analysis of masculinity in war. Estes articulates that in the military "'man' becomes not just a noun but a verb, not just an identity but an action." In this sense, military service helps shape masculine identity.38 When thousands of black men served in the military during World War II, they were able to achieve manhood through an alternate means, and take this home with them in the post war years.
Clearly, scholars have established that African Americans' wartime service had a lasting impact in their postwar lives. However, they have focused primarily on black service members' interactions with locals while abroad and the general military experience. This omits an essential part of the narrative of black World War II veterans. The field currently fails to provide any substantial explication of the importance of black veterans' training and benefits in relation to the
Civil Rights Movement in the years following World War II.
This project aims to contribute to the existing scholarship by connecting the focus on military experience by scholars like Morehouse with the postwar focus of scholars like Parker.
Understanding where and how veterans were able to gain the ability to challenge the existing structures is important. Furthermore, connecting the relevance of these two periods of their lives as a continuous process is important in understanding this phase of the Long Civil Rights
Movement. The decade after World War II saw a drastic increase in activity pushing for civil rights, over a million black veterans returned home not only motivated to instill change, but also armed with the appropriate tools to do so. The goal of this thesis is not to supplant earlier notions of the black veteran experience, but to contribute to them, creating a more comprehensive narrative. The importance of black veterans' service is a complex model interweaving many facets of the struggle for civil rights, with no specific aspect more important than another.
38 Ibid., 12-13. 15
Chapter 2: Setting the Stage
"Before you joined the Army you were a member of a family of closely related individuals who had many things in common. The members of your family shared the same dining room, the same bathroom, and the same amusements around the house. All worked together, played together, read the same newspaper, and were largely dependent upon each other for comforts, pleasures, and a living." Basic Field Manual: Soldier’s Handbook, 194139
In the years leading up to World War II, Jacksonville was a prominent city in Florida.
Like any other Southern city, segregation was an established and enforced aspect of daily life.
White violence against individual African Americans, or black communities occurred across the state when black activists attempted to change the status quo. However, despite these circumstances, Jacksonville's various black communities blossomed. African Americans established their own businesses and a thriving cultural that resulted in a rather prosperous community. Fears of white repression resonated with black communities, but Jacksonville's
African American community was not completely complacent. Jacksonville's high percentage of
African Americans and the economic success of many of its members necessitate that the white city leadership enter into a limited give and take relationship with them. This relationship revolved around the more prominent members of the black community gaining certain incentives as long as they did not upset the power dynamic.
When its men were away fighting and undergoing their transformative process during
World War II, so too was Jacksonville. The changing mechanizing dynamic within the military placed increased industrial production demands on U.S. cities, Jacksonville included. The
39 Basic Field Manual: Soldier's Handbook, FM 21-100 (Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office, 1941),1. 16 constant shortage of manpower helped facilitate a broader incorporation of African Americans into the workforce. Furthermore, the desire for maximized war production necessitated that the
United States federal government take an increased role in the monitoring of war production through organizations like the FEPC and the War Manpower Commission. Black workers in
Jacksonville had increasing avenues to express their grievances for racial issues in the workplace. During the years of World War II, Jacksonville became a different environment and in many ways was primed for the newly invigorated leaders who would return from the conflict.
This project will refer to the city of Jacksonville quite often and therefore it is important to discuss what Jacksonville was. The Jacksonville landscape looked very different in the early twentieth century both on paper and in reality than it does presently. Jacksonville did not consolidate until 1968, giving it the present borders and composition. Before 1968 Jacksonville was a loosely knit collection of neighborhoods, many of which had their own identity, usually with a racial component. There were several prominent black neighborhoods in the area. The first is Durkeeville, an early Federal Housing project that is best defined by the area west of I-95, north of Kings Road, south of 13th Street, and approximately east of Whitner.40 LaVilla was a black cultural hub situated directly west of downtown, but east of Interstate 95. Another predominately black neighborhood was Brooklyn, an area just south of LaVilla, along the river, now nestled in by Interstate 95. The last area is a collection of small neighborhoods referred to as Eastside. Eastside does not refer to its orientation to the St. Johns River, which is usually the case in Jacksonville, but its positioning in reference to downtown. Eastside is the general area
40 Durkeeville Historical Society, Map of Durkeeville, http://durkeevillehistoricalsociety.com/images/aerial-L.jpg, accessed March 2, 2015. 17 east of downtown to where the St. Johns River turns north.41 Many of these areas are located in what is now considered the old city or downtown area. While some of these neighborhoods now go by different names, or have since been grouped together, this project will refer to them the way the people from the era did. While numerous neighborhoods were popping up further out in the Westside and Southside, they were still detached from the main Jacksonville political body.
On the eve of World War II, Jacksonville was a prominent port city in the Southeast. In
1940, the city boasted a population of 173,065 people and tens of thousands more just outside the city limits.42 Of that number, approximately 35.7% were African American the highest concentration of African Americans in the entire state of Florida.43
In 1940, Jacksonville's black population had a slightly higher representation in the work force than their position in the overall population, but they were underrepresented in the professional sectors. In addition, African Americans established their own businesses and services. In 1945, black residents in Jacksonville owned 590 enterprises. These businesses included, among other things, sixty groceries, twelve wood yards, fifty-seven cafes, and ten hotels.44 Local black residents created and owned whatever businesses they needed to in order to serve their segregated communities. While certain career paths may not have been as accessible to African Americans, they could gain economic security and prosperity by servicing their community.
41 Wayne W. Wood, Jacksonville's Architectural Heritage: Landmarks for the Future (Jacksonville, FL: University of North Florida Press, 1989), 89, 107, 221. It is important to point out that like other cities across the United States, when it came time to plot the path of major highways and interchanges, African American communities were often the ones selected to have the roadways run through them. 42 Survey Committee of the Council of Social Agencies, Jacksonville Looks at its Negro Community: A Survey of Conditions Affecting the Negro Population in Jacksonville and Duval County, Florida (Jacksonville, FL: Published under the auspices of the Council of Jacksonville, 1946), 1. 43Ibid; Bartley, Keeping the Faith, 43-44. 44 Survey Committee of the Council of Social Agencies, Jacksonville Looks at its Negro Community: A Survey of Conditions Affecting the Negro Population in Jacksonville and Duval County, Florida (Jacksonville, FL: Published under the auspices of the Council of Jacksonville, 1946), 61-62, 67-68. 18
Like many cities and communities across the South in the interwar years, the civil rights fight for African Americans had lost momentum in Jacksonville after the end of Federal
Reconstruction. Through decades of political and societal domination, white Southerners managed to promote a sense of apathy in the African American community. Many African
Americans reached the point where they saw fighting the system head on as potentially more harmful than just living with the status quo.45 There were numerous violent incidents across
Florida from the end of World War I into the 1920s in response to African American efforts to exercise their right to vote, including African Americans lynched in Polk County and
Macclenny. The most notable incident occurred at Ocoee where blacks who were attempting to vote were greeted by a white mob. The mob killed numerous people and the burned down approximately twenty buildings.46 As these examples illustrate, actively resisting segregation and other Southern social mores could often result in violent retaliation. Despite the presence of civil rights organizations in cities like Jacksonville, they lacked the popular support necessary to make dramatic headway. Those who lived through the post Reconstruction era were especially tired of fighting after suffering decades of disappointment and defeat.47 Florida chapters of the
NAACP saw membership numbers either drop or stagnate in the early twentieth century with black activists turning their attention to more passive local based biracial organizations like the
Urban League.48
Because many African Americans were willing to live with the status quo rather than risk any retrogression of their condition, Jacksonville’s large African American population lived in a
45 Parker, Fighting for Democracy,145; Robert W. Saunders Sr., Bridging the Gap: Continuing the Florida NAACP Legacy of Harry T. Moore (Tampa, FL: University of Tampa Press, 2000), 12. 46 Saunders, Bridging the Gap, 10-14. 47 Parker, Fighting for Democracy,148-149. 48 Saunders, Bridging the Gap, 13. 19 somewhat harmonious existence with their white counterparts.49 Because they were over a third of the population, African Americans’ demographic weight made it necessary for the white community to enter into a give and take relationship with them, but one in which African
Americans deemed it prudent not to push for too much political power. This continued preference for a harmonious relationship based on give and take was most evident in Wilson
Armstrong’s attempt to become a city council representative. This occurred shortly after the end of World War II and was the first election after the elimination of the all white primary in 1947.
Despite running in a black majority district, the local African American population chose not to endorse Armstrong, who was a high school dropout and a construction worker who many black leaders from the older generation thought would not have a palatable image for the white community.50 The district five community recognized that the first black elected official could not just be any person, they had to be the best possible candidate. Some individuals even feared repercussions from the white community if they elected someone like Armstrong.51 In this election and in deference to the existing, less confrontational style of improvement, the African
American community chose to endorse a white candidate to achieve the end goal that they desired—a community pool.52 The black community in Jacksonville knew that they may not have the strength to topple the system at hand, but they could negotiate for things they wanted.
In this respect, Jacksonville was similar to other major urban centers across the South.
Coalitions between blacks and whites for political purposes formed in Atlanta, for example.53
Just as in Jacksonville, the elite members of the black community in Atlanta were responsible for
49 Alphonso Bartley, "Jacksonville: The Critical Years. A Political History of the African American Community in Jacksonville, Florida, 1940-1978" (PhD diss., Florida State University, 1994), 9-10. 50 Bartley, Keeping the Faith ,30,47. 51 Ibid., 33. 52 Bartley, Keeping the Faith, 29-33. 53 Kevin M. Kruse, White Flight: Atlanta and the Making of Modern Conservatism (Princeton, NJ; Princeton University Press, 2005),20,32-41. 20 this partnership and controlled its endeavors.54 One key example of this relationship in Atlanta was the 1953 elections. Mayor William Hartsfield was seeking re-election and was faced with potentially losing the black vote, possibly costing him the election. Hartsfield strategically endorsed Dr. Rufus Clement, a black candidate, for a spot on the board of education. Clement won the election, securing an important position and representation for the black community, and the black community continued to support Mayor Hartsfield.55
The fact that both Jacksonville and Atlanta had such substantial black populations allowed them to enter into a quid pro quo relationship with the white community. The leadership in both cities was organized and very competitive, ensuring the most capable people rose to prominent positions. Both cities also saw a conflict between the older generation's conservative approach, and the more militant and aggressive approach of the younger generation.56 While the
1947 political compromise was completed shortly after the end of World War II, it was indicative of the more complacent tactics used by Jacksonville’s African American community before the returning veterans made their mark on the local civil rights movement.57
Returning more fully to the period directly preceding World War II, while the attack on
Pearl Harbor may have come as a surprise to the American public, the United States had been preparing for war by sending tons of war materiel to its allies and expanding its military forces.
With the Protective Mobilization Plan of 1937, a result of Japanese hostilities in the Pacific, the
54 Ibid., 28-30,37. 55 Kruse, White Flight, 38-40. 56 Gerald A. McWorter and Robert L. Crain, "Subcommunity Gladitorial Competition: Civil Rights Leadership as a Competitive Process," Social Forces 46, no.1 (September 1967):13-14. 57 Additionally, when African Americans did join the military, it seems their non-confrontational attitudes towards race relations carried over. The average African American soldier did not actively oppose segregation, and in fact, in a survey conducted by the Army the majority of black soldiers were either indifferent or favored segregation over integration. Morehouse points out that“[w]hen the army asked thirteen thousand soldiers whether ‘white and Negro soldiers should be in separate outfits,’ only 36 percent of black respondents, and 12 percent of white respondents, answered that blacks and white should be in the same units. Thirty-eight percent of blacks said they wanted to be in separate units, and 26 percent registered indifference.” While this may have been the general attitude when these men joined, their experiences and training would change this. Black veterans would be the leaders in a renewed charge for equality. Morehouse, Fighting in the Jim Crow Army, 10-11. 21
U.S. government already had put into motion military reorganization and mobilization. While the United States may have been concerned about growing tensions in Europe, they saw
Japanese expansion and aggression as a direct threat to their overseas interests.58 Growth in troop strength, for example, was significant before the United States joined the war in a direct combat capacity. At the onset of hostilities in Europe, the United States military contained
334,473 personnel and by 1941, that number had risen to 1,801,101, an increase of over five hundred percent. By the end of the conflict in 1945, there were 12,209,238 personnel in the
United States military.59
Jacksonville's established reputation as a port city helped propel it straight into the war effort. Jacksonville was an important hub for naval forces, and it was also an important center for ship production. Just like many other cities across the United States, the war dominated every aspect of life. An increased military presence and the all-consuming desire for increased war production forever changed Jacksonville.
Even before the United States officially entered the war, Jacksonville’s rail lines and port made the city a debarkation point for vital lend-lease supplies for allies. The importance of contributing to the lend-lease program cannot be overstated. The Lend-Lease Act of 1941 was a broad program with different aspects "necessary to promote the defense of the United States."60
It predated the United States' declaration of war, and was the dominant contribution of the
United States in that period, as well as the first years after America officially entered the conflict.
The United States' priorities fell with its longtime ally Great Britain, especially after the fall of
58 Maurice Matloff, ed. World War II: A Concise Military History of America's All-Out, Two-Front War ( New York: David McKay Company, 1980),12-15. 59 The National World War II Museum, "By the Numbers: The U.S. Military," http://www.nationalww2museum.org/learn/education/for-students/ww2-history/ww2-by-the-numbers/us- military.html (accessed September 2, 2014). 60 Transcription of Lend-Lease Act, March 1941, http://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?doc=71&page=transcript, accessed February 05, 2015. 22
France to German forces. Ensuring that the United Kingdom could remain in the fight against the Third Reich in Europe was of vital importance.61 While Britain was one of the early primary allies demanding supplies, after June 1941, when the Germans declared war on the Soviet Union,
Soviet demands grew as well and became an increasing priority for lend-lease.62
While it may seem that the United States could send supplies from ports on either coast to aid the Soviet Union, this was not necessarily the case. The most suitable means to send supplies to the Soviet Union was from the East coast given port access and proximity to the actual fighting. While the most efficient ports to send supplies from were in the Northeast given the polar route, specifically Boston, this was not always an option. The increasing demands of their own military and the supply demands of their allies ensured that every East coast port capable of supporting large shipping vessels was of extreme importance.63 By early 1943, hundreds of rail containers loaded with war material were leaving Jacksonville on each convoy.64 Jacksonville's port not only aided in the endeavors of the United States' military efforts, but that of its allies as well.
Jacksonville also helped fill an important role in the growing demand for the increasingly mechanized military. As a port city, it had numerous civilian facilities that the defense industry could easily adapt to military production. The Gibbs Gas Engine Company and the Duval
Vocational School fell under the umbrella of contributors to the defense industry. Producing naval vessels, however, was the primary focus of Jacksonville industries. The Merrill Stevens
61 Edward R. Stettinius Jr., Lend-Lease: Weapon for Victory (New York: Macmillan Company, 1944), 42, 44,57. 62 Stettinius, Lend-Lease, 204-206. Arguably, the United States' most significant contribution to the European Theater of Operations was not the millions of soldiers that it sent, but the supplies that it provided to the Soviet Union. 63 Stettinius, Lend Lease, 203-204. 64 Memorandum: Port Conditions at Jacksonville, FL, Lend-Lease Movement, to Mr. J.M. hood, From J.P. Imlay, February 6, 1943, RG 219, Box 61, File Jacksonville Fl; Memorandum: Port Conditions at Jacksonville, FL, Lend- Lease Movement, to Mr. J.M. hood, From J.P. Imlay, June 12, 1943, RG 219, Box 61, File Jacksonville Fl, National Archives at Morrow, GA. 23
Dry Dock & Repair Company, The St. Johns River Ship Building Company, The Eastport
Marine Company, and the Huckins Yacht Corporation were all key naval facilities that contributed to the defense industry, with the St. Johns River Ship Building Company being the largest operation. The local companies produced a wide variety of vessels ranging from barges, to small combat craft, and of course Liberty ships.65 Liberty ships were an important craft intended for shipping and transportation. Their versatile design allowed them to be configured to handle any cargo including resources, materiel, and even personnel. These ships were vital for the transportation off goods and personnel for every Allied nation in both theaters.66
The goal of supplying more and more naval vessels led to a dramatic increase in labor demands in Jacksonville. In March of 1942, the manufacturing district in Jacksonville employed
5,897 personnel, the transportation sector 6,255, and the government 2,563. By March of 1943, the number of defense industry employees significantly increased. The manufacturing workforce now totaled 18, 287, transportation rose to 8,058, and government positions employed 4,480 personnel. While all areas saw an increase in jobs, the manufacturing sector dwarfs the others in comparison, with a three-fold increase in twelve months. Furthermore, of the 18, 287 personnel working in the manufacturing sector, 14,417 were in positions associated with shipbuilding or repair.67 The war effort was making demands on communities across the country and
Jacksonville was in the position to aid in the area of ship production.
In March of 1943, the defense industry was demanding 30,825 personnel from
Jacksonville for the war effort, a city that only contained 173,065 people three years earlier.
65 Labor Markets Developments Report, April 15, 1943, RG 211 Series 12 Box 5, File 1, National Archives at Morrow, GA, pages 1-6. Every labor report in the file corroborates this information. 66 Peter Elphick, Liberty: The Ships that Won the War (Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 2001), 17. The author of this work argues that the war could not have been won without the incorporation of the Liberty ship. These ships allowed the mass transportation of goods and personnel necessary to secure victory. 67 Labor Markets Developments Report, April 15, 1943, RG 211 Series 12 Box 5, File 1, National Archives at Morrow, GA, page 4. 24
Therefore, the number of needed personnel represented more than fifteen percent of the total population, a staggering number. And, the defense industry's needs did not stop there.
Increasing demands for war materiel had the defense industry continuously looking forward, so that by April 1943 they predicted that by June of that year they would need an additional seven thousand laborers.68 However, when the June 1943 labor report came out, there was an increase of only 31,188 as of May 1, well behind the target goal. The earlier demand estimations were not an exaggeration, and the labor board again estimated that they would need at least seven thousand additional workers by August of that year and a total of around fourteen thousand more workers by May of 1944. Authorities figured that there would be approximately 3,375 workers available by August first of the desired 7,462, a shortage of 4,585 personnel—in the best employment case scenario.69 All of these employment needs were driven by the fact that naval production and repair benchmarks were not being met because of the lack of personnel. In one period, four naval vessels were not completed according to schedule as well as an undisclosed number of ship and aircraft repairs. All of these missed deadlines were blamed on a lack of personnel.70 Jacksonville's problems mirrored the rest of the country's issues with wartime production. Nationally, production centers were struggling to meet labor demands, especially in the skilled and semi-skilled positions.71
One difficult aspect of increasing the amount of personnel in the necessary fields was the constant draw of military aged men into the armed services. Luckily, this was one somewhat predictable factor that officials could factor into their labor reports and hope to compensate for.
68 Labor Markets Developments Report, April 15, 1943, RG 211 Series 12 Box 5, File 1, National Archives at Morrow, GA, page 4, 6-9. 69 Labor Markets Developments Report, June 15, 1943, RG 211 Series 12 Box 5, File 2, National Archives at Morrow, GA, page 1-7. 70 Letter to Mr. Dillard Lassiter, Regional Director of War Manpower Commission from R.A. Rasco, State Director, RG 211 Series 12 Box 15 file Labor demand and supply reports State of Florida, National Archives at Morrow, GA. 71 War Manpower Report for Jacksonville, Florida, October 6, 1942, RG 211 Series 12 Box 15 file: Labor and demand supply reports misc Jacksonville, National Archives at Morrow, GA, page 1. 25
In addition to completely voluntary enlistments, the draft was pulling men away from the production lines at a steady rate. The Selective Service Act compelled many men into service during World War II. One scholar estimates that approximately ten million men entered military service because of the draft.72
Interestingly, the draft affected white and black men differently. Despite the widespread use of the draft, it often denied entry to black men. While black men were consistently selected, review by local draft boards often found them unfit for service. This phenomenon was not unique to the South; Northern draft review boards displayed racist attitudes as well, evidence that concerns over African Americans serving were not unique to the American South.73
The constant demand for labor forced the War Manpower Commission to recruit workers from outside the production centers, and Jacksonville was not any different.74 In the summer of
1943 when the city and surrounding area were unable to meet labor demands, local authorities began recruiting workers from across the state. Labor officials looked to bring in both men and women, black and white. In the first two weeks of July, the recruitment effort managed to bring in over a thousand white works and three hundred black workers from across Florida.
Recruitment continued throughout the state for months, with yet another re-evaluation and call for more outside laborers the following October. Jacksonville looked as far as three hundred
72 George Q. Flynn, The Draft, 1940-1973 (Lawrence, KS: University of Kansas Press, 1993), 53. This number includes men who were called to draft, but opted to enlist instead as well as men found unfit for service. 73 Flynn, The Draft, 42-44. 74 President Roosevelt created the War Manpower Commission with Executive Order 9139 on April 12, 1942. This commission was made of representatives from the Departments of War, Navy, Agricultural, Labor, as well as other commissions created during the era concerned with war production. The goal of this organization was to "Formulate plans and programs and establish basic national policies to assure the most effective mobilization and maximum utilization of the Nation's manpower in the prosecution of the war; and issue such policy and operating directives as may be necessary thereto." By creating an organization that communicated with, and worked with representatives from all facets concerned with production for the war, it allowed the United States to prioritize production and eliminate as much waste as possible. Furthermore, it ensured that taking workers away from one area of production did not drastically weaken the United States ability to fight a sustained war. For full information, see “Executive Order 9139: Establishing the War Manpower Commission in the Executive Office of the President and Transferring and Coordinating Certain Functions To Facilitate the Mobilization and Utilization of Manpower,” President Franklin Roosevelt, April 12, 1942, accessed through http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=16248. 26 miles away to Southern Florida to help meet the requirements to maximize its production potential. In fact, the continual increase of people going into the city necessitated a coordinated effort to construct new housing. The city created seven hundred new housing units to help meet these demands in 1943.75 Across the entire country, labor pools diminished and production centers had to reach further and further to meet demands.
However, just as racist mindsets permeated through local draft boards, they were also present in labor evaluation, especially when considering the recruitment of outside workers. As one official memorandum notes, "As far as the use of Negro in-migrants is concerned there is this to be said. The Negro is going to go where the easiest, quickest, and 'mostest' money can be made."76 While this attitude may have been pervasive, especially at the local levels, labor officials responsible for ensuring production rates stressed the importance of black labor. After following up on a labor recruitment effort, one federal report found that numerous black workers who had agreed to transfer and work on essential war effort production changed their mind after coordinating officials told them their transportation costs would no longer be compensated. As an official memorandum to the regional director stated "Activities of this nature probably come under disrupting influences in the labor market. Negro labor is badly needed in legitimate essential war production jobs all over the state and in this vicinity. This sort of activity does not help the war program."77
75 Report on In-migration, Jacksonville Office, July 15, 1943, RG 211 Series 12 Box 15 file: Labor and demand supply reports misc Jacksonville page 1; Memorandum, In-migration Jacksonville, Florida, Labor Market Area, October 23, 1943, RG 211 Series 12 Box 15 file: Labor and demand supply reports misc Jacksonville, pages 1; Inter Office Communication, from L.S. Rickard, director of Florida, to B.F. Ashe, regional director, War Manpower Commission, , RG 211 Series 12 Box 15 file: Labor and demand supply reports misc Jacksonville, National Archives at Morrow, GA, 1-2. 76 Memorandum, In-migration Jacksonville, Florida, Labor Market Area, October 23, 1943, RG 211 Series 12 Box 15 file: Labor and demand supply reports misc Jacksonville, National Archives at Morrow, GA, pages 1. 77 Official Memorandum, December 4, 1943, from H.E. Spaulding, Chief Reports and Analysis Unit, to Mr. Dillard Lassiter Regional Director, RG 211 Series 12 Box 15 file Labor & Demand Supply Reports State of Florida, National Archives at Morrow, GA, 1-3. 27
In order to ensure that production for the war effort was operating in the most efficient way possible, the federal government had to get involved in local concerns through the War
Manpower Commission. The federal government extended its influence into the war effort by other means as well. On June 25th, 1941 President Franklin signed Executive Order 8802 with the intention "to provide for the full and equitable participation of all workers in defense industries, without discrimination because of race, creed, color, or national origin."78 Ensuring that the United States was producing materiel at peak levels was a primary concern for the federal government, and Roosevelt recognized this could not happen without the proper inclusion of all of its population. The most important aspect of Executive Order 8802 was the establishment of the Committee on Fair Employment Practice (FEPC). The members of this committee were directly appointed by the president and they were given power to "receive and investigate complaints of discrimination in violation of the provisions of this order and shall take appropriate steps to redress grievances which it finds to be valid."79 While somewhat vague in the wording of how the organization would enforce their power, the FEPC represented an important step in the evolving relationship between black workers and the federal government.
The FEPC opened a dialogue for black workers to express their grievances, outside of local frameworks governed by potentially racist or tainted officials. Furthermore, the FEPC was not just a distant faceless organization that individuals sent letters, Executive Order 8802 gave them the power and authority to travel to various sites in an effort to follow up with complaints and
78 Executive Order 8802: Prohibition of Discrimination in the Defense Industry, President Franklin Roosevelt, June 25th, 1941 accessed through http://www.ourdocuments.gov/, page 1. William O' Neal points out that Executive Order 8802 and the incorporation of African Americans into the defense industry was instrumental in the changing atmosphere. William L. O'Neill, American High: The Years of Confidence 1945-1960 (New York: The Free Press, 1986), 246. 79 Executive Order 8802: Prohibition of Discrimination in the Defense Industry, President Franklin Roosevelt, June 25th, 1941 accessed through http://www.ourdocuments.gov/, page 2. 28 attempt to force employers to rectify the situation.80 Few if any employers were likely to lose lucrative government production contracts because of their inability to incorporate the local
African American work force.
In addition to the FEPC, the United States Government utilized the United States
Employment Services (USES), an organization meant to help facilitate employment opportunities. While this organization had existed for quite some time, the increased labor demands of World War II helped elevate its importance and stature. Local USES branches were supposed to place job postings that anyone could access. Segregation in the American South necessitated that there were two USES offices in cities, including Jacksonville. These dual offices in Jacksonville led to complaints with the FEPC that made their way all the way up to the regional director. As one brief but evocative reference of a complaint reads:
Complaint- alleged failure of Jacksonville local office to have addresses of both the white and colored offices inserted in advertisements for recruiting through USES. Further, that the Jacksonville office is not giving Negroes equal opportunity for referral to and employment in all classifications of jobs. Correspondence now being had with USES in Florida. Case remains open.81
Local black laborers were concerned that local USES officials were using the separate offices as an opportunity to disseminate work opportunities in a manner that was more favorable to local whites.
Officials deemed many of the complaints sent to the regional director during this time as frivolous or unfounded; however, the case with the local USES offices in Jacksonville proved to
80 Ibid., pages 1-2. 81 Memorandum from W.B. Klugh, Regional Chief of Placement to Mr. Dillard B. Lasseter, Regional Director, July 20, 1944, RG 211 Series 20 Box 1 File 1: Reports, National Archives at Morrow, GA, page 7. This specific complaints code was 7-GR-320 and was initially opened on June 10, 1944. 29 have some merit, drawing a substantial inquiry and investigation.82 The investigation found that the local USES official had violated the WMC-FEPC Agreement by not listing both addresses in their announcements. Furthermore, the report noted that the local USES offices were refraining from recommending local African Americans for skilled labor positions, a problem that was evidenced by a lack of paper work. The Merrill-Stevens company even complained to the investigator that the black USES office would avoid sending African Americans to skilled labor positions despite the company's requests. The regional director advised the investigator to stay in Jacksonville and ensure these shortcomings were rectified.83 Clearly local white officials and business resisted the idea of allowing black laborers to work in the coveted skilled positions even when demand necessitated. The federal government's interest in war production and efficiency created an outlet by which black Jacksonville residents could appeal to when they felt their rights were threatened.
In addition to general complaints lobbied against the African American USES branch, some individuals found satisfaction in their appeals to the FEPC. It seems that sometimes the mere initial stages of submitting a complaint to the FEPC was enough to begin the process of change. In April of 1944, the regional Chief of Operations expressed an interest in examining two separate complaints concerning the Duval County Vocational Training School. Both complaints, however, had already received a satisfactory adjustment before he could delegate
82 Memorandum from W.B. Klugh, Regional Chief of Placement to Mr. Dillard B. Lasseter, Regional Director, September 15, 1944, RG 211 Series 20 Box 1 File 1: Reports, National Archives at Morrow, GA, page.1. 83 Memorandum concerning Florida FEPC cases, From Dillard B Lasseter, Region Director, to Mr. R.A. Rasco, State Manpower Director, February 17, 1945, RG 211 Series 20 Box 2 Folder 22: USES 7-GR-320, National Archives at Morrow, GA. This source is a compilation of many of the earlier referenced documents including commentary notes and correspondence, it spans thirty-seven pages. 30 any specific action.84 The FEPC had enough weight and authority behind it to prompt employers and agencies to rectify situations before an official in-depth FEPC investigation occurred.
Furthermore, when cases were not quickly resolved at the local level, they simply did not disappear; they stayed on the rolls until the FEPC could act on them. Julius Trimmings filed a complaint in 1944 against the local black USES office in Jacksonville. Trimmings claimed that the office denied him a referral to work for the St. Johns River Ship Building Company as a welder because he was black.85 While officials sorted through the issue with the USES office they contacted Mr. Trimmings, giving him a letter that he could take to another office that would grant him the necessary referral. As a welder, Trimmings was considered to have an essential skill that must be utilized in an essential industry.86 While they conducted their investigation, the
War Manpower Commission ensured that Mr. Trimmings was working as a welder somewhere in the area. While Mr. Trimmings' complaint helped secure him a skilled labor position, it also falls within the period of complaints that prompted the FEPC to conduct an investigation of the local black USES Office. It appears that his appeal to the FEPC not only aided him personally but helped the entire community by drawing attention to inequalities.
The FEPC was not simply a symbolic authority created to help appease the complaints of activists. The FEPC had teeth, and more importantly, it used them. While not every grievance filed with the FEPC saw direct action, the organization did pursue enough specific incidents that a mere threat of involvement was enough for employers and other organizations to rectify inadequate situations. Just as important though is that local African Americans had opened a
84 Office Memorandum concerning Closed Cases from Mr. A Bruce Hunt, Regional Director FEPC to Mr. Frank A. Constangy, Regional Chief of Operations, WMC, April 26, 1944, RG 211 Series 20 Box 1 File 1:Reports, National Archives at Morrow, GA. 85 Memorandum concerning FEPC-WMC Operations from W.B. Klugh, Regional Chief of Placement, to Mr. Dillard B. Lasseter, Regional Director, September 15, 1944, RG 211 Series 20 Box 1 File1: Reports, National Archives at Morrow, GA, page 13. 86 Letter to Mr. Julius Trimmings from Floyd M. Jameison, Manager, December 1, 1944, RG 211 Series 20 Box 3 File 47: 7-GR-441, National Archives at Morrow, GA. 31 dialogue with a federal-level organization that could supersede local-level authorities. While the
FEPC may have deemed many of the cases unfounded or helped employers reach some sort of compromise, the fact remains that black workers in Jacksonville were not happy with the status quo. African Americans in Jacksonville were expressing their discontent, and subsequently were exploring options to try and rectify their situation.
With the changing dynamics of the African American workforce and national changes in federal employment practices, the economic landscape started to shift for Jacksonville's black community. The continuous increasing demand for war material did not permit employers to simply slow production to prevent the hiring of black workers, providing new opportunities for
African Americans. The economic repercussions were noticeable as early as April 1943 in the
Labor Market report. The increased positions in manufacturing allowed many African
Americans to move from domestic service positions into non-war and war industry positions.
These positions clearly compensated black workers significantly better, because this time saw a rise in black women leaving the "labor market because of lack of financial necessity to work."87
In fact, the labor market report claims that there was a shortage of black workers in Jacksonville, and that as a result "this group" has seen the highest pay increase of any demographic. The reports even complained that portions of Jacksonville's black population refused to work or take low paying positions.88 From this evidence, it appears that Jacksonville's black population recognized their improved position in the labor market. Their labor was not merely wanted but needed, and that gave them options and leverage when considering the amount of compensation that they would accept for their work. Jacksonville's black population was starting to climb the economic ladder.
87 Labor Markets Developments Report, April 15, 1943, RG 211 Series 12 Box 5, File 1, National Archives at Morrow, GA, page 22. 88 Ibid. 32
Jacksonville had always been an important port city in Florida. The years leading up to
World War II saw black communities across the state slow their civil rights activities. Economic hardship and violent reactions by white communities made it risky and difficult for many African
Americans to take up activism. However, where Jacksonville did differ from the rest of the state was that it did have a rather high proportion of African Americans, giving them some limited negotiation power in local politics. Although like in other Southern communities with similar dynamics, it was usually black elites who benefitted most from this relationship.
The outset of World War II brought new attention and focus to the city of Jacksonville.
War production and then war fighting became a focus for federal and local officials. This meant cities and communities had to not only send many of their young men to fight, but also had to find the labor to build the guns, ships, planes, and munitions they would need to fight.
Jacksonville fit into this equation by building naval vessels. The demand for these vessels was so high that the city had to constantly draw in people from the surrounding areas as well as incorporate African Americans into the work force in ways that they had previously avoided.
Jacksonville's black community benefitted immensely from the opportunities that World
War II provided. African Americans were the group that gained the most from the increasing economic opportunities that the war effort provided. Furthermore, Executive Order 8802 attempted to end discrimination in the defense industry and government positions, and it created organizations that helped enforce this new policy— all for the purpose of ensuring the highest level of efficiency in war production. Black workers in Jacksonville used this outlet to express their discontent with the racial situation.
33
When Jacksonville's veterans returned home, it would be to a different environment. The continually increasing industrial production within the city drew African Americans from across the region to Jacksonville. The labor shortage permitted local African Americans to move into work positions that may not have otherwise been open to them. These increased opportunities led to an overall increase in the economic position of Jacksonville's black community.
Jacksonville's black veterans were returning to a community that was primed for the leadership that they would be able to provide.
34
Chapter 3: Fighting the War
"In the transition from civil life to the life of a soldier you may, at first, feel somewhat confused. It is the purpose of this handbook to help you over these rough spots as rapidly as possible and to lay the foundations for your successful career as a soldier." Basic Field Manual: Soldier’s Handbook, 194189
Many of Jacksonville's young men, both black and white represented their country in the various uniforms of the armed services. The United States military was undergoing a monumental shift because of the mechanizing and technological changes taking place. All branches of the United States military saw an increasing number of its members filling various support roles instead of combat. The increasing use of materiel like tanks, planes, and radios required specific training and skills. Furthermore, this equipment required entire teams of soldiers dedicated to its maintenance and supply chain. These specialized positions provided invaluable skills in black veterans' postwar endeavors.
In addition to the skills that these men were developing while in the service, they also experienced life in foreign countries. In many of the overseas locations where they served, local customs did not necessarily include racial segregation. This resulted in black soldiers experiencing certain levels of equality when interacting with foreign nationals. However, black soldiers were still serving in a segregated military, highlighting the contradictions of their military service. Both black and white soldiers were aware of the importance of these overseas
89 Basic Field Manual: Soldier's Handbook, FM 21-100 (Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office, 1941), III. Some of the material within this chapter draws heavily from my undergraduate honors thesis, "Jacksonville's Greatest Generation: The Contribution of African American Veterans to the Civil Rights Movement, 1945-1960." That original project was submitted to the UNF Digital Commons in August of 2012. 35 interactions and the implications it would have when they returned home. Just as the city of
Jacksonville transformed during World War II, Jacksonville’s African American service members also changed because of the training they received and the foreign cultures they experienced.
In gearing up to fight and then fighting World War II, every branch of the military underwent fundamental structural shifts. Technological strides over the previous several decades forced the United States military to turn its focus away from the typical infantry soldier. As manuals at the time explained "[i]nfantry is charged with the principal mission in combat. It is the basic arm; the missions of the other arms derived from their ability to contribute to the execution of the infantry mission."90 But a man on foot was no longer efficient or powerful enough to seize objectives, and so the military was rapidly mechanizing, creating ever-thicker layers of bureaucracy and organization above the combat soldier. In the modern military, there is the infantry and then there is everyone else; during World War II, the number of everyone else was growing.
As one example of mechanization, new methods of transportation and assault through combustion-powered vehicles increasingly became the standard. Nothing illustrates this better than the number of aircraft utilized by the United States. In 1940, the United States claimed only
3,807 military purposed aircraft, but by 1945 it boasted 299,293.91 The air was not the only realm conquered by military innovation; ground warfare experienced a complete shift in tactics and mobility with the widespread use of the tank. Between the end of the First World War and
90 Infantry Field Manual: Organization and Tactics of Infantry; The Rifle Battalion, FM 7-5 (Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office, 1940), 19. 91 Wesley Frank Craven and James Lea Cate, eds., The Army Air Forces in World War II, vol. 6 of Men and Planes (Washington, D.C.: Office of Air Force History, 1983), 352. 36
1933 the United States had only produced 33 tanks, but by 1945 had manufactured a total of
88,430.92 While both of these technologies saw use in World War I, they were extremely limited and only in their infancy. They only became two dominant prongs of military campaigns in
World War II. The increasing demand for sophisticated weapons and vehicles placed unique demands on the soldiers as well as the production centers throughout the United States.
This mechanizing shift had serious repercussions for the structure of the military. These new vehicles presented a series of problems for the military. First, they required extensive training to operate and maintain. The military had to create completely new positions with specific training to keep the mechanized war machine on the move: operators, mechanics, fuelers and munitions specialists, to name a few. Furthermore, providing the resources necessary to keep these vehicles on the move mandated a complex transportation network and an increase in the supply branches of the various arms of the military. World War II saw some of the largest armies ever fielded, partially because now for every man in a combat arms position, there were several more in support. By the end of World War II, only 24.1 percent of the personnel employed by the Department of Defense were directly associated with ground combat operations
(infantry, tankers, scouts, and artilleryman). In fact, the United States Army, the branch most associated with traditional combat, could only claim 39.3 percent of its personnel as combat arms.93 This restructuring was a dramatic shift from the military models of earlier conflicts. The vast majority of those serving in uniform were now fulfilling either a bureaucratic or support role for the increasingly small percentage of the armed forces that were directly involved in combat.
92 Alan L. Gropman, Mobilizing U.S. Industry in World War II: Myth and Reality (Washington, D.C.: Institute for National Strategic Studies, National Defense University, 1996.) 93. 93 Harold Wool, The Military Specialist: Skilled Manpower for the Armed Forces (Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins Press, 1968), 19-22. 37
This evolving paradigm provided the United States a unique opportunity to determine what to do with the growing body of black men that wanted to fight for their country. African
Americans were almost exclusively assigned to support positions, leaving them underrepresented in the combat arms section of the military.94 In the U.S. Army, there were ninety-one combat divisions, only two of which included African-American troops: the 92nd and 93rd divisions.95
Military and government officials recognized the potential complications of sending African
American units into combat so much that military officials only sent black combat units overseas after much lobbying. However, even then more physical labor awaited black soldiers than actual combat missions.96
When every soldier joins the military, he or she is assigned or chooses (depending on the circumstances of their entry) a MOS, or military occupational specialty. This is essentially the service member's job during his time in the military.97 These positions range from rear support
(cooks and truck drivers), to direct support (supply and reconnaissance), to combat (infantry and tank crewmembers). As mentioned earlier, it took time for all black combat units to make their way overseas; however, black soldiers were serving in different capacities from the beginning of the war. Service members spent weeks, often months in training environments honing their skills. Once overseas their lives revolved around and depended upon the practical application of the skills they had learned. By the end of the war and their subsequent return home, the military turned these men into experts in their respective fields.
94 Memorandum to the Under Secretary of War, Percentage Breakdown of Arms and Services as Proposed for June 30, 1941, February 7, 1941, 3; Records to the Adjutant's Office 1905-1981; Adjutant General Central Decimal File, 1940-45, Record Group 407, National Archives at College Park, MD. 95 Robert R. Palmer, Bill I. Wiley, and William R. Keast, The Procurement and Training of Ground Combat Troops (Washington, D.C.: Historical Department of the Army, 1948), 489-491. Of the 91 army divisions, 4 did not see service overseas. 96 Morehouse, Fighting in the Jim Crow Army, 130-132. 97 Harold Wool, The Military Specialist: Skilled Manpower for the Armed Forces (Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins Press, 1968), 19-20. 38
Even infantry training, the most combat oriented—and perhaps the one most superficially different from living in peacetime—provided a unique set of skills that could be applied to life back at home at the end of the war. Combat skills were particularly useful to returning African
American veterans who faced violence perpetrated by whites. While lynching transcended regional borders, the thousands of racially motivated incidents in the American South were a scourge on black communities. In the decades leading up to World War II, thousands of African
Americans fell victim to vigilante mob justice.98 These mobs ranged in size from dozens to thousands, and executed unspeakable horrors on African Americans.99 By the end of World War
II, white southerners were eager to lynch black veterans, especially those in uniform.100 Military uniforms were and remain a symbol of equality. Any individuals regardless of gender, ethnicity, or religious beliefs are equal when wearing the same rank. A black private and a white private are essentially equal under the terms of the military until one of them earns a promotion.101 This visual representation of equality clearly ran counter to the segregation and superiority of whites codified by Jim Crow laws and enforced by white violence. Any person who believed in racial superiority would not tolerate this visual representation of equality.
One incident that caught national attention was the blinding of Isaac Woodard. Woodard was a black veteran travelling through the South in uniform who confronted a bus driver that refused to let him use a restroom. At the next stop, Woodard was dragged off the bus and beaten
98 James W. Clarke, "Without Fear or Shame: Lynching, Capital Punishment and the Subculture of Violence in the American South," British Journal of Political Science 28, no.2 (April 1998): 270-274. 99 Katherine Stovel, "Local Sequential Patterns: The Structure of Lynching in the Deep South, 1882-1930," Social Forces 79, no. 3 ( March 2001):843-845. 100 Morehouse, Fighting in the Jim Crow Army, 202. 101 On paper in the military all ranks were equal according to the command structure. When the appropriate military authorities were around, even the most ardent racist would have to abide by the military command structure. However, the reality remains that this was merely ideal circumstances and real life practices were likely very different, and resembled civilian life practices. That being said, the powerful idea of equality and the visual representation that the uniform provided was incredibly important. 39 nearly to death. A police officer then "ground out his eyes."102 As John Gunther, a journalist who travelled the South, realized "[t]he effect of World War II is one point worth noting.
Almost every victim of lynching since the war has been a veteran."103 Lynching a black veteran in uniform sent a powerful message.
After receiving wartime training, African American veterans had new skills to employ against the violence perpetrated by whites. Returning infantry soldiers were proficient at setting up defensive positions because of their combat training and experience. For instance Field
Manual 7-5 (one of the infantry manuals), teaches that one of the keys to defending is "[t]he great stopping power of the infantry weapons, which is increased by the organization of ground, permits wide fronts to be guarded by relatively weak holding elements."104 Returning veterans would know how to maximize their manpower in order to effectively deter hostile mobs in order to provide physical security to their communities. These veterans were able to set up the necessary defensive networks through their understanding of rifle drills, small unit formations, and constructing individual defensive positions.105 One important aspect of the military training system is that every service member received a baseline level of combat training, and weapons familiarization. This base level training allowed veterans with more combat experience to take command of these other service members and create an effective defensive network.
While there are no recorded examples of Jacksonvillians taking this level of defensive measures, organized armed resistance to white vigilantes was fairly common in the post-war
South.106 In some instances, it seemed as if returning veterans had left European battlefields
102 John Gunther, Inside U.S.A. (New York: The New Press, 1997)(1947), 686. 103 Ibid., 687. 104 Infantry Field Manual: Organization and Tactics of Infantry; The Rifle Battalion, FM 7-5 (Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office, 1940), 56. 105 Ibid., 72, 99-102,161-169. 106 Parker, Fighting for Democracy, 2-3. In terms of local conditions, after World War I a group of African American veterans formed the League for Democracy in Jacksonville. One of the primary goals of this organization 40 only to enter a hostile Southern home front. The community of Monroe, North Carolina, is a great example. Ku Klux Klan motorcades often drove through and harassed the black community. The veterans put their combat training to use and "greeted the night riders with sandbag fortifications and a hail of disciplined gunfire."107 A similar incident transpired in
Columbia, Tennessee. The black community caught wind of a white mob moving on their community and the veterans took action. In fact, "[a]s they heard of the assault and arrests, black veterans pulled out their guns to defend their neighborhood…When other men asked to participate in the community's defense, the veterans showed them how to use weapons and build barricades."108
Veterans' combat experience provided African American communities an effective means to defend themselves from vigilante white extremists. Again, while Jacksonville does not have these same levels of armed resistance, violence was not unheard of. As explained in the previous chapter, racial violence was common in Florida. When returning veterans increased their political activism after coming home, white extremists acted out to intimidate and discourage political participation. In one instance, Porcher L. Taylor, an editor of a black newspaper that printed articles encouraging African Americans to vote, received several threatening phone calls about what might happen to him if he continued pushing the black community to vote.109 In
was to provide defense against lynching and other forms of white violence. Veterans of subsequent wars remained active in the organization. See, Paul Ortiz, Emancipation Betrayed: The Hidden History of Black Organizing and White Violence in Florida from Reconstruction to the Bloody Election of 1920 ( Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2005), 161. That is not to say violence during this era was unheard of, there are reported incidents of bombings during elections that will be elaborated on later. 107 Timothy Tyson, "Robert F. Williams, 'Black Power,' and the Roots of the African American Freedom Struggle," The Journal of American History 85, no.2 (September 1998): 551. 108 Kimberly L. Philips, War! What is it Good for? Black Freedom Struggles & the U.S. Military: From World War II to Iraq (Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 2012), 93. 109 "Believe Klan in Jax Behind Vote Threats: Registration List Mounts Daily in County," Atlanta Daily World, February 20, 1946. 41 subsequent elections, as the stakes got higher, white extremists escalated their tactics from just threats, attempting to bomb two separate locations where African Americans would go to vote.110
In an entirely different skill set, World War II veterans also learned how to function within a large bureaucracy gaining skills coveted in the civilian world. This training and education may have been hard to come by for some individuals if not for their military service.
An excellent illustration of the kind of real-world applicable skills provided in the military is supply and clerical positions, specifically that of a quartermaster. While it is easy to overlook the importance of support roles, the bottom line is that "[t]he mission of the Quartermaster Corps is to assure the successful operation of the Army of the United States by accomplishing efficiently and economically the general function of providing food, clothing, equipment, housing, transportation, and similar services assigned to the corps by law or regulation."111
Individuals working within the quartermaster capacity learned how to keep books, facilitate transactions, manage money, and meet a deadline.112
These skills are extremely valuable in the civilian market, especially in the professional environment and were also central to skills needed by civil rights organizations, as illustrated by the experiences of a quartermaster named Aaron Henry. Henry was one of the founding members of his local NAACP chapter.113 Henry's organizational and administrative skills from his time as a quartermaster came in handy in establishing and running the organization. In fact,
110 "Crudely Made Bomb Thrown at Polling Place in Florida," Atlanta Daily World, May 31, 1952. Again, while there are limited examples in Jacksonville during this period it is important to note that combat training remained an important factor. Veterans were aware of the possible violence that could erupt any moment and often conducted themselves in a way that would help mitigate its effectiveness. Habits of checking for 360 degree security, establish safe routes, and always being aware of cover were not easily forgotten. . Violence was not unheard of, and military training provided a means to understand, react, and prevent it. 111 Quartermaster Field Manual: Quartermaster Operations, FM 10-5 (Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office, 1941), 1. 112 Ibid., 1-2. 113 Aaron Henry with Constance Curry, Aaron Henry: The Fire Ever Burning (Jackson, MS: University Press of Mississippi, 2000), 73. 42 other NAACP officials recognized Henry's work and competency, earning him higher and higher positions over the years.114 Henry also utilized his clerical and organizational skills to establish and help a run a democratic organization called the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party .115
Henry stuck with the organization and remained a pivotal leader in Mississippi; he was even elected as a state representative there. While organization and supply skills were not the focal point of the war, they were the skills that carried over into the civilian world, and drove the Civil
Rights Movement.
Robert Saunders, a Florida native, is another example of the long-lasting impact of military training when returning to civilian life. While not a quartermaster, Saunders had a similar position as an administrator for the Army Air Corps, spending time at Camp Blanding just outside of Jacksonville on two different occasions during his tenure with the military. Like a supply clerk, an administrator for the Army Air Corps would be well versed in record keeping and processing paperwork. Furthermore, they would have developed an important sense of organization and structure for personnel management. These skills helped propel Saunders to the important position of Florida field director for the NAACP.116 Saunders proved to be an important piece in the Florida Civil Rights Movement, travelling across the state influencing and organizing important endeavors.
Another classification of military positions that helped veterans in the post war period is direct support. One specific occupational specialty within this category is reconnaissance.
While there are different forms of reconnaissance across the different branches of the armed forces, the ultimate goal of this job is "to secure details of hostile organization, strength, and dispositions, the characterizations of terrain, and other information upon which to base a plan of
114 Ibid.,73, 101-102. 115 Parker, Fighting for Democracy. 112-113. 116 Saunders, Bridging the Gap, 50-54. 43 action."117 An individual in this position would conduct missions to acquire information via ground scouts, or even assets like aerial photography. Then as part of a team, they would then assess this information and determine the overall strength and weaknesses of the enemy. A member of the reconnaissance branch would then take that information and compare it against his own unit's assets to help develop a plan of action.118 The ultimate goal is to find a way to pair your strengths against your opponents' weaknesses. Essentially reconnaissance is the process of gathering and collating information in order to understand the conditions you are facing, form a strategy based on those findings, and accomplish a goal. Elcee Lucas, who will be discussed in detail in the next chapter, worked within the reconnaissance branch.
More generally, the military drilled a certain mentality and mindset into its soldiers. In the Basic Field Manual for Military Training, it lists several qualities to be developed. Some of the more notable traits are discipline, initiative, adaptability, and leadership.119 While veterans may not have realized it, developing these qualities was instrumental to their postwar ambitions.
Generally, when people think of discipline and the military they picture soldiers standing motionless in formation, or their ability to take verbal abuse from superiors. In actuality, discipline has another meaning, it is the ability to stick to a task despite distractions and see it through until completion.120
Generally, initiative is simply defined as "an introductory step."121 In the military, initiative means acting without requiring specific instruction, and doing what is required. The emphasis of this characteristic by the military ensured that individuals were always proactively
117 Cavalry: Cavalry Reconnaissance Troop Mechanized, FM 2-20 (Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office, 1944), 2. 118 Armored Force Field Manual: Reconnaissance Battalion, FM 17-22 (Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office, 1942),1-3, 32-33. 119 Basic Field Manual: Military Training, FM 21-5 (Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office, 1941), 2. 120 Ibid., 12. 121 Merriam-Webster, online, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/initiative (accessed June 9, 2012). 44 looking for the next step. The ability to adapt despite obstacles and accomplish a task is another trait that was ingrained in every service member. There is never an excuse for any soldier not to accomplish their mission, they are expected to adapt and overcome. A great example would be a supply sergeant preparing for his unit to enter combat. The sergeant may have enough rations for his company for two days, but they are expected to be on the line for five. The supply sergeant does not simply concede defeat or throw up his arms, but finds away to acquire the supplies his unit needs to complete their assignment, even if this means operating outside the traditional norms. Initiative and adaptability were important traits for returning veterans working to jump-start the lethargic Civil Rights Movement.
Leadership is another important trait that the military instills in its members regardless of rank. The burden and responsibility of leading men was not reserved only for officers, even the lowest levels of enlisted members were expected to assume leadership roles when necessary.
Leadership is not only the mastery of these other skills, but also the ability to delegate appropriately and inspire others.122 In any branch of the military it is always important to learn the job of the man at least one rank above your own. The fact of the matter is that men are wounded or die in combat, leaving the next man with the responsibility to step up. At any moment, a private could have to fill the role of a sergeant, and a sergeant that of a Lieutenant.
There was no time to go to the rear for additional training. Every soldier learned to be a leader from their initial basic training, and continued to develop that aspect of their service while overseas.
Furthermore, military service even affected the language that they used. When referring to other activists in the NAACP, Robert Saunders called them "the foot soldiers in the war
122 Basic Field Manual, 7,10. 45 against discrimination."123 As a leader in the NAACP, Saunders was placing this role in the terms that he was familiar with, those of leaders and soldiers. To place this relationship in this language insinuates that Saunders saw himself as a leader, and more importantly understood the obligation to those soldiers underneath him. Furthermore, when African American veterans referred to activists as soldiers it was because they understood the demands of that title. It would take discipline, patience, and sacrifice to accomplish their objective.
Returning to the story in Jacksonville, Elcee Lucas, Ernest Jackson, and Samuel Bruce were all men that embodied these traits—discipline, adaptability, initiative, and leadership— during the postwar period. As the premier scholar on Jacksonville in this era, Abel Bartley, points out "[t]he most important difference in Jacksonville when compared with other Southern
African American communities is the quality of the African American leadership."124
Leadership, which builds on discipline, adaptability, and initiative, is essential for any movement that seeks to unify a community in order to accomplish a common goal. The military engrains a structure of leadership that promotes multiple echelons that promote efficiency and cohesion.
Implementing this tiered leadership model in civilian life helped provide direction and cohesion to post war civil rights endeavors.
In addition to the practical application of their military skills that service provided, black soldiers sent overseas were also experiencing foreign cultures and different conceptions of race relations for the first time. Many of the African American soldiers had not experienced life outside of America, let alone the American South. Approximately seven hundred thousand
123 Saunders, Bridging the Gap, 185. 124 Bartley, "Jacksonville: The Critical Years," 5. 46
African Americans from the South served in some capacity in the Army alone.125 The military destination of most African Americans was the European Theater of Operations.126
Once they were living among European people, African Americans experienced a very foreign concept: acceptance. In England, both civilians and soldiers treated African Americans as equals despite white soldiers' insistences to the contrary.127 Englishmen identified black soldiers simply as American, leaving off any racial distinction, a powerful concept that stuck with many black veterans. Additionally, black soldiers were free to associate with English women, without fear of repercussions.128 James McGill, a black soldier from Florida, was a member of the 1330 Combat Engineer Corp who travelled across Europe. One point of emphasis for Mcgill was that English women were both eager and willing to date black Americans.129 In a letter home another black soldier noted that "[t]hey have dances around in the nearby villages, and you can imagine how odd it is to be all white women and no colored women and with white
125 Army Enlistment Records, Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, ca. 1938 - 1946, http://aad.archives.gov, accessed July 18, 2012. 126 Since the Army was the largest branch of the armed forces, it contained the largest number of African Americans, and the Army's primary area of focus was Europe. This is due to the fact that there was pressure from other governments to keep black soldiers out of their colonies that were currently held by Axis powers, so as not to influence the local nationals. The last thing any western powers wanted to have to do after defeating the Axis powers was face a local uprising. However, one of the all black combat divisions, the 93rd, did go to the Pacific where there was more physical labor than combat waiting for them. Morehouse, Fighting in the Jim Crow Army, 132, 138. 127 Report to the G-2 Censorship Branch, European T of Opns, APO 887, US Army, Inter-Racial Relations 16-31 August 1944, September 1, 1944, 1-2; Records to the Office of the Secretary of War, 1791-1948; Racial Situation in the Army, 1940-46, Civilian Aide to the Secretary of War, Record Group 107, National Archives at College Park, MD. England stands out as an important place for many interactions between foreign nationals and black soldiers because of the nature of their time there. England was a staging area where American soldiers (black and white) would spend extensive time and have the opportunity to form relationships. When American soldiers arrived on the mainland many of them were in a relatively constant state of motion. 128 Report to the G-2 Censorship Branch, European T of Opns, APO 887, US Army, Inter-Racial Relations, 16-31 August 1944, September 1, 1944, 1-4; Report to the G-2 Censorship Branch, European T of Opns, APO 640, US Army, Inter-Racial Relations, 16-31 August 1944, September 1, 1944, 1-4; Records to the Office of the Secretary of War, 1791-1948; Racial Situation in the Army, 1940-46, Civilian Aide to the Secretary of War, Record Group 107, National Archives at College Park, MD. 129 James McGill, interview by Lawrence Gordon, May 5, 1981, Samuel Proctor Oral History Program, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL. 47 and black men both dancing with them."130 This particular soldier explained that he knew this freedom of association would be a difficult concept to implement when they returned home.
During their tenure in places like Britain black soldiers even entered into protracted relationships with local white women. Some even envisioned the relationship lasting past the conflict. In one particular incident a black Private First Class wrote home:
Dot I have gotten myself into some trouble. After I came over hear I met a girl her husband was kill in action. I have been going with her five months. Now she say she is going to have a child and she is saying it's mine. Well it could be mine. That’s how I am standing. We don't have any of our rave over hear. She is a white girl and she want's to come back home with me after the war…This girl is very nice to me and she is a very nice girl. She tells me she loves me and will always stick to me. I would hate to leave her and the child over here after the war.131
The importance of the anxiety underlying this letter cannot be overstated. Even before the Civil
War, the fear of black men having sexual relationships with white women was part of the fiery rhetoric used to justify the oppression and emasculation of Southern black men. While black soldiers had the opportunity to associate with European white women, the important aspect is that they chose to do so, despite the overt concerns of many of their white counterparts. Having sexual relations with white women is an indicator of an evolution of black masculinity that began with the military indoctrination process. Where military training started to overturn previous masculine restraints placed on African Americans by empowering them with basic language and teaching them to defend themselves, black soldiers took this even further by associating with
130 Anonymous Private, Report to the G-2 Censorship Branch, European T of Opns, APO 887, US Army, Inter- Racial Relations, 16-31 August 1944, September 1, 1944, 2; Records to the Office of the Secretary of War, 1791- 1948; Racial Situation in the Army, 1940-46, Civilian Aide to the Secretary of War, Record Group 107, National Archives at College Park, MD. 131 Report to the G-2 Censorship Branch, European T of Opns, APO 640, US Army, Inter-Racial Relations, 16-31 August 1944, September 1, 1944, 2; Records to the Office of the Secretary of War, 1791-1948; Racial Situation in the Army, 1940-46, Civilian Aide to the Secretary of War, Record Group 107, National Archives at College Park, MD. There are several grammatical errors within the letter that have been left as that is the way the original document reads. 48
European women. They no longer took into consideration what white men thought or approved of, they simply acted on their own interest and desires.
Elcee Lucas, one of the key veterans in this study also explored the relationship options available while oversees. While in England, Lucas entered into a relationship with a local white woman. The relationship was obviously one of significance as Lucas debated staying in England after the war or even relocating to the Northeast United States, a place he viewed as potentially being friendlier to a black and white couple. Ultimately, when Lucas moved to the states, for one reason or another, the trans-Atlantic relationship ended, and he devoted his endeavors to activism in Jacksonville.132
Outside of new relationships between men and women, for the first time in many black soldiers' lives, white men across all socio-economic levels treated them as equals. Two different black soldiers made similar observations in reference to the English. The first noted, "These people over here hate them [white American soldiers] and the people mix with us more than them." The second recorded that "[p]eople here don't give a darn about your color, they are more interested in the individual, other words they have class distinction."133 This was the first time many black soldiers realized that white men were capable of accepting them.134 This level of acceptance must have been very appealing because many African Americans chose to stay or return to Europe at the end of the conflict. Elcee Lucas, to name a single instance, chose to spend time in England after the war, attending Oxford University.135
132 Oral History Interview with Kim Lucas, conducted March 31, 2015. 133 Anonymous PFC, Report to the G-2 Censorship Branch, European T of Opns, APO 887, US Army, Inter-Racial Relations, 16-31 August 1944, September 1, 1944, 1,2; Records to the Office of the Secretary of War, 1791-1948; Racial Situation in the Army, 1940-46, Civilian Aide to the Secretary of War, Record Group 107, National Archives at College Park, MD. 134 Morehouse, Fighting in the Jim Crow Army, 202. 135 Bartley, "Jacksonville: The Critical Years," 56. 49
The black soldiers' acceptance was not limited to England. As American forces advanced across Europe, African American service members continued to have positive interactions with foreign nationals. Mcgill, one of the black soldiers previously mentioned, spent a significant amount of time in England and also passed through France, Belgium and Germany. During his travels, he noted that several countries had markedly better race relations than home. When asked about how French people treated African Americans, Mcgill responded, "Well, when I was in France, they treated them alright." Mcgill also noted that the French were happy to associate and trade with the black soldiers. In addition to selling things like extra boots and clothing,
Mcgill pointed out that "[y]ou could sell, soap, cigarettes, chewing gum, anything you had you could sell it."136 Black soldiers were free to associate and communicate with local nationals at any level they desired.
It is important to note, however, that many white soldiers did not simply acquiesce to
African American servicemen intermingling with white Europeans. In fact, many white soldiers interfered in these relationships in any way they could while overseas, attempting to intimidate black soldiers, and even trying to force local nationals to implement means of segregation.137 As one black soldier wrote home, noting rather broadly that "our officers bar us from things that we are entitled to do."138 This soldier recognized that this was not the local custom, and did not feel his officer had any legitimate ground to enact such a rule. Another black soldier wrote home about some of the measures white soldiers undertook to enforce racial segregation, "[T]he
136 James McGill, interview by Lawrence Gordon, May 5, 1981, Samuel Proctor Oral History Program, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL. 137 Report to the G-2, APO 887, Inter-Racial Relations, 16-31 August 1944, 3; 1-4; Report to the G-2 APO 640, Inter-Racial Relations, 16-31 August 1944, 1-4; Records to the Office of the Secretary of War, 1791-1948; Racial Situation in the Army, 1940-46, Civilian Aide to the Secretary of War, Record Group 107, National Archives at College Park, MD. 138 Anonymous soldier (no rank given), Report to the G-2 Censorship Branch, European T of Opns, APO 887, US Army, Inter-Racial Relations, 16-31 August 1944, September 1, 1944, 2; Records to the Office of the Secretary of War, 1791-1948; Racial Situation in the Army, 1940-46, Civilian Aide to the Secretary of War, Record Group 107, National Archives at College Park, MD. 50
Americans white man has come and try to cause confusion with us and the English people…So they tried to keep us from going to town by causing fights and riots…Tho its better now, well its just one thing after another."139 When possible, white soldiers took it upon themselves to try to enforce the racial status quo that they were used to.
Materials from the U.S. Censor’s office provide a fascinating look into soldiers' attitudes about race and segregation. These letters are full of general reports, presumably from whites, complaining about the overall ineffectiveness of African Americans as soldiers, citing the stereotypical racist views of the time.140 For example a white lieutenant reported, "In general, the colored soldier is lazy, dishonest, untrustworthy, and more animal than human."141 While the racist mentality prevailed among many white service members, African American soldiers' interactions with locals, especially civilian women, only exacerbated the situation. After his return from European battlefields, one white officer submitted a report on the inefficiency of a black transportation unit. The officer claimed the black soldiers intentionally stalled during their duties in order to have relations with white French women.142 Whether this officer's report is entirely accurate or not is difficult to tell; however, it is no surprise that the lieutenant linked
139 Anonymous Private, Report to the G-2 Censorship Branch, European T of Opns, APO 887, US Army, Inter- Racial Relations, 16-31 August 1944, September 1, 1944, 1; Records to the Office of the Secretary of War, 1791- 1948; Racial Situation in the Army, 1940-46, Civilian Aide to the Secretary of War, Record Group 107, National Archives at College Park, MD. 140 Report from anonymous Lieutenant, Technical and Tactical Information, Virginia, Army Service Forces Office of Commanding General Washington, DC, January 10, 1945, 2; Captain Robert H. Hutchinson, Intelligence Report to Colonel B.C. Jones, December 4, 1944; Records to the Office of the Secretary of War, 1791-1948; Racial Situation in the Army, 1940-46, Civilian Aide to the Secretary of War, Record Group 107, National Archives at College Park, MD. 141 Report from Lieutenant R.H. Fletcher, Technical Intelligence Report, "White Officer Comments on Colored Troops," Army Service Forces Office of Commanding General Washington, DC, March 1, 1945, 2; Records to the Office of the Secretary of War, 1791-1948; Racial Situation in the Army, 1940-46, Civilian Aide to the Secretary of War, Record Group 107, National Archives at College Park, MD. 142 Report from Lieutenant Philip Winiman, Inefficiency of Colored Troops in Transportation Corps: Potential Danger of IncidentsBetween White and Colored Soldiers, Virginia, Army Service Forces Office of Commanding General Washington, DC, February 16, 1945, 1; Records to the Office of the Secretary of War, 1791-1948; Racial Situation in the Army, 1940-46, Civilian Aide to the Secretary of War, Record Group 107, National Archives at College Park, MD. 51 interracial mingling with a negative report. Serving in support positions in disproportionate numbers provided the opportunity for some white service members to fall back on racial stereotypes, using black soldiers as scapegoats for their problems.
Despite segregation and consistently racist attitudes championed by white officers,
African Americans nonetheless served with honor and distinction. While the incidents are few and far between, some white officers actually praised the contributions of black service members. One lieutenant provided an objective evaluation of some black troops from the 92nd
Infantry Division, an all black combat unit, during the Italian Campaign, "This is the first time any of these men had been under fire; their reaction was quite favorable. They kept cool, followed orders and instructions and there was no sign of panic among them."143 Coming under fire for the first time is a traumatic experience for any soldier regardless of race, and such a controlled and efficient response is rare even by today's standards. The 92nd Infantry Division even earned praise from other branches of the armed force when they encountered them.144
Additionally, numerous soldiers from 92nd Infantry Division earned foreign awards and decorations.145
143 Report from Lieutenant Roy H. Patterson, Negro Troops,Virginia, Army Service Forces Office of Commanding General Washington, DC, February 13, 1945,1; Records to the Office of the Secretary of War, 1791-1948; Racial Situation in the Army, 1940-46, Civilian Aide to the Secretary of War, Record Group 107, National Archives at College Park, MD. 144 Report from Lieutenant Norton C. Gartenberg, 92nd (Negro) Division, Virginia, Army Service Forces Office of Commanding General Washington, DC, January 11, 1945; Records to the Adjutant's Office 1905-1981; Adjutant General Central Decimal File, 1940-45, Record Group 407, National Archives at College Park, MD. 145 Letter to Commanding General, MTOUSA APO 512, US Army, from Major W.A. Dobbs, Italian Decorations, October 22, 1945, 1-4; Records to the Adjutant's Office 1905-1981; Adjutant General Central Decimal File, 1940- 45, Record Group 407, National Archives at College Park, MD; W.S. Paul, Major General, Proposed Award of Italian " Croce al Merito di Guerra"to the 92nd Infantry Division, January 28, 1946,1-4; Records to the Adjutant's Office 1905-1981; Adjutant General Central Decimal File, 1940-45, Record Group 407, National Archives at College Park, MD One of the decorations was from the Italian government called the "Croce al Merito di Guerra," which the Italians gave to numerous members of the 92nd Infantry Division. Despite the honor and prestige of such decorations, the United States Army was hesitant to allow the individuals to receive the awards. They cited several reasons why the division should not accept the awards, among them was the fact that Italy and the United States were not allies, that the division did not have an exceptional record, and the division was an all black unit. The only legitimate concern was that the awards were coming from a government that the United States was not allied with, and was classified as a belligerent party in the conflict. The other concerns about the award only show how racism 52
One of the most important aspects about African Americans' foreign interactions is that they had a new way to judge their own culture and way of life. Black service members now had something with which they could compare the American racial system, and many deemed it inadequate.146 Previously, most of the African American soldiers only had an abstract concept of what equality would be, but now they had experienced it firsthand. Once these men had a concrete example of equality, the idea of achieving it became that much more feasible. This shift in mindset was not only clear in retrospect. Records show that white soldiers were attuned to the complications that these black soldiers would cause when they returned to the South. In a letter home about a visit to a waterhole, one white lieutenant wrote, "The only thing that made it bad was the fact a nigger was swimming…This nigger problem is going to be bad in the states when they get all these 'English' jig-a-boos back in the states…The American army sure did make a mistake by sending all these American Niggers over here."147 When these soldiers returned home, they would no longer have the mindset that equality was not possible. Their experiences taught them otherwise. The widespread acceptance of African Americans by Europeans was instrumental in transforming their mindset to be more proactive.
Just like the city of Jacksonville, the mechanizing shift that the military was undergoing played a major part in providing new opportunities and experiences for African American servicemen. There were an increasing number of positions within the military that were not combat arms. This technologically more complex mechanized military needed a lot more than
even permeated the upper echelons of the United States Military. Just like back home in America, racism was a problem that existed in all levels of the military. 146 Morehouse, Fighting in the Jim Crow Army, 198-199. 147 Report to the G-2 APO 887, Inter-Racial Relations, 16-31 August 1944, 3; Records to the Office of the Secretary of War, 1791-1948; Racial Situation in the Army, 1940-46, Civilian Aide to the Secretary of War, Record Group 107, National Archives at College Park, MD. 53 beans and bullets to keep it on the move. The increase in these positions provided a convenient outlet for the United States to place African Americans who desired to serve their country.
While military training and positions may seem unique to the military war machine, many of these positions had transferable skills that were relevant to civilian life.
Military training provided skills that were useful to African Americans at all levels when they returned home. The base line combat training that soldiers received proved useful for
African Americans across the South who defended their communities against violent white mobs. The job specific training that soldiers received helped them in their activist endeavors as well. Different support positions helped individuals develop skills that were useful to organizations like the NAACP. Aaron Henry and Robert Saunders are two individuals who embodied the impact that this sort of training could have. Their organizational and administrative skills would help these organizations grow and become more efficient, helping them to direct their efforts. Direct support positions proved useful as well, as will be shown in the case of Elcee Lucas and his Reconnaissance training. Furthermore, the general attributes that the military cultivated helped black veterans in the postwar environment. Discipline, initiative, adaptability, and leadership were qualities that the military constantly worked to develop.
Returning veterans would bring these traits with them into the realm of activism, acting as leaders in the renewed civil rights push.
While their training would prove useful in their post war endeavors, another important part of their transformation was their interactions with foreign nationals while overseas. For many black soldiers it was the first time they experienced life outside of the United States, and the level of acceptance they received was jarring. Many Europeans placed black American soldiers and their white counterparts on equal footing. Additionally, back soldiers were free to
54 associate with local white women, which reinforced the masculinization that they were undergoing through military training. Black soldiers would not easily forget or allow these concepts of equality to be easily overturned when they returned home.
Much like the city of Jacksonville, World War II transformed the men fighting in it— a process only possible by the unique circumstances of World War II. While black service members were fighting their nation's enemies and mastering their military skills, they were also exposed to foreign cultures. For many black soldiers this was the first time that they left their state, let alone their country and it was an opportunity for them to experience cultures and values that were different from those that they were used to. Furthermore, upon completion of their service and returning home, the United States government extended all veterans a generous benefits package that would help aid them in their postwar endeavors. For many African
Americans this included civil rights activism.
55
Chapter 4: Bringing it All Home
"In making yourself an efficient soldier you are helping to build a defense for our country that nothing can destroy. You are repaying your obligation to the United States for all the benefits of the past and are declaring your faith in our future. If you will make a part of yourself the following characteristics of the good soldier, you will be doing your part in the glorious reputation of the Army of the United States." Basic Field Manual: Soldier’s Handbook, 1941148
When the hundreds of thousands of black soldiers returned home they were armed with new skills that helped them begin their challenges to the racial structure of postwar America.
Additionally, all veterans regardless of race received a generous package of benefits in the form of "The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944." The most important of the benefits within this package was the financial resources it provided veterans for educational purposes. Access to college and higher education would be instrumental for African Americans returning home.
Jacksonville's black veterans prove how instrumental their training and benefits were in their postwar activist endeavors. Ernest Jackson pursued both his undergraduate and law degree after the war, using his status as a lawyer to mount a series of legal challenges. These challenges focused on disparity in sentencing, as well as segregation. Elcee Lucas' reconnaissance training proved useful in his political efforts, both in organizing voters' registration drives and his work as a campaign manager. These two men eventually pooled their abilities together into efforts for political representation. The general attributes that the military works to develop ensured that
148 Basic Field Manual: Soldier's Handbook, FM 21-100 (Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office, 1941),III. Some of the material within this chapter draws heavily from my undergraduate honors thesis, "Jacksonville's Greatest Generation: The Contribution of African American Veterans to the Civil Rights Movement, 1945-1960." That original project was submitted to the UNF Digital Commons in August of 2012. 56 they would be leaders in their communities, and their efforts inspired other veterans, most notably Samuel Bruce. Bruce was a leader in his community, and sought to take that influence to the next level of political representation. These veterans were attractive as potential candidates because of their status as veterans, especially for the leadership and experience that they brought. These men were also instrumental in exposing the inherent inequities within
Jacksonville's racial dynamics. Their experiences in the military aided their efforts to right these wrongs.
Returning soldiers, both black and white had access to a government-funded college education in the form of the G.I. Bill. "The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944" (the G.I.
Bill's official name) provided a multitude of benefits to all veterans including unemployment compensation, educational funding, and aid in purchasing homes.149 As one scholar explains it, this legislation "was indeed a landmark in the public policy of this nation. It grew out of a crisis situation and provided an answer to the immediate challenge—demobilization, but it also assisted the country in finding solutions to many other challenges, and its influence continues to be felt today."150 The educational benefits extended to veterans after World War II were so influential in the post war landscape that government officials continue to extend similar benefit packages to current returning United States veterans.
Veterans flocked to receive their higher education in unprecedented numbers. By 1947, nearly half of matriculating college students were World War II veterans.151 The education benefits permitted many individuals to attend college who otherwise would have been unable,
149 Milton Greenberg, The GI Bill: The Law That Changed America (New York: Lickle Publishing, 1997), 9. 150 Theodore R. Mosch, The G.I Bill: A Breakthrough in Educational and Social Policy in the United States (Hicksville, New York: Exposition Press, 1975), 2. 151 Altschuler and Blumin, A New Deal for Veterans, 86. 57 especially African Americans.152 The G.I. Bill provided a steady financial means for black veterans to attend the universities and institutions that would admit them. In the South specifically, by 1950 African American veterans brought black enrollment to twice the rate it was in the prewar period.153 Access to college education was monumental in a society where completing grammar or high school was an exception in itself.154 For those black veterans who wished to pursue a higher education, the G.I. Bill provided the necessary means. In order to gain the equality that they desired, African Americans worked to capitalize on any education opportunities that they could.
Statistically a greater proportion of black veterans used their education benefits than their white counterparts. Altshuler and Blumin point out that "[a]ccording to a survey conducted by the Veterans Administration in 1950, 49 percent of nonwhites (compared to 43 percent of whites) used education and training benefits at the college or subcollege level."155 While the number of African Americans attending college greatly increased, it was still a small portion of the population.156 The largest proportion of African Americans used their education benefits in programs classified as below the college level.157 Black veterans frequently attended trade schools, and basic education programs. Because the end of World War II was followed relatively soon by a cold war with America’s former ally, the Soviet Union, the employment demands of the growing military industrial complex continued to increase as the U.S. government worked to arm and outfit an active military. Trade school educations in programs like welding and engine mechanics were still in demand. The period following the Second
152 Greenberg, The Law that Changed America, 36. 153 Ibid., 98,102. 154 Ibid., 36. 155 Altschuler and Blumin, A New Deal for Veterans, 129. 156 Those who managed to find their way into universities were generally from the upper echelons of black society, often thought of using W.E.B. Dubois’s label of “the talented tenth.” 157 Altschuler and Blumin, A New Deal for Veterans, 129. 58
World War was, generally speaking, one of monumental economic prosperity and growth for the
United States, with the American middle class growing through the 1960s.158 Education benefits provided by the G.I. Bill ensured that returning veterans could compete in the domestic job market, and even join the growing American middle class.159
The G.I. Bill helped provide opportunities to African Americans across the country, simultaneously buttressing the careers of people central to the Civil Rights Movement, as illustrated by the postwar experiences of Jacksonvillian Ernest D. Jackson. Jackson utilized his education benefits to gain essential training that set him on his post-war path, utilizing his education benefits to earn a law degree from the prestigious Howard University. Jackson exhibited clear motivation and drive, earning his bachelor's degree in 1950, and his juris doctor in 1953.160 After finishing his legal education, Jackson returned to Florida and was admitted to the Florida bar the same year that he finished his degree.161
Almost immediately after his admission, Jackson started taking on civil rights cases, seeking to expose the disparity in the treatment of blacks and whites by the local court system.
In order to do this, Jackson helped black men found guilty of rape appeal their convictions or petition for a writ of habeas corpus.162 In the case of State ex rel. Johnson v. Mayo, Jackson applied for a petition that "sought a writ of habeas corpus alleging the imposition of the death sentence on him for the crime of first degree murder was excessive and discriminatory and deprived him of the equal protection of the law."163 Later, Jackson asserted a similar idea when
158 David Kennedy, Freedom From Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929-1945 (New York; Oxfowrd University Press, 1999), 856-858. 159 Altschuler and Blumin, A New Deal for Veterans, 129. 160Tewodros Adebe, Howard University Archive assistant office, contacted May 31, 2012. 161 Florida Bar Association, Member Directory, www.floridabar.org, accessed May 25, 2012. 162 State of Florida v. Jimmie Lee Thomas 92 So. 2d 621 (Sup Ct Fla 1957); State of Florida ex rel. Johnson v. Mayo 69 So. 2d 307 (Sup Ct Fla 1954); State of Florida ex rel. Charlie Copeland Jr. v. Mayo 87 So. 2d 501 (Sup Ct Fla 1956). 163 State of Florida ex rel. Johnson v. Mayo 69 So. 2d 307 (Sup Ct Fla 1954). 59 he had the opportunity to appeal Jimmie Lee Thomas' rape conviction, focusing on procedural issues as well as the issuance of the death penalty.164
However, Jackson's ultimate goal was never to overturn any of their specific convictions.
Through his arguments in front of the court, Jackson hoped to expose the fact that juries discriminated against African Americans by consistently sentencing them with the harshest penalty possible—the death penalty. Citing variations of the same statistics from year to year,
Jackson argued that over a twenty-year period, the state executed approximately twenty African
American males for rape, while only executing one white male in the same period for the same crime.165 This disparity in sentencing showed that African Americans were not receiving equal protection under the law.
Jackson pioneered the tactic of exposing biased sentencing and became a leader in the national arena. As one legal historian, Eric Rise, explains "[e]qual protection challenges to capital punishment persisted through the 1950s. The most comprehensive effort was undertaken by Ernest D. Jackson, a Jacksonville lawyer and graduate of Howard law school who advanced the argument twice before the Supreme Court of Florida and once in federal appeals court."166
Ernest Jackson's legal work transcended the entire country, acting as a leader and influencing lawyers across the country. Unfortunately, the Florida courts failed to address the larger issue and chose to make their decisions based on the individual cases' facts and merits, rather than a more holistic remedy.167 Nonetheless, Jackson managed to create a united front that drew attention to the judicial inadequacies in American society. While Jackson was illustrating the
164 State of Florida v. Jimmie Lee Thomas 92 So. 2d 621 (Sup Ct Fla 1957). 165 State of Florida v. Jimmie Lee Thomas 92 So. 2d 621 (Sup Ct Fla 1957); State of Florida ex rel. Johnson v. Mayo 69 So. 2d 307 (Sup Ct Fla 1954); State of Florida ex rel. Charlie Copeland Jr. v. Mayo 87 So. 2d 501 (Sup Ct Fla 1956). 166 Eric W. Rise, The Martinesville Seven: Race, Rape, and Capital Punishment (Charlottesville, VA: University Press of Virginia, 1995), 156. 167 State of Florida v. Thomas; State of Florida ex rel. Johnson v. Mayo; State of Florida ex rel. Charlie Copeland Jr. v. Mayo. 60 disparity in sentencing, he was also exposing the fact that working within the existing structures proved difficult if not impossible to bring about change.
Additionally, Ernest Jackson not only sought to reveal the disparities in the judicial system, but he also directly attacked segregation in Jacksonville. In 1958, black golfers were only allowed to play on the municipal golf courses on designated days. When a group of African
Americans who were attempting to qualify for a tournament had their round cancelled due to inclement weather they were denied access to the facilities on a subsequent day, meaning that they were no longer eligible for the tournament.168 Jackson used this example of unequal treatment to force the city to open the courses up to black golfers on a daily basis.169 In order to avoid the issue and maintain the current status quo, the city sought an alternate course of action.
In essence, the city colluded with private individuals to purchase the entire golf course, thus turning a public course private, and avoiding the issue of separate but equal access to government owned facilities. When the city of Jacksonville started taking bids to sell the public golf courses in order to avoid integration, Ernest Jackson threatened legal action.170
Jackson took the case to the appellate level where the court decided in his favor. As the decision stated, "The inclusion of a restrictive covenant with a reversionary clause if the properties were not continued as golf courses rendered the purchasers state agents and the operation of the golf courses state action."171 Essentially, when the private individuals purchased the golf courses, they did so under the condition that they had to operate them for the well-being of the public. Thus, they became agents of the state and gave up certain privileges that private business owners might have had, i.e. restrictive access based on race or any other factor.
168 "4 Negro Golfers Refused Tickets on Two Courses," Atlanta Daily World, June 25, 1958. 169 "Daily Golf Course Use Sought," Atlanta Daily World, July 5, 1958. 170 "Jacksonville May Get Suit Attacking Recreational Bias," Atlanta Daily World, September 24, 1959. 171 City of Jacksonville, Florida v. Frank Hampton et al. 304 F.2d 320 ( US App 1962). 61
Through Jackson's tenacious efforts, he not only opened up golf courses for African Americans but also helped set a powerful precedent. This ruling ensured that Jacksonville's white politicians could not simply privatize facilities in order to avoid integration. This victory against segregation and his nationally recognized efforts to fight unequal treatment were all facilitated by Jackson’s military service: in addition to the general qualities of leadership and initiative that
Jackson showed throughout his career, the G.I. Bill provided Jackson with fiscal support to earn his degrees and jump directly into activism.
Access to education benefits and clear connections between other black veterans’ wartime experiences and the skills they gained while serving in Europe clearly shaped them into local leaders. Like Jackson, Elcee Lucas capitalized on the G.I. Bill in order to finish his education after exiting military service in January of 1946.172 He graduated from Florida A&M in 1946, and later studied journalism at Oxford and Northwestern Universities.173 More central to the thesis, Elcee Lucas harnessed his experience as a reconnaissance officer to aid him in his civil rights pursuits.
The first example of the synergy between wartime experience in the military and later civil rights efforts became evident in Lucas’ efforts to organize a large-scale voter registration drive in 1950. Increasing voter registration was a vital strategy to increase African American political action and representation. African Americans in Jacksonville had the opportunity to utilize their demographic power and vote in order to facilitate substantial change. What made convincing African Americans to vote difficult was the element of danger involved. Voting was a very visible action, which required African Americans to be in a specific place at a specific
172 Elcee Lucas Final Payment Worksheet, War Department Form 372 A, January 13, 1946. National Personnel Records Center. Military Personnel Records, St. Louis, MO. 173 Bartley, "Jacksonville: The Critical Years," 56. 62 time—a risky endeavor.174 The structured nature of voting provided the opportunity for the extreme elements of white resistance to commit acts of intimidation as well as retaliation against black voters. Nationally, the years between 1940 and 1950 saw monumental increases in African
American voter registration.175 In Jacksonville, Lucas "registered over 18,000 African-American voters" in just a nine-month period.176 Considering the African American population in the city was approximately 67,000 in 1945, that means Lucas registered over a quarter of the target population, an amazing feat.177
Lucas was able to accomplish this fast paced, efficient registration drive because of his training and experience as an Army reconnaissance officer in World War II.178 Running a registration drive required Lucas to identify areas with substantial numbers of unregistered voters who were likely to support his political goals. Additionally, Lucas would have to organize a canvassing effort in order to cover the identified area.179 While deployed in Europe, Lucas would have had to collect data like photographs of enemy encampments, and reports from patrols. He would then have to assemble this information, and help determine the most economical use of force to accomplish the mission. In the registration drive, Lucas had to collect relevant information like census data and voter registration records. Once he obtained these documents, Lucas could then analyze them and determine which neighborhoods would yield the best results. From there he could formulate a strategy and disperse his manpower in the most
174 Parker, Fighting for Democracy, 182, 192. This is evidenced in Jacksonville by the bomb threats that were mentioned in an earlier chapter. 175 Bartley, Keeping the Faith, 18; Parker, Fighting for Democracy, 179. 176 Bartley, Keeping the Faith, 36. This was part of an organized effort to aid in the election of Claude pepper to the United States Senate in 1950. Claude Pepper was one of the first white politicians to openly campaign for black votes. This effort in the early 1950s indicates that politicians were recognizing the potential political power that African American communities contained. 177 Survey Committee of the Council of Social Agencies, Jacksonville Looks at its Negro Community, 1. 178 Bartley, Keeping the Faith, 37. 179 Daniel M. Gaby and Merle H. Treusch, Election Campaign Handbook (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1976), 213-220. 63 efficient manner. Lucas was obviously successful in this task given that he managed to register so many new voters in such a relatively short time. Without his military training and experience, it is difficult to imagine Elcee Lucas accomplishing this task so proficiently and effectively. In an interview with historian Abel Bartley, Lucas himself attributed the military for the development of the relevant skills.180
Both Ernest Jackson and Elcee Lucas accomplished great things in their individual efforts to foster equality in Jacksonville. However, these initial efforts were only the beginning. When both men worked in concert they advanced the civil rights cause in Jacksonville to an unprecedented level. Both Lucas and Jackson recognized the necessity of attaining political representation for Jacksonville's African American community. Even prominent white politicians in the region were starting to recognize the potential political power that black communities contained. In fact, incumbent Senator Claude Pepper, a more liberal senator
"became the first White political leader on the state level to campaign openly for African-
American support."181 When faced with criticism from his opponents, Senator Pepper did not dodge the issue of campaigning for black votes.182 Senator Pepper's views towards African
Americans and policies on veterans' benefits must have made him a very attractive candidate for politically involved veterans like Lucas and Jackson. After all, the African American community had earlier success aligning themselves with willing democrats, as had occurred in the 1947 election when they chose a white democrat over a black candidate and received a swimming pool for their efforts.
180 Bartley, Keeping the Faith, 37. 181 Bartley, Keeping the Faith, 35. It appears that occasionally involving African Americans at the political local level was tolerable, but anything at the state level represented a concerted effort to advance African Americans' rights and challenging the status quo. 182 Claude Denison Pepper and Hays Gorey, Pepper: Eyewitness to a Century (New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1987), 199-202. Interestingly, Senator Pepper was a big supporter of increased veterans' benefits. 64
Jacksonville's black population enthusiastically supported Senator Pepper. In fact,
Pepper's 1950 campaign was the event that prompted Elcee Lucas' massive voter registration drive.183 Unfortunately, Senator Pepper was defeated in the 1950 election. One of the primary reasons for Pepper's loss was his policy on race relations. His opposition labeled him a communist because of his stance on integration and other issues, a common tactic at the time.184
Senator Pepper's eagerness to involve black communities in his state-level campaigning proved too much for Florida's white population to handle. For Jacksonville, the Pepper campaign was important because it provided the unity that the African American community needed in the political arena. While the campaign did not win, it created a black political machine with experience that was prepared to keep fighting. Activists were already looking towards the next objective. Ultimately, Pepper's defeat did not deter Jacksonville's black activists; in fact, it only seemed to invigorate them.
With a substantially larger voting base to back them, two African Americans ran for city council in 1951.185 Unfortunately, in order to mitigate the strength of the new black voting numbers, the city of Jacksonville switched from a ward-based voting system to an at large system. Before the change individual wards elected their city council representatives, now the entire city could vote for every city council position, eliminating the advantage of African
American majorities in certain districts.186 Jacksonville's entrenched ideas about race relations proved so important to certain parties that they adapted the democratic structure to ensure they remained intact. The most alarming fact is that they passed the new legislation at such a quick
183 Hugh Douglas Price, The Negro and Southern Politics: A Chapter of Florida History (Wesport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1957), 60; Bartley, Keeping the Faith, 36. 184 Claude Denson Pepper and Hays Gorey, Pepper: Eyewitness to a Century (New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Publishers, 1987), 197-214. 185 Bartley, Keeping the Faith, 36. These two candidates were Elcee Lucas and Porcher Taylor. 186 Bartley, "Jacksonville: The Critical Years," 60. 65 pace, altering the entire city's voting methods in less than a year. Jacksonville's political system was obviously capable of instituting change, as long as it was something that maintained the status quo. However, black veterans recognized that African Americans’ need for political representation outweighed the possibility of defeat. Knowing that he had the image the African
American community would embrace, Elcee Lucas was one of the candidates that took up the challenge of running for office in 1951.187
Lucas' instincts about being a candidate that the black community could get behind proved correct. His education, military service, and political experience made him an attractive prospect.188 This was clearly different from Wilson Armstrong who had failed to win the 1947 city council election because of his inability to secure the support of the affluent portion of the
African American community.189 Since Lucas had a quality higher education, he was someone that the elite members of his community would listen to and could get behind. His education, coupled with his military service helped solidify him as a leader that could transcend all levels of the black community.
He did well enough in the primary to force a runoff with the incumbent. In fact, his numbers suggest that Lucas managed to secure a portion of the white vote.190 In the initial vote
Lucas received the second most votes, 8,216 votes to James Peelers' 12,160. When these numbers initiated a runoff, the supporters of the other candidates must have flocked to Peeler.
The final tally was Lucas 10,793 and Peeler 23,332.191 The qualities that Lucas thought made
187 Ibid., 56, 59. 188 Ibid. 189 Bartley, Keeping the Faith, 29-30. Elcee Lucas aided in Armstrong's political endeavors and noted the disparity among the community. He recognized that for any future candidate to have a chance, they would have to palatable to both the white and black community. 190 Bartley, Keeping the Faith, 38. 191 Michael Goldman, "Political Mastermind Seeks Candidates for Poor," Florida Times Union and Journal, November 25, 1978. 66 him an attractive candidate to the black community were likely the ones that helped him garner some white votes as well.
Despite his eventual loss, Lucas succeeded in providing a clear example that the African
American community was both willing and able to get behind a candidate of their own. After his defeat, Lucas redirected his efforts, putting his military training to use once again, investigating various elected government positions, and attempting to identify the most vulnerable to an
African American assault, just as he would seek out the weaknesses in the German lines on a
French battlefield.192 Elcee Lucas wanted to ensure that he was utilizing his abilities in the most efficient and useful means possible. After all, advancing the civil rights cause was similar to that of the military; it was not about individual achievement, but about the overall success of the unit.
As Lucas put it himself, he preferred to be “a kingmaker instead of a king.”193
Eventually, Lucas identified a position most likely to succumb to African American efforts to seat one of their own in an elected position. Justice of the Peace was a less visible position, and occupied by Sarah Bryan, a woman.194 Ernest Jackson was selected as the strongest possible candidate and announced his candidacy for the 1956-second district Justice of the Peace election.195 Jackson's status as a lawyer surely aided his marketability as a political candidate because of his professionalism and knowledge of the legal system. However, Ernest
Jackson was not alone, "Lucas agreed to serve as Jackson's campaign manager and helped devise strategy."196 Once again, Lucas' strategic and organizational skills proved instrumental in
Jacksonville's civil rights push.
192 Bartley, Keeping the Faith,46. 193 Elcee Lucas would have more opportunities to run for political office later in the '50s, but chose not to pursue these opportunities. Bartley, Keeping the Faith, 49. 194 Bartley, "Jacksonville: The Critical Years," 108. 195 "Ernest D. Jackson in Race for Justice of the Peace Post," Florida Star insert of the Florida Times Union, March 31, 1956. 196 Bartley, Keeping the Faith, 49. 67
When these two veterans finally collaborated, they broke through a barrier that African
Americans had not been able to since the first decade of the twentieth century. Jackson won the primary, securing his position as a democrat in the general election. The first person that he thanked was his invaluable campaign manager—Elcee Lucas.197 They managed this victory through a calculated and proven technique. Jackson's team borrowed a page from the Lucas playbook, and pushed another voter registration drive, getting more African Americans involved.
Additionally, Lucas recognized that what Jackson's campaign needed was publicity, and more importantly the capital necessary to pay for it. Taking the initiative, Lucas found a deficiency and fixed it, securing funding from several local businessmen.198 Lucas ensured that they were able to increase attention on his candidate and mobilize the community to vote.199
Unfortunately, even the justice of the peace position proved too valuable for the white community to relinquish. Jacksonville's white democrat community used Jackson’s victory in the primary to challenge the legality of the districts lines, despite the fact that they were unaltered in Bryan's twenty-two year tenure of that position.200 The discrepancy worked its way to the Florida Supreme Court, where the election results were discarded, leaving the Democratic
Party to choose the candidate.201 The party chose Sarah Bryan, and not Ernest Jackson. No position was too small, and no cost was too high to prevent African Americans from securing positions in local government.
There is no other way to describe this subterfuge of the democratic system as anything other than a slap in the face to Jacksonville's black community. However, this did not deter
197 "Jackson is the First Negro Nominated in Forty Years," Florida Star insert of the Florida Times Union, May 12, 1956. 198 Bartley, "Jacksonville: The Critical Years," 111-112. 199 Jay Jay, "Chips Off the Blocks," Florida Star insert of the Florida Times Union, May 5, 1956. 200 Bartley, "Jacksonville: The Critical Years," 112-113. 201 Ibid., 112-114. 68
Jackson and Lucas, who continued their efforts. After a failed petition drive to have his name added to the official ballot, Jackson ran as a write-in candidate in the general election.202 While
Jackson suffered defeat in the general election, his overall numbers were admirable. Historian
Abel Bartley notes, "Despite the difficulty in voting for write-in candidates Jackson garnered significant support. Some Whites had voted for him as well, signifying they too realized that an injustice had been perpetrated."203 Jackson's and Lucas' military mentality ensured they did not accept defeat, but continued the fight by whatever means that they could.
After their defeat, Jackson and Lucas did not skip a beat, reorienting their sights on the next target— the 1959 city council elections.204 However, Jackson and Lucas would not be the only black veterans active in this election. Samuel Bruce, a marine veteran, entered into the city council election in a different district.205 Lucas and Jackson had proven that African American veterans had the image and experience necessary to earn not only the black vote, but also a portion of the white as well. It was not until after Jackson's victory in the Justice of the Peace primary that Bruce decided to throw his hat into the ring for a city council position.
Regarding his military service in World War II, Samuel Bruce was one of the Montford
Point Marines.206 Before World War II the Marine Corps excluded African Americans from service, rather than simply segregating them like the other branches of the military. Executive
Order 8802 forced the Marine Corps to incorporate African Americans into their ranks, albeit on
202 "Jackson Will Run as 'Write in,'" Florida Star insert of the Florida Times Union, October 6, 1956. 203 Bartley, Keeping the Faith, 51. 204 Bartley, "Jacksonville: The Critical Years," 114-115. 205 "Vote for Fair Representation," Florida Star insert of the Florida Times Union, April 11, 1959. 206 Montford Point was the Marine base in North Carolina that all black marines were trained at during World War II. The Marine records have proved more difficult to navigate than the Army records from World War II. The Army enlistments record s have for the most part been digitized allowing to search for individuals and then request their VA records from the information in their enlistment records. The Marine records are not organized this way, and therefore it has been difficult to narrow down Samuel Bruce's specific MOS. However, being a black Marine, he must have passed through Montford Point, as it was the only segregated training facility for African Americans for that branch of service. 69 a segregated basis. This policy change was not without criticism; leadership at the highest levels of the Corps opposed the inclusion of blacks into their ranks.207 African Americans who desired to serve with the Marine Corps were treading in unknown waters. Just like their black colleagues in the Army, African Americans who enlisted in the Corps found themselves over represented in support positions, and withheld from combat whenever possible.208
Because of the recent inclusion of African Americans into their ranks, the Marine Corps did not have the existing training apparatuses of the other branches. When the first few iterations of African Americans arrived many of the white training staff members, "greeted the black recruits with undisguised racial prejudice and open hostility."209 While racism was present across all branches of the armed forces, African Americans who enlisted in the Corps had the additional challenge of establishing their segregated units and training staff with a white command structure that was against their very inclusion. Black Marines were up to the challenge and by 1943 many enlistees displayed the leadership and ability to replace the white drill instructors.210 Just as in the other branches, the Marine Corps drilled key attributes into its members that resulted in capable leaders. As a Montford Point Marine, Samuel Bruce shared in this training and tradition.211 Leadership was in Samuel Bruce's veins, and he had experience dealing with racist power structures.
After returning from war, Bruce distinguished himself as a successful local businessman that had been extremely active in city affairs. He was the president of the Eastside Civic Club,
207 Melton A McLaurin, The Marines of Montford Point: America's First Black Marines (Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 2007), 5-7. 208 McLaurin, The Marines of Montford Point, 8-9. 209 Ibid., 6. 210 Ibid., 6-7. 211 As mentioned earlier it has been difficult narrowing down specifics on Bruce's specific role in the military there is some information that can deduced. Bruce must have been very young when he joined only 17, meaning he was going through military training during some of the most formative years of his life, and serving in the final stages of the conflict. Furthermore, as a Marine he more than likely served in the Pacific Theater, and given the practices of the Marine Corps mentioned above, he more than likely served in some sort of support position. 70 and previous president of the Long Branch PTA, as well as a Scout Master for the local boy scouts.212 Bruce was, therefore, already a proven leader in his community, making Lucas and
Jackson’s decision to back him an easy one. He also took a cordial and respectful tone toward his opponent, the incumbent James Peeler. In one article, Bruce expresses his feelings towards
Peeler, saying, "I only hope I can do as good a job for all the people as he did…I think the people owe it to Mr. Peeler to let him take a rest now after more than 20 years of service."213 Instead of focusing on the issue of a need for African American representation, Bruce shifted the focus to a desire to do the job well. Tactics like this helped him come across as less confrontational, and as someone who was committed to civil service. Bruce was such an appealing option that, like
Jackson in the elections before, he managed to capture a portion of the white vote during the primary.214
Bruce’s campaign also provided a symbiotic help to Ernest Jackson’s campaign. Bruce resided in and was going to represent a different portion of the city than Jackson and his team.215
They were not in direct opposition, and Bruce brought another section of Jacksonville's African
Americans into the political arena. With the at large voting system, Bruce's introduction to politics aided the black community by bringing more voters to the polls. With the at large voting system, those who went to the polls to support Bruce could vote for Jackson and vice versa.
Now African Americans had unprecedented voting strength.216
The African American community was developing an invigorated political conscience, and veterans were the leaders.217 Nothing illustrates this idea better than the 1959 election
212 "Samuel Bruce Gains Support for Council," Florida Star insert of the Florida Times Union, April 11, 1959. 213 Ibid. 214 "Samuel Bruce Pays Tribute to Peeler," Florida Star insert of the Florida Times Union, May 2, 1959. 215 "Samuel Bruce Gains Support for Council," Florida Star insert of the Florida Times Union, April 11, 1959. 216 "Fears of Negro Domination of City Government Sounded, " Florida Star insert of the Florida Times Union, April 12, 1959. 217 Chuck Payne, "Black 'Bloc' White Worry," Florida Star insert of the Florida Times Union, May 2, 1959. 71 results. Both Jackson and Bruce did so well in the primary elections that they both necessitated run-off elections.218 Once again, black veterans proved to be palatable and successful candidates.
The political landscape in Jacksonville was changing rapidly after the end of World War
II. In 1947, Wilson Armstrong had unsuccessfully run for city council. However, in a little over a decade the situation drastically changed. Now with veterans as the face of political campaigns, not only were black candidates securing nearly the entire vote of the black community, but a substantial portion of white votes as well. Unfortunately, the missed opportunity on Armstrong's campaign keyed in white supporters of the status quo to a weakness within their system— causing a change in electoral procedures. Despite this manipulation, African American veterans eventually managed to secure a primary nomination.
The skills and benefits that military service provided were invaluable to the civil rights endeavors of Jacksonville's black veterans. Access to higher education was instrumental for
African Americans to challenge the existing status quo as well as join in the expanding economic opportunities in postwar America. Education proved a vital component to both Elcee Lucas and
Ernest Jackson's efforts in the postwar period. Ernest Jackson earned his legal degree from the prestigious Howard University with the help of the GI Bill, and quickly acted to expose the disparity in sentencing between African Americans and whites for similar crimes. This endeavor reflected the inadequacies in the judicial system and subsequently caught on with other activist lawyers across the country. He continued his legal attacks with an assault on segregation, preventing the city from colluding with private individuals to avoid integration of the public golf course, setting a powerful precedent.
218 Eric O. Simpson, "Politics as Usual," Florida Star insert of the Florida Times Union, May 2, 1959. 72
After pursuing his education at Florida A&M, Northwestern, and Oxford, Lucas utilized his training in reconnaissance in multiple ways as well. The first was his incredibly successful voters' registration drive, elevating the black community's political power to unprecedented strength in Jacksonville. Additionally, Lucas' ability to identify vulnerable political positions and formulate a strategy to capitalize on that was invaluable as a campaign manager.
Furthermore, his recognition of these valuable skills and his importance of using them in this capacity led him to remain a campaign manager instead of running for political office himself after his first foray into politics. Lucas' selfless mindset ensured that the political endeavors of the black community were as efficient as possible.
The increased political activism of Lucas and Jackson drew the attention of other veterans, specifically Samuel Bruce who threw his hat into the political ring. Like Jackson and
Lucas, Bruce embodied the core traits that the military works to develop, resulting in leadership.
This is reflected in the level of involvement that Bruce had in both the business community and with the youth. Bruce was an important leader and sought to take that leadership to the next level with political office.
All three of these men reflect the impact that broad military training has; it turns young men and women into leaders. These veterans were all involved in assaulting the postwar power structures in Jacksonville that were built upon race. While their efforts did not always produce the most concrete results, they did expose the inherent flaws within the system. Whether it was disparity in criminal sentencing, or the denial of political representation, their efforts conveyed that they were aware of the inequality and were trying to do something about. Jacksonville's black veterans were no longer going to tolerate the status quo.
73
Chapter 5: Conclusion
"You are now a member of the Army of the United States. That Army is made up of free citizens chosen from among a free people. The American people of their own will, and through the men they have elected to represent them in Congress, have determined that the free institutions of this country will continue to exist. They have declared that, if necessary, we will defend our right to live in our own American way and continue to enjoy the benefits and privileges which are granted to the citizens of no other nation." Basic Field Manual: Soldier’s Handbook, 1941219
Leading up to World War II, Jacksonville had a large population of African Americans, spread out in thriving communities throughout the city. The high percentage of African
Americans and the economic success of some of its members permitted the black community to enter into a complicated give and take relationship with white politicians. However, World War
II started to complicate this dynamic. The increased industrial production demands brought in increasing numbers of African Americans from surrounding communities, and opened up employment opportunities previously unavailable to them. Additionally, the dire need for production necessitated that the federal government assume a more active role in ensuring that production centers were operating at peak levels. Local workers in Jacksonville expressed their grievances through the newly established channels with the federal government. Jacksonville's black community was able to share in the growing economic opportunities that the war provided, and they were expressing their discontent with the current racial dynamic.
219 Basic Field Manual: Soldier's Handbook, FM 21-100 (Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office, 1941), III. 74
For those Americans who joined the armed forces during World War II, every aspect of their service left a lasting impact on those men and women who served in the armed forces. The
American experience in World War II was different from the conflicts before it for two key reasons. The first is the sheer scale of the conflict. The numbers of Americans both black and white was significantly larger than any before it. Second, the technological strides that were happening in the interwar years caused a mechanized revolution throughout all branches of the armed forces. The United States military utilized sophisticated vehicles and weapons that required the creation of positions to support them.
In terms of the key individuals in this thesis, military training helped develop key skills in all of its members, some extremely useful for black soldiers. The very language and training process helped overturn some of the emasculation that many African Americans suffered.
Additionally, the military works to develop initiative, discipline, and adaptability, which all culminated in the development of leadership. Hundreds of thousands of African Americans returned home ready to assume the mantle of leadership.
When African Americans joined the armed forces they were placed into emerging support roles in disproportionate numbers. Serving in more support oriented MOSs gave black soldiers access to training and skills that they were unlikely to receive elsewhere. Black soldiers were given training in specific job fields that they spent months, sometimes years perfecting.
Men like Aaron Henry and Robert Saunders were able to utilize the training they developed in the military to help enhance the NAACP, becoming key state level and national leaders.
Furthermore, black service members' concept of race relations were forever changed during the interactions in foreign cultures, especially in Europe. While the United States military was segregated, local civilian societies were not. Foreign nationals treated black soldiers simply
75 as American, leaving of any racial distinction. Black soldiers were also free to associate with local white women, for many African Americans this was drastically different from the social norms back home.
When they returned home, African American veterans in Jacksonville provided a new surge of civil rights activity that helped bring awareness to the inadequacies in the white dominated system. Ernest Jackson, Elcee Lucas, and Samuel Bruce were all active leaders in their communities. Elcee Lucas utilized his training in reconnaissance to help organize the black community and expose the vulnerable political positions. This gave the black community the strength it needed when men like Ernest Jackson and Samuel Bruce ran for political office.
Outside of politics, Ernest Jackson continued his endeavors through legal action, again exposing judicial inadequacies in sentencing. When white professionals and government officials attempted to avoid integrating the golf course, Ernest Jackson prepared and executed another legal attack, preventing the city from selling the golf course to private interests in order to prevent desegregation. Not only were black veterans exposing inadequacies in the system, they were making progress in organizing the black communities and at times securing victories against segregation.
When efforts by Lucas, Jackson, Bruce and others were ultimately unsuccessful, the responses to their efforts by white authorities often exposed the dubious measures that the existing power structures would utilize to maintain the status quo. The black community in
Jacksonville had unprecedented voting strength, and it was increasingly obvious that the existing power structures were not going to play by the rules. This was clear when Jackson won a primary election for Justice of the Peace and the democratic party responded by questioning the preexisting voting boundaries and overturning the election. Jacksonville's white power
76 structures refused to allow the election results to stand. Through both their successes and their failures African American veterans helped create and guide the black community's political conscious in Jacksonville. These circumstances ultimately paved the way for future generations of activists who would utilize new tactics.
Understanding where black World War II veterans fit into the larger narrative of the Civil
Rights Movement is extremely important. Black veterans spent their postwar lives challenging the existing power structures through legal means and prescribed channels. Black veterans ran for political offices and led legal challenges in an attempt to unravel segregation and achieve equality. While some of these endeavors met limited success, more often than not the white community found a way to nullify the results. In turn, these incidents of white backlash provided the justification for the civil disobedience of the generation to follow. If the black community could not find redress for their grievances through legal and accepted means then their subsequent illegal activities—purposefully breaking Jim Crow laws that they deemed immoral and unconstitutional—were justified. Black veterans provided over a decade of legitimacy for the peaceful protesters to fall back on and showed unquestionably that different tactics were both necessary and defensible.
However, while 1960 saw the Civil Rights Movement in Jacksonville move towards more confrontational tactics with the rise of nonviolent protests (consistent with wider trends in the South), it does not mean that black veterans simply faded away. While sit-in demonstrations led to violent and highly publicized encounters like that of Axe Handle Saturday, black veterans remained active in their endeavors. Elcee Lucas continued to act as a political compass for the black community well into the late 1970s by researching, endorsing, and disseminating information on candidates he thought were best for Jacksonville's black community. He
77 accomplished this by writing and publishing pamphlets and announcements to spread throughout the black community. Lucas also continued to offer his aid to black political candidates. He was instrumental in helping Mary Singleton and Sallye Mathis, both African American, gain election to city council seats in 1967.220
Ernest Jackson also continued on his path of activism. Well through the 1960s, Jackson was involved with the appeals process for individuals convicted of unlawful assembly, most often peaceful protesters working for civil rights causes. Much like his fight against disproportionate punishment for rape, Jackson did not focus on the issue of guilt, but constructed his argument about issues with sentencing.221 Jackson remained an active lawyer in the community, taking on a wide variety of cases well into the 1970s, including a case involving access to abortion.222 Furthermore, when the new generation began to enlist young activists for sit-ins and peaceful protests, they went to Ernest Jackson for leadership and legal advice.223
Like the other two veterans, Samuel Bruce's endeavors towards civil rights and equality did not end in 1960. As the younger of the veterans, Bruce remained an important leader into the
1980s, running for city council in 1983 and 1987.224 Thirty years of civil rights struggles was not enough to deter Samuel Bruce from running for office later in his life. Like the other
220 Michael Goldman, "Political Mastermind Seeks Candidates for Poor," Florida Times Union and Journal, November 25, 1978;Francis X. Donnelly, "Old-time Black Politician has 'a Lot to Tell,'" Florida Times Union, December 26, 1989; Randolph Pendleton, "Black Printer Explains 'The Ticket,'" Florida Times Union, May 7, 1977. 221 Herbert Calendar, Appellant v. State of Florida, Appellee. Leslie Smith, Apellant v. State of Florida, Appellee. James O'Connor, Appellant v. State of Florida, Appellee, 181 So.2d 529 (Sup Ct Fla 1966). 222 Ernest Jackson remains very active in the legal record, however around 1960 the court cases stopped annotating race, especially in opinions for his cases. However one case in particular sticks out as peculiar. Bernice Lucas (while not conclusive, Elcee Lucas had a niece named Bernice Lucas) was arrested for illegally providing abortions. The circumstances of the case insinuate that there was a racial component. A confession from Bernice was improperly obtained, and prosecution introduced irrelevant testimony from other alleged "victims" (other women who claimed to have received an abortion from Bernice). Ultimately, with Jackson as her attorney exposing these irregularities, the court had to dismiss the ruling. Jackson's reputation and status gained him the opportunity to take on important cases across state lines in Alabama. 223 Bartley, Keeping the Faith, 99. 224 Lynn Bronikowsi, "Two-man Race in District 9," Florida Times Union, April 6, 1983;"Election At a Glance," Florida Times Union, April 15, 1987. 78 veterans, Bruce refused to give up on the civil rights agenda until they felt that equality had been secured.
The attributes and training that the military provided is not easily forgotten. The military mindset is not a switch that can be turned on or off. Popular phrases like, "once a Marine always
Marine," stem from the idea that military service irrevocably changes individuals. Military service is an educational process and unique set of experiences that individuals can continually draw on, much like a college education. When returning home it is natural for veterans to lean on what experiences, training, and skills they have. When soldiers return home, they do not altogether cease being soldiers, they merely adapt to this new life incorporating their military identity into their new civilian self. Because both civilian and military experiences remain a part of the same person, there is an inherent connection between the experience of war and what individuals choose to do with their life next.225 World War II veterans brought home a wide variety of experiences from across the globe, as well as unique skills from their military training.
For many black World War II veterans their experience helped mold their views on race and the existing power structures of the postwar environment. Those veterans who chose to act and initiate challenges to the status quo could directly draw on their respective tenures of their military service. For black veterans their service permeated every aspect of their lives.
During the research for this project, one interesting trend emerged that warrants mention: serving in the military clearly had some kind of impact on ideas of black masculinity. While
225 Most psychological studies of soldiers and veterans focus on the effect of combat or factors that make soldiers effective. In Contemporary Studies in Combat Psychiatry, a collection of essays, scholars examine different groups of veterans, focusing on primarily on combat motivation and the psychological impact of combat. While their studies vary greatly, there are subtle common threads among them. The first is that military service, specifically in combat has a lasting effect on soldiers. Secondly, that soldiers undergo training and indoctrination that help them endure and continue to operate in these stressful circumstances. If soldiers continue to carry their wartime psychological experiences with them into their postwar lives, in is reasonable to assume that they other portions of their service remain a part of them as well. Gregory Belenky, ed., Contemporary Studies in Combat Psychiatry (New York: Greenwood Press, 1987). Many of the essay have some sort of purpose to identify or to help treat combat stress to mitigate psychological damage. 79 overseas black men were free to associate with local white women, whether sexually or platonically. For many black men their race and gender had prevented them from having any sort of relationship like this, but while overseas, they were on equal terms with their white counterparts on this regard. While it is difficult to measure the overall impact on these individuals’ sense of masculinity, military service clearly had some sort of effect. The basic language and structure of the military emboldened and strengthened the masculinity of black service members.
This becomes even clearer when examining the actions of civil rights leaders who did not serve in the military. Both Malcolm Little and Elijah Poole avoided military service with Poole spending time in prison as a result. Both men underwent conversions to Islam, changing their names to Malcolm X and Elijah Muhammad. Both became influential leaders in the Nation of
Islam. The Nation of Islam saw black men as having been emasculated by white society and used rhetoric reinforcing traditional gender roles.226 While Bobby Seale was not a World War II veteran, he did enlist in the United States Air Force around the time of the Korean War but found himself removed from their ranks after numerous issues.227 Seale later went on to found the
Black Panthers with Huey Newton, another organization that adopted masculine rhetoric.228 It is interesting to note that men who did not serve in combat gravitated towards an organization that espoused ideas of masculinity.
Both of these organizations promoted rigid and traditional forms of masculinity. Seale even went as far as to say that black men should not join the military in order to prove their masculinity; they were already men.229 However, it is interesting to consider that maybe military
226 Estes, I Am a Man,88-100. 227 Bobby Seale, A Lonely Rage: The Autobiography of Bobby Seale (New York: Times Books, 1978), 77-99. 228 Estes, I Am a Man,155-156. 229 Ibid., 166-167. 80 service is not an issue of proving masculinity to one's self. It is possible that serving in the military made it more difficult for white society to deny African American veterans their status as a man. While these two examples are difficult to draw absolute conclusions from, they are important to consider. These trends and indications warrant a more in depth exploration of the impact of military service on black masculinity.
While the period between 1945 and 1960 did not see the end of segregation and discrimination in Jacksonville, it did see important strides in allowing that time to come. The events of World War II created a unique set of circumstances that catalyzed African Americans' pursuits for equality. Leading up to the war, the Civil Rights Movement was not dead in
Jacksonville, or other cities across the United States for that matter, but it certainly did not have significant momentum. Without the economic transformation that the war facilitated on the home front and the influx of leaders it provided in the postwar period, it is difficult to imagine any substantial change to the previous Civil Rights Movement trajectory.
Over a million returning black veterans were essential to the increased momentum in the
Civil Rights Movement across the United States. These men were part of the much broader Civil
Rights Movement. They were the leaders in the postwar period, providing a renewed assault on segregation and inequality. These men brought attention to the inherent flaws within the system, and remained active and influential components of the movement, even with the change in tactics.
Without the transformation of Jacksonville during World War II or actions and contributions of returning African American veterans it is difficult to imagine the explosive results that followed in the 1960s and 1970s. While Jacksonville had a specific set of circumstances during this era, it was by no means an anomaly. Black veterans were returning
81 home to communities across the country, transformed by their experiences and training. Black veterans were likely having the same level of impact across the country acting as leaders in their communities. World War II and the black veterans it produced were the most important factors in revitalizing the Civil Rights Movement.
Understanding the full range of any historically significant event is a difficult task.
Continued investigation and interrogation of events is essential to have the most complete understanding possible. Often it is easy for society to forget the more humble narratives, or allow the titans of history to overshadow them. The veterans' stories are often in the category that is eclipsed, sometimes even by their own military achievements. Wartime efforts are not the end of the story for those involved, but only the beginning. Understanding and applying this concept to any generation of soldiers is incredibly important to creating a complete historical narrative. Furthermore, this comprehensive level of examination and understanding of the veteran's experience could prove useful for the study of current and future generations of
America’s returning soldiers.
82
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Vita
Bryan Higham was born He was raised by his parents – Wayne and Shirley. Bryan attended high school
After completing high school Bryan attended Paradise Valley Community
College for two semesters before joining the United States Army as an Infantryman. During his time in the Army he deployed in support of Operation Iraq Freedom III and V, earning numerous awards and decorations.
Bryan Higham earned a Bachelor of Art in History, with a minor in Classical
Civilizations at the University of North Florida. He graduated summa cum laude and with department honors. After graduating with his undergraduate degree, Bryan pursued his Master of Arts in American history at UNF. While there, Bryan has presented his research at many forums including the Florida Conference of Historians, the Florida Historic Capitol Museum, the
UNF Board of Trustees, On the Record (UNF Radio Show), Jim Byard's Inside Jacksonville radio show, and Melissa Ross' First Coast Connect radio show. While Bryan was in the graduate program at UNF, he was a graduate teaching assistant for four semesters, working in both the traditional and online environments. During his last year in the program, Bryan was awarded the
Outstanding Graduate Student Award. Additionally, Bryan and some of his colleagues started a history tech company that he is currently developing and hopes to build a series of smartphone application tours. Bryan hopes to continue work in education while building his history tech company.
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