African American
Related: About this forumThey were among the fiercest American soldiers in WWI. Here's why they were horribly mistreated when
Trench foot, mustard gas, snipers and giant rats make it difficult to imagine a single day on the Western Front in World War I, let alone 191 days. But thats exactly how long the men of the 369th Infantry regiment spent on the front lines more than any other American unit in the war.
Along the way they also suffered more casualties than any other American unit, and earned a rainbow of awards, including the French Croix de Guerre, multiple Distinguished Service Crosses, and, eventually, a Medal of Honor.
Youd think all this would have earned the surviving members of the 369th a heros welcome when they came home in 1918. Instead, after a few initial parades, they endured protests and mob violence, and all for one simple reason: they were black.
The story of the 369th, also known as The Harlem Hellfighters, and of the larger African-American experience in WWI, is the subject of an exhibit called We Return Fighting, which is currently on display at the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) in Washington D.C.
Though black soldiers faced discrimination both at home and abroad, the exhibit chronicles how WWI helped form a new African-American identity that helped pave the way for the civil rights movement of the post-World War II era.
https://taskandpurpose.com/news/harlem-hellfighters-world-war-one-exhibit
spicysista
(1,731 posts)Thanks for sharing this with us, douglas9.
Sea Turtle
(73 posts)What a tough group of men. We can certainly honor them now.
The Polack MSgt
(13,450 posts)By reading a comic book... Well a "graphic novel" called "The Harlem Hellfighters" that I bought in a very understocked bookstore in an airport.
From Wiki
The Harlem Hellfighters is a graphic novel written by author Max Brooks with illustrations done by Caanan White. It is a fictionalized account of the experiences of the largely African American 369th Infantry Regiment, nicknamed the "Hell-fighters" by German soldiers, during the First World War.
I recommend the book if graphic violence and gore aren't disqualifying for you. It is (mainly) a war story after all