African Americans During World War 2 Essay

Inequality from the Zoot Suit Riots was only a portion of discrimination during wartime. The amount of participation the African American community had on the war effort is astounding the amount of time and energy they gave was undeniably helpful for the war. Many of the men and women helped whether it was on the battle field or in the factories providing resources for the

Smith, J. D. (Ed.). (2002). Black soldiers in blue: African American troops in the Civil War era. Univ of North Carolina

Lives for African Americans were difficult. From separation to slavery African Americans endured a lot during the 1930s. There were people that made it either easy or hard for African Americans. There were people that stood up for African Americans. There were others who tried to make it harder on African Americans. Life was hard for some African Americans in the 1930s.

Reconstruction among the south refers to the point in time which the United States was attempting to establish a relationship between the union and the rebels. The Union had won the civil war, so the next step was to begin to mend the broken relationship between the north and the south. Though historians cannot agree on when it began, there is merit in saying that it started before the end of the Civil War. After victory, had been solidified for the Union, attention of President Lincoln turned towards reconstruction.

The Battles of Lexington and Concord (April 19, 1775) started the 7-year struggle also known as the Revolutionary War. The War was fought between Great Britain and their 13 American Colonies over the British government's overimposing taxes. The 13 colonies ended up winning the War and officially became the United States of America. However, the 13 colonies didn’t achieve this feat alone. While usually only white men from the colonies are depicted as the main heroes of the war the unsung heroes are the African Americans and women of America. Both African Americans and women helped to further the American Revolution’s cause with their contributions . Both fought in the war and in certain cases had to lie in order to serve, however, their motives

Code Talker by Joseph Bruchac is a book centered around the Navajo Indians in WWII. The Navajos were forced to live on reservations, their only option to further their education and broaden their opportunities were to leave the tribe or to join the military. Caucasian Americans at the time were very stereotypical towards the Navajos, they believed they were drunk, uneducated, wild savages. Caucasian Americans were guilty of only hearing a single story of how their ancestors took the land from the Indians who weren't deserving of it. Non Indians believed they rightfully used the land and saved it from wild savages destroying the land. In reality The Navajos were highly spiritual, and educated people who respected the land. The mindset of the “real Americans” demonstrates “how impressionable [humans] are in the face of a story”.

African Americans had an extremely pivotal role in the outcome and consequences of the Civil War. This group of people were enslaved, and forced to work in horrible conditions, for the whole day, without pay. Slaves were one of the main causes of the Civil War. The issue of Slavery, which resulted in the eventual economic and social division between the North and South, caused the creation of the Confederate States. African Americans did not only unintentionally cause the war, but they also effected the outcome of the war, and the eventual consequences the nation would face after the war. During the war, blacks were used as motivation to fight, they were willing to help fight, and they even worked their way into the politics of the post war

Navajo Code talkers were heros to our country and have waited years to be properly acknowledged for their heroic deeds. The unbreakable code based around the Navajo language and the language is one of the hardest to learn. The code had 411 terms that the Navajos turned words into military terms. The code was never broken even after the War. The Navajos life before the war consisting them never leaving there reservations. They were the largest Indian Reservation and the most recognized tribe in all of the United States of America. Children on those Reservation couldn’t speak their on language and when they were caught speaking the language they had their mouths washed out with soap. Much of the Navajos had never left the Reservation let alone

The Civil War and the period of Reconstruction brought significant political, social, and economic changes to American society, and these effects continued into the 20th century.

They had many more rights than they had before however they still experienced a large amount of hate. African Americans migrated during the Great Migration due to poor living conditions and treatment in the Southeast of the United States (Phillips 33) . “For many blacks, their departure from the South was a response to, and a defiance of, the coercions used to keep them bound to segregation” (Phillips 39). In the 1920’s, treatment of African Americans was different, blacks were able to do more such as getting a job however, some felt as though the hate they would get for it wasn 't worth it. Although, there would always be challenges that African Americans would have to face such as landowners supporting the passing of laws meant to control the mobility of blacks, limit their wages, and minimize their chance to purchase and own land (Phillips 33). African Americans were able to work for their own money now and gain confidence while living in America. They began to publish newspapers which increased the awareness of racial violence and express their freedom from restraint through art (O’Neill). This “negro fad” in the United States influenced art and drama that focused on the depiction of an African American in the 1920’s. African Americans were revolutionizing the way they were perceived in the U.S.. They gained confidence and made efforts to achieve their ultimate goal,

As difficult as the economic crisis of the Great Depression was for white Americans, it was even harder on racial minorities, including black Americans, Mexican Americans, American Indians, and Asian Americans. In 1933 the general unemployment rate in the United States was over 25 percent; at the same time, unemployment rates for various American minorities ranged up to 50 percent or more. Given the severe racial discrimination in almost every facet of daily life in America through the 1920s, it was hard for many minorities to distinguish much difference between the Great Depression and "normal" economic times. Nonetheless, for these groups the Great Depression was worse than "normal" economic hardships they had suffered.

Before the American Civil War happened close to four million African-Americans were slaves. At the turn of the century the Naturalization Act of 1970 allowed only white men to vote. After the Civil War the thirteenth (1865), fourteenth (1868) and fifteenth (1870) amendments were passed, allowing African-American males to vote and have citizenship, which also led to ending slavery. Even after the ending of slavery, there were still some white men who tried to keep white supremacy alive thereby dehumanizing and alienating African-Americans from the mainstream of people.

The lecture on African Americans in the 1920s by Professor David Canton is very disturbing. His lecture was on the different unjust treatment that African Americans endured. The professor, to me, was trying to make the listener feel the anguish that African Americans did in the 1920s. In some sense he appeared passionate and at times angry about the treatment of African Americans. The government supported this hostile treatment because they believed African Americans were being subversive if they stood up and defended themselves. In listening to the lecture it is evident that there was unfair treatment with fatal outcome at times of African Americans. Throughout history I have seen the changes made by society and government. African Americans have been heard and continue to be heard as issues occur.

Native Americans are the indigenous people of the United States, they have an extensive rich history, and stories of sorrow and bravery. Within the lower 48 states are the Great Plains American tribes, these tribes live in a region where there are few trees with valleys and rolling hills. This is where the Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma as well as many other tribes resides in. With quite a dearth tribe, their highest population being 3,522 present day, but although they weren’t large they are known for their abounding cultural tradition and past. The Ponca tribe of Oklahoma had a mixed culture of the Middle Mississippi and Plains people. They were Siouan speakers, or the Dhegiha, which also included the Ohama, Osage, Quapaw, and Kansa tribes. The

It is natural instinct for the American Indians, with their warrior tradition, to protect their people. Many of them were called to serve in the United States military because they cared about their community and the land they have lived on for thousands of years. Several of them served out of a sense of patriotism due to fact they wanted to defend the United States. This also offered an opportunity for education, to see the world, and economic security, and training. There were more than 12,000 American Indians who served in World War I which is