Navy Nurse Research Paper

With the Great Depression in full swing, only the mobilization for war in the early 1940s brought the United States out of its economic despair. The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941. The attack led to the United States ' entry into World War II and served as a major spark of hope for Blacks seeking better employment and a chance for equality. When President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued his urgent call to arms following the Pearl Harbor disaster on December 7, 1941, Blacks, like all other Americans, responded to the call. America was outraged at the sneak attack on the American naval base.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt created the Women 's Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC), converted 14 months later to the Women 's Army Corps (WAC), when he signed Public Law 554 on May 4, 1942. The commendable service of 800 Black women of the 6888th Postal Battalion in the European Theater of Operations helped unravel the enormous snag that had developed in the delivery of mail to servicemen and women. The Navy repealed the color ban on Jan. 25, 1945, permitting Black women to enlist in the Navy Nurse Corps. On March 9, 1945, Phyllis Mae Daley of New York City became the first Black female to serve in the Navy Nurse Corps. Only four Black women nurses, of almost 11,000 Navy nurses, served during

In June 1950, almost 100,000 Blacks were on active duty in the U.S. armed forces, equaling about 8 percent of total manpower. In the Army, 9.7 percent of active duty service members were Black, including 72,000 enlisted men and approximately 1,200 officers. In the Air Force, 4.4 percent of active duty personnel were Black, including 21,000 enlisted men and 300 officers. About 6,000 Blacks, or about 3 percent of personnel, served in the Navy and Marine Corps. By the end of the war, probably more than 600,000 Blacks had served in the armed forces. Additionally, more Blacks at the end of their military duty chose to stay in the armed forces because of the improved social environment, financial benefits, educational opportunities and