James Lee Dickey: An Analysis of One African-American's Leadership in Jim Crow Texas

World War II

Many African Americans believed that if they contributed equally via military service in WWII, they would gain respect from white America. In 1939, the US military was 2% black with all black servicemen in non-combat units such as cooks, messmen, and servants. Integration was believed to cause upheaval in discipline and morale. President Roosevelt enunciated a balance of force policy. If African Americans made up 10% of the total US population, then they should make up 10% of the armed forces. Rather than easing tensions as intended, however, FDR’s order caused increased conflict because Southerners made up a majority of the military and they did everything in their power to make black soldiers fail. When the army staff reported failure to perform for black soldiers, the black soldiers were assigned menial tasks like janitorial services. Even if a black soldier were treated fairly on base, most military bases were located in the South where Jim Crow was stringently enforced. On a more positive note, the War Department announced the creation of the 99th Pursuit Squadron at the encouragement of Eleanor Roosevelt. This was to be an all black flying unit trained at the Tuskegee Institute in Tuskegee, Alabama. Charles A. Anderson, a self-taught African American pilot had established a civilian pilot training program at the Institute in 1939. Since there were no black officers, eleven white officers were assigned to train and prepare a total of 429 enlisted men and 47 officers who would become the Tuskegee Airmen, the first black military aviators in the United States. They served valiantly with 1578 combat missions and 179 bomber escort missions in the course of the war. In addition, Dorie Miller, a black sailor, was the first soldier of WWII to receive the Naval Cross for his rescue of the U.S.S. Arizona’s captain and his return to fire anti-aircraft guns against the Japanese at Pearl Harbor.
 

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