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The Brownsville Affair

The Legacy of the Brownsville Affair

Ultimately, Roosevelt’s handling of the Brownsville affair did not cost his party the support of the Black community in the 1908 election. Roosevelt’s Secretary of War, William Taft, won the presidency, although by a much slimmer margin than previous elections. Although Taft had been instrumental in upholding the Brownsville verdict, his opponent in the race was Democrat William Jennings Bryan, whose progressive platform was marred by virulent anti Black racism. Caught between the naked racism of the Democrats and the breadcrumbs offered by the Republicans, many Black voters felt that they had no choice but to support Taft.

The affair was largely forgotten after 1908, and the Brownsville citizens’ narrative became written into history books as fact. Not until 1970 did anyone seriously re examine the case. Published in a much different political climate, John Weaver’s detailed account of the event and subsequent investigations pulled no punches in exposing the holes in the accepted narrative. Weaver’s book, titled simply The Brownsville Raid , prompted a new federal investigation, and in 1972 President Richard Nixon officially pardoned the soldiers and updated their records to show honorable discharge. Only one of the 167 men was still alive to witness the apology, Private Dorsie Willis. In an official ceremony, Willis received an apology and a pension of $25,000. He died in 1977, and was buried with full honors at the U.S. Military Cemetery at Fort Snelling, MN.

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Dorsie Willis, 1974 Minneapolis: It was a smiling 87-year-old Dorsie Willis that talked to reporters, 1/10, after he received a check for $25,000 from the U.S. Government for being the sole survivor of the Brownsville Massacre. In 1906, Willis and 166 other black soldiers were dishonorably discharged from the Army following a racial incident. Early last year the secretary of the Army ordered all of the discharges changed to honorable. 'I'm very grateful (for the check),' said Willis. 'It's a great birthday present. But it comes too many years too late.'