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The U.S. got more than it bargained for when it organized two “all-colored” combat units and sent them to France to fight the last year of World War One. While our nation was slow to recognize the great contributions of its “men in bronze,” fearing the impact on American culture of empowered black veterans returning […]

I am a military veteran who usually stands for the national anthem and the flag, but I salute NFL players of all colors, owners and other professional athletes who join in unity to protest unfair police practices and other abuses directed at citizens of color.  Our freedom to express such views in peaceful protest without

In the summer of 1918, the all-black 92nd Infantry Division was training at several U.S. military installations in preparation for shipping out to France to fight in World War I.  Because some of these training sites were located near U.S. cities where segregation was strictly enforced, military brass was concerned about what might happen when

Today, the burden of defending our nation is carried by an increasingly smaller segment of our population.   Even though all Americans benefit from the protections provided by the military, only 1 percent of the American population currently makes the sacrifice of laying down life and limb for our country.  Far too many are being forced

The heavyweight fights between Joe Louis and Max Schmeling in the 1930s were two of the most anxiously anticipated and highly viewed events in the sports history.   In time, the Brown Bomber would become the world’s first black heavyweight boxing champion since Jack Johnson in the early 1900s.  And in Nazi Germany, Max Schmelling, the

My previous blog post, “Denying Racism is the new Racism” (July 28, 2017) generated a lot of commentary.  Most of it supported the central theme of the post, that racism, while not as prevalent in American culture as it once was, is still with us.  Today racism often appears in more subtle forms, such as

  This past May, the talk around American University should have of graduation, internships and students’ plans for the summer. Instead, it was about nooses and bananas.  As CNN and other news outlets have reported, administrators at the Washington, D.C. school have been meeting with students and addressing a litany of demands after someone earlier

When the U.S. entered World War One in 1917, two “all-colored” combat units were created: the 92nd and the 93rd Infantry Divisions.  Within these divisions, for the first time in U.S. military history, black soldiers would be led by black officers.  One of these young leaders, Lieutenant William Herbert, the main character of the novel:

Many books have been written about World War One and the events of the era, one hundred years ago, in which the war occurred. There are a number of good ones, and I have six favorites. As I see it, the best books on World War One not only tell what happened on the battlefields

The German army was completely unprepared for their first encounter with black U.S. soldiers in World War One.  It happened on a night patrol in the summer of 1918 shortly after the all-black 92nd Infantry Division was deployed to the Saint-Dié sector in France.  For several weeks, the Buffalo soldiers had been conducting successful raids