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Truman desegregates U.S. military

Reader’s
In 1940 the U.S. population was about 131 million, 12.6 million of which
was African American, or about 10 percent of the total population.
During World War II, the Army had become the nation’s largest minor- Services
ity employer. Of the 2.5 million African Americans males who registered
for the draft through Dec. 31, 1945, more than one million were inducted How to contact
into the armed forces. African Americans, who constituted approximately Aerotech News and Review
11 per cent of all registrants liable for service, furnished approximately this • Mail: 220 E. Ave. K-4, #7
proportion of the inductees in all branches of the service except the Marine Lancaster CA 93535
Corps. Along with thousands of black women, these inductees served in all • E-Mail: editor@aerotechnews.com
branches of service and in all Theaters of Operations during World War II. • Phone: (661) 945-5634
During World War II, President Roosevelt had responded to complaints • Fax: (661) 723-7757
about discrimination at home against African Americans by issuing Execu-
tive Order 8802 in June 1941, directing that blacks be accepted into job- Advertising
training programs in defense plants, forbidding discrimination by defense Corporate Headquarters:
contractors, and establishing a Fair Employment Practices Commission. (877) 247-9288
After the war, President Harry Truman, Roosevelt’s successor, faced a
multitude of problems and allowed Congress to terminate the FEPC. How- Subscriber Services
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President Harry S. Truman.
Web Site
ever, in December 1946, Truman appointed a distinguished panel to serve Access the Aerotech News web
as the President’s Commission on Civil Rights, which recommended “more site at www.aerotechnews.com
adequate means and procedures for the protection of the civil rights of the Submissions for upcoming events, air
people of the United States.” When the commission issued its report, “To shows and museums
Secure These Rights,” in October 1947, among its proposals were anti- should be addressed to
lynching and anti-poll tax laws, a permanent FEPC, and strengthening the Web Updates, 220 E. Ave. K-4,
civil rights division of the Department of Justice. # 7, Lancaster CA 93535
In February 1948, President Truman called on Congress to enact all of or email editor@aerotechnews.com.
these recommendations. When Southern senators immediately threatened a For questions concerning the web site,
filibuster, Truman moved ahead on civil rights by using his executive powers. contact the webmaster at
Among other things, Truman bolstered the civil rights division, appointed the webmaster@aerotechnews.com.
first African American judge to the Federal bench, named several other Afri-
can Americans to high-ranking administration positions, and most important, Where you can get
on July 26, 1948, he issued an executive order abolishing segregation in the Aerotech News and Review
armed forces and ordering full integration of all the services.
Executive Order 9981 stated that “there shall be equality of treatment and For information on
opportunity for all persons in the armed forces without regard to race, color, Aerotech distribution, call
(661) 945-5634 or visit
religion, or national origin.” The order also established an advisory commit- www.aerotechnews.com/distribution.
tee to examine the rules, practices, and procedures of the armed services and
recommend ways to make desegregation a reality. There was considerable
resistance to the executive order from the military, but by the end of the Aerotech News and Review is published
Korean conflict, almost all the military was integrated. every other Friday, serving the
By mid-1951, more than 18 percent of African-Americans in the Army aerospace and defense industry of
were serving in integrated or partially-integrated units. The change to inte- Southern California, Nevada and
grated units was permanent, if limited. And most importantly, the integrated Arizona. News and ad copy deadline
units were successful. Segregation officially ended in 1954 with the disband- is noon on the Tuesday prior to
President Truman’s executive order that desegrated the U.S. military.
ment of the last all-black unit. publication. The publisher assumes no
responsibility for error in ads other
HISTORY, from 1 than space used. Your comments are
welcomed and encouraged. Write to
keenly appreciated the value of tradition, as is Black history clubs, an increase in interest tory Month, during the celebration of the United the address below.
attested by the Bible itself. In spite of worldwide among teachers, and interest from progressive States Bicentennial.
persecution, therefore, he is a great factor in our whites. Negro History Week grew in popularity He urged Americans to “seize the opportu-
civilization.” throughout the following decades, with mayors nity to honor the too-often neglected accom- • Publisher ....................Paul Kinison
By 1929, The Journal of Negro History was across the United States endorsing it as a holi- plishments of Black Americans in every area of • Business Manager ....... Lisa Kinison
able to note that with only two exceptions, of- day. endeavor throughout our history.” • Editor .................... Stuart Ibberson
ficials with the State Departments of Educa- Black History Month was first proposed by Now, Black History Month is observed in • National Advertising
tions of “every state with considerable Negro Black educators and the Black United Students schools across the nation, by the U.S. govern- Manager .....................Paul Kinison
population” had made the event known to that at Kent State University in February 1969. The ment, and by the Department of Defense.
state’s teachers and distributed official literature first celebration of Black History Month took For more on this year’s theme, visit the As-
associated with the event. Churches also played place at Kent State one year later, from Jan. sociation for the Study of African American Life
a significant role in the distribution of literature 2-Feb. 28, 1970. and History website at www.asalh.org. Aerotech News and Review
in association with Negro History Week dur- Six years later, Black History Month was 220 E. Ave. K-4, #7
ing this initial interval, with the mainstream and being celebrated all across the country in edu- In this special issue of Aerotech News and Lancaster, CA 93535
Black press aiding in the publicity effort. cational institutions, centers of black culture Review, we highlight some important historical e-mail: editor@aerotechnews.com
Negro History Week was met with enthu- and community centers, both great and small. milestones and some key African American fig- Visit our web site at
siastic response; it prompted the creation of President Gerald Ford recognized Black His- ures in the military and in aerospace. www.aerotechnews.com

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