Summary of Half American By Matthew F. Delmont: The Epic Story of African Americans Fighting World War II at Home and Abroad

By Willie M. Joseph

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This book does not in any capacity mean to replace the original book but to serve as a vast summary of the original book.

Summary of Half American By Matthew F. Delmont: The Epic Story of African Americans Fighting World War II at Home and Abroad

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Over one million Black men and women served in World War II. Black troops were at Normandy, Iwo Jima, and the Battle of the Bulge. Their stories have been ignored in favor of the myth of the "Good War" fought by the "Greatest Generation".

• Language: English
• Publisher: Willie M. Joseph
• Release date: Oct 22, 2022
• ISBN: 9798215222515

Willie M. Joseph

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This is an unofficial summary & analysis of Matthew F. Delmont’s Half American: The Epic Story of African Americans Fighting World War II at Home and Abroad designed to enrich your reading experience.

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INTRODUCTION

Half American tells the definitive history of Black Americans and World War II. Nearly everything about the war looks different when viewed from an African American perspective. Although the Nazis were conquered on the battlefield, ideas of white supremacy continued to flourish in U.S. then and today. Over one million Black men and women served in World War II. Hundreds of Black volunteers were turned away by military recruiters. Black troops shed blood in iconic battles such as Normandy and Iwo Jima. Most labored in unheralded but vital support jobs.

Black Americans were engineers, quartermasters, construction workers, and supply troops who together formed the backbone of the U.S. military's logistical forces. Black truck drivers moved supplies from ports to the battlefronts; general service regiments cleared jungles, constructed roads, and built runways. After World War II, veterans returned from Europe eager to fight for freedom at home. Many white Americans actively fought during and after the war to maintain white supremacy. Millions of others turned a blind eye to the injustices of racism while enjoying the benefits of racism.

Black Americans understood the goals of World War II in very different terms than their white counterparts. During the summer of 1943, for example, race riots or rebellions raged across the country. Then as now, this racial violence raised fundamental questions about America's commitment to democracy. The hypocrisy Black men and women faced in the service of their country was palpable. Soldiers and sailors frequently described feeling as though they were on a plantation.

As we grapple with parts of our nation's past that are too often ignored or distorted, we must train our lens on the Greatest Generation. Doris Miller, a navy messman who performed heroically at Pearl Harbor, is perhaps the best-known Black American from World War II. Julius Ellsberry, a twenty-year-old Mess Attendant First Class on the USS Oklahoma, was the first person from Birmingham,