During the Second World War, black soldiers were not deployed at the front like the white Americans, but were generally used as engineers or drivers. White Americans believed that Blacks couldn’t fight.
Reward
Despite the fact that 1.2 Mio Afro-American soldiers were employed by the American army, navy of airforces, not even one of them received a ‘Medal of Honor’, the highest reward a soldier can receive. Most of the black soldiers did not perform any duties in the line of combat, but worked instead in the citchens, in maintenance or in supplies. Even the black soldiers who fulfilled their duties in combat, despite documented proof of brave conduct, were not honored at all.
Army
This division between white and black soldiers was not ended until the Korean War in the 1950s. For many black Americans these days, the armed forces are still one of the few opportunities to climb the social ladder. Organisations of war veterans have put much effort tot honor this ‘forgotten’ group of soldiers. It lasted till the 21st century that there came a breakthrough in the reminisce of the black soldiers during WW II.
