The "Black Life" movement in the United States has erupted on a large scale since last year, and in recent days it has begun to be in full swing.
Maybe a lot of the time we focus on their violence, but in reality we don't really experience (and I don't want to) the discrimination suffered by black people.
Although systematic discrimination against ethnic minorities in beautiful countries is widespread, black people are perhaps the most miserable race outside of Indians, and not a single day has been looked at since blacks set foot on the North American continent.
By the end of World War II, nearly 100,000 blacks in the U.S. Navy were all soldiers, and not a single officer existed.
Whites were teaching black soldiers how to wear navy hats
Obviously, Americans are also aware of this problem, know the truth of "blocking is better than slacking", if there has been a high-intensity oppression of blacks, there will be problems one day, and if you give blacks some upward channels, it will effectively alleviate the emotions of black people.
In this case, sixteen black men were selected for the Naval Officer Training Course, where they worked hard with numerous white soldiers to become qualified naval officers.
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These blacks were not only humiliated when they entered the military school, but even when they were about to be promoted to officers on the test, they were also slandered for cheating, even the senior officials in Washington thought so.
However, after retaking the exams prepared for them individually, the blacks achieved higher scores under close surveillance. Eventually, thirteen black men succeeded in being promoted to naval officers, and they were also known as the "Golden Thirteen."
Today, I would like to share with you the story of the "Golden Thirteen", from the difficult process of black people to become officers to see what is "systematic humiliation", perhaps you can understand why black people are so sensitive to racial discrimination.
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" data-track="11" > blacks fought for the country, but still only "consumables."</h1>
Ever since the Negroes were forced to set foot on the land of the American continent, their tragic fate began, becoming "humanoid cattle" of slave owners, without any right to speak of.
From the early 1830s onwards, a mass movement for the complete abolition of black slavery emerged in the Northern United States, and slavery was finally abolished after the End of the Civil War.
Although the black people have ostensibly broken away from slavery, what awaits them is not a bright life, but the "explicit discrimination and persecution" of the white people, and the living conditions of the black people have not been visiblely improved.
The American Southern cotton planter and his black slave.
But then the Outbreak of World War I, in order to maintain its trade with the Entente, the United States finally gave up the so-called "neutrality policy" of sitting on the mountain and watching the tiger fight on both sides to make money, and declared war on Germany under the help of Britain.
At this time, there was a gap in the Standing Army of the United States to cope with a big war, so black Americans seemed to see an opportunity to change their own status.
Out of a desire to change their fate and be respected, the black people began to sign up for the army. According to statistics, at the time of the recruitment deadline, more than 2 million black people registered for the army, of which 360,000 eventually successfully enlisted.
Therefore, black people simply cannot obtain military merit by participating in combat, and the work they undertake in the army is mainly logistical support, such as digging a trench, making a meal, cleaning the toilet, taking out the garbage, moving things, etc., basically wearing uniforms - "coolie labor".
The black soldiers in World War I were basically coolies
Although some blacks still received the desired military merit during the war, this was not obtained in the American army, but the four black regiments leased by the United States to the French army under the command of the French generals, and three of them received the "French Cross".
For example, before World War I, blacks established a wealthy model community in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where black people dressed decently, civilized and polite, and had more than 300 businesses, which were called "black Wall Street" by local whites.
Many of these blacks were "veterans" of World War I, but it was in the third year after the end of World War I that whites first slandered a black youth for harassing white women, and then white mobs stormed into black communities, smashing and burning countless stores.
A large number of jewelry, jewelry and money belonging to black people were all plundered, and the National Guard soldiers and police on duty had no intention of protecting the black people, allowing the white mob to frenziedly vent.
Black Wall Street
Burning black community
In order to make it easier to quickly destroy the black community, the whites even flew planes to openly drop bombs and incendiary bombs over the black community, and no white person was responsible for it afterwards, nor was any black person compensated.
(Interested friends can follow this article: Black People Are Born Willing to Fall?) Look at the "Black Wall Street" destroyed by white Americans.
Therefore, even if blacks have fought for the country, they still cannot change the systematic discrimination and persecution of white people in the country, who are still nothing more than "consumables" in the eyes of whites.
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" data-track="28" > blacks in World War II enthusiastically joined the army and finally saw a turnaround</h1>
In this state of confusion, the blacks continued for more than twenty years, and although it had been a hundred years since the rise of the abolitionist movement, the blacks were still qualitatively different from the whites in law, and they did not even have the right to vote.
However, with the outbreak of the Pacific War, the Careful Thinking of the United States to do business on both sides was once again broken, and it could only go to war in person.
。 Black groups continued to appeal to the government to allow the army to admit more black youth to the fighting forces so that they could contribute to their homeland and kill the enemy on the front lines.
Because the scale of this war is much larger than that of World War I, the U.S. military is also in urgent need of replenishment of a large number of troops, and the Army alone plans to expand the number of troops to 3.6 million.
The U.S. military is in dire need of troops
。 Both in the Army and the Air Force, blacks were given the opportunity to participate directly in combat missions.
The Army not only added black regiments or black battalions to many of its units, but even created a new division composed entirely of blacks.
For its part, the Air Force formed two squadrons of black destroyers, the 99th Destroyer Squadron and the 100th Destroyer Squadron, which were trained at the Black School in Tuskegee, Alabama, and then put into combat.
Black pilot
They were adamantly opposed to the entry of blacks into the army, a trend that was very popular even among senior white generals, such as General Patton, who said in his memoirs:
"As an individual, black tank men are good soldiers, but I expressed my belief at the time, and there was never a need to change that belief, and the thinking speed of a soldier of color could not be as fast as it was needed for armored combat."
In fact, the U.S. military separately organized blacks into military units and distinguished them from formed white units, which was also a kind of "racial segregation" in disguise.
And this discrimination is not only in combat units, but even in logistics units such as the Red Cross.
For example, the blood donated by white people and the blood donated by black people are packed in different containers, and even labeled to distinguish between "white blood" and "black blood".
But this humiliating treatment was the result of government pressure, and the American Red Cross first did not accept black blood donations at all.
Whites fought bravely to receive the highest rank of medal, while many blacks who had done more meritorious service could not have this honor, and only three very special blacks received some official propaganda, including the boxing king Lewis.
Lewis
But in any case, the heroic battle of the black people still paid some rewards, because of the cruelty of the war, although blacks and whites are not mixed under the same system, but after all, they can be regarded as fighting together, and they have experienced life and death together, and this test of blood and fire is also subtly affecting the attitude of white people.
When this sentiment was brought back home by the white soldiers, the improvement of the situation of the black people began to manifest itself in some small things.
For example, on the bus, blacks could not sit in front of them, but in Florida, several white soldiers took the initiative to give up their seats for a black wounded soldier, and even scolded white drivers who were not allowed to sit blacks.
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" data-track="11" > the Navy is still a racist area</h1>
Although racial discrimination in the Army and Air Force was still abundant, blacks did have more opportunities to show their loyalty than they did during World War I, and although they were racially isolated in disguise, black officers also appeared in the Army and Air Force.
But on the side of the Navy, the situation is completely different, and perhaps everyone has heard a sentence, which is - "ten years of army, fifty years of air force, one hundred years of navy."
U.S. Fleet
Group photo of U.S. Navy officers and men
This sentence roughly means that it takes about a decade to build a strong army, but a strong navy has to pay far more than the cost and time to build the army, and this stronger foundation gives the navy its own so-called "pride".
In the United States at that time, officers on naval ships were often regarded as gentlemen, and their status was much more noble than that of army officers and fourth-class officers.
Moreover, unlike the Army and the Air Force, the Army can establish black divisions separately, and the Air Force can establish black squadrons alone, but the Navy cannot always arrange a single aircraft carrier to be black in service, so the Navy cannot achieve "racial segregation" similar to that of the Army and Air Force.
But the Navy also had a way, and the vast majority of blacks joined the army to become naval soldiers, but they could not participate in combat missions, and they did not even have the opportunity to become electricians and mechanics.
Black soldiers in training
For example, in last year's movie "Greyhound", the captain's catering was the responsibility of the black chef, and the black man was replaced by a black man after his death.
Moreover, even if a negro proved his combat ability through his own ability, or even became a combat hero, the Navy would not give him the opportunity to become an officer.
For example, for example, because in the Pearl Harbor incident, he operated an anti-aircraft machine gun to return fire on the Japanese aircraft and assisted his comrades in escaping, and was awarded the Navy Cross Medal.
So, unlike the Army and the Air Force, even though there were tens of thousands of black soldiers in the Navy, there was still no naval officer, but this was the result of the efforts of President Roosevelt and the white people who sympathized with blacks.
Nimitz awarded Miller the Naval Cross
However, although blacks were still ordinary soldiers at this time, it was not long before thousands of black navy navys began to have the opportunity to receive training in quartermasters, mechanics, and electricians, which were also skills that could promote black employment after the war.
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" data-track="11" > black people entered the officer training school and were humiliated in every way</h1>
As the war progressed, there was a greater voice in the United States about the inability of black Navy Navy officers to be promoted to officers, and this situation attracted the attention of Eleanor Roosevelt, the first lady of the United States.
In early 1944, Sam Barnes and 16 other black naval soldiers were summoned to the office by Commander Daniel W. Armstrong.
Sam Barnes
Reagan, who is training as an electrician in the second left, is also one of the 16
Armstrong was a tall, handsome, meticulously dressed, aristocratic man who met the expectations of a noble gentleman of naval officers.
He was also one of the few white naval officers willing to work with blacks, but while his willingness to work with blacks was praised by Washington, it was limited to that.
The commander's attitude made the summoned blacks nervous, and for a moment they wondered if they had done something wrong, and they were often standing in the wrong place of the sailors.
Subsequently, Armstrong announced without emotion that they had been selected to attend the Naval Officer Training School, and that they would become the first black officers in the Navy.
A dozen subordinates were about to be promoted to officers, which was definitely good news for the leaders, but at this time Armstrong did not congratulate the blacks at all, not even a word of encouragement.
Black U.S. Navy soldier
So, although the Navy ostensibly gave these sixteen black men the opportunity to become officers, in practice it still fully embodied "systematic racial discrimination", and I will give a few representative examples:
(1) The blacks did enter a truly elite school, where the training facilities were luxurious and the trainees could improve their abilities in all directions.
。 All of their training was arranged individually, even meals were in different places and times from the white cadets, and the accommodation was also a separate barracks, almost "semi-house arrest".
(2) White teachers have a very cold attitude toward black students, almost like machines, and do not care about the learning effects of black students, and do not care whether they really understand the course they have learned, because they think it is a waste of time.
Of course, it is precisely because the white teachers do not know the learning effect of the black students, so they will be surprised when they see the results of the black people in the back.
(3) Lieutenant Colonel Paul Richmond, who designed the course, was very harsh on black people, and in order to eliminate them on the basis of failing the examination, he not only cut the 16-week training cycle to 10 weeks, but also deliberately increased the difficulty of each course slightly.
Of course, Lieutenant Colonel Richmond gave an explanation in a later interview, saying that he did so because he knew that black people would have strict exams after graduation, so he deliberately tested them, and there was no malice.
(4) When white people physically examine black trainees, they constantly verbally and physically humiliate them, such as deliberately beating Tintin with a ruler, and deliberately saying some insulting words.
Their ultimate goal is not to simply humiliate them, but to force the black people to fight hard, so that they can't help but be expelled, and it has to be said that it is really "murderous heart".
Join the military for medical examinations
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" data-track="11" > blacks graduated with excellent grades and were smeared by whites for cheating</h1>
In the face of all the humiliation and embarrassment in the military academy, these black people were not only not crushed, but also never showed any signs of anger.
Because they know deep down that any angry words and actions are likely to become "excuses for expulsion" and to bring shame to the race.
After that, they slept almost only 4 hours a day, covered the windows with sheets at night after the lights went out, a dozen people hid in the bathroom with flashlights to study, and the trainees would help each other test the learning results, and the difficulty of checking the settings between the students was even stricter than that of the most demanding white instructors.
Finally, their efforts paid off, and in the graduation examination, they broke the graduation record of the Officer Training School and justified the ability of the blacks.
Yet they were still so naïve that white masters didn't want them to be officers at all, so some talk of blacks getting good grades through "cheating" began to circulate.
Whites don't believe blacks can get good grades
。 It can be seen how hypocritical white people are, they are only for the vote, and they actually do not look up to black people in their hearts.
So, these negroes could only endure humiliation and were forced to take the exams set up separately for them again.
However, the results of this exam are obviously going to disappoint the whites, because the black people's second exam scores have reached a staggering "3.89 (out of 4 points)", which is even higher than the first score.
At this point, the whites had no reason to stop the blacks from being promoted to officers, but even so, only 12 of the 16 blacks became true naval officers.
Of the remaining four, 1 was appointed as a brigadier general (half an officer) and the other 3 were sent back to their former units for continued service, without any explanation from the Navy.
Twelve appointed as real officers
In any case, the 13 blacks finally broke through the Navy's racial tradition and became the first black officers in the Navy, so they were also called "the Golden Thirteen" by later generations.
Armstrong, a white commander who had previously been willing to work with blacks, said bluntly that there was no officer's quarters for these black officers to live in the naval base, and drove them to live outside the base, and these blacks could not even enter the "officers' club" inside the base.
In addition, despite their professional excellence, none of these black officers were assigned to command the combat ships, but were all assigned to support posts, because the whites did not accept the leadership of the blacks, and were not even willing to salute.
Golden Thirteen
As a result, these black officers could only do some "exercise support, x-disease lectures, coast patrol" work, and they also suffered from occasional insults and deliberate neglect.
Their performance also earned the respect of the younger generation of blacks in the Navy, and at a naval gathering in Berkeley in the 70s, dozens of blacks came to these thirteen people, all of whom were officers in the naval combat unit, and even one who had been promoted to the rank of general.
They raised their glasses in their hands and paid the highest tribute to the thirteen black pioneers, each of whom in turn shouted, "We owe you the credit for our achievements!" We wouldn't be standing here without you."
The Golden Thirteen of the Seventies
Through the above story, I believe that everyone should understand that black people can have their current status, not by "PEACE & LOVE", but by real patience, struggle and dedication.
Once you threaten the status of white people, there is no shortage of open guns and dark arrows. At this point, Indians are much more disciplined than they are.