⚠️WOKE CONTENT⚠️™️
🧵 Last week, we went over Black servicemen having to give up rank in order to fight on the front lines. Today, we will meet one of those men.
Pull up a seat🪑, friends.(cont)
#ProudBlue
#ResistanceRoots
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#Voices4Victory
allthatsinteresting.com/edward-a-carte…
Ever heard of a soldier so eager to fight fascism that he ran away to war at 15, spoke 4 languages, and gave up his rank just to get to the front lines?
Meet Staff Sergeant Edward A. Carter Jr.—one of the most badass heroes of WWII. (cont)
nps.gov/people/edwardc…
Long before WWII, Carter was a veteran of two global conflicts. At 15, he ran away to China to fight invading Japanese forces. By 20, he was in Europe fighting fascist forces in the Spanish Civil War. The guy was practically born to defeat tyranny. (cont)
myblackhistory.net/Edward_Carter.…
When the US entered WWII, Carter enlisted. But because the Army was segregated, this highly experienced combat veteran was shoved into a supply role behind the lines. He wanted to fight, but systemic racism kept him on the sidelines—until 1944. (cont)
nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/s…
Facing massive casualties at the Battle of the Bulge, the Army asked Black supply troops to volunteer for the front. The catch? Black NCOs had to voluntarily demote themselves to Private just to fight. Carter didn’t hesitate. He gave up his stripes to get in the game. (cont)
March 23, 1945: Carter’s unit is pinned down by a German nest. He leads a 4-man patrol across an open field. Two are killed, one is wounded. Carter is left alone. He gets shot 5 times—leg, arm, hand, neck. He doesn't turn back. He crawls into a ditch.⬇️
military.com/off-duty/books…
An 8-man German patrol comes to finish him off. Carter waits, leaps up, kills 6 of them, and captures the other 2. Bleeding from 5 wounds, he uses the prisoners as human shields to walk back, interrogates them in fluent German, and hands over intel that saves his company. (cont)
Denied the Medal of Honor at the time due to racism, Carter passed away in 1963. But history finally caught up. In 1997, his Distinguished Service Cross was upgraded to the Medal of Honor. Today, he rests in Arlington National Cemetery. 🫡🪖🇺🇲🎖
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#DedicatedToTam✡️🕊
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