It’s June 6th, the anniversary of D-Day, a day we should also remember that 1.2 million black soldiers who served during WWII, came home and were denied the GI Bill.
If you’re thinking, "What? I’ve never heard of this.” Welcome to Privilege Town, population: you. 1/13
If you’re thinking, "What? I’ve never heard of this.” Welcome to Privilege Town, population: you. 1/13
The language of the GI bill didn’t exclude black veterans. It didn’t have to, because there was already a system in place that saw 39% of black soldiers dishonorably discharged, twice as many as white soldiers. 2/13
The remaining 61% of black veterans—men and women who served and sacrificed—were then fed into a meat grinder of segregation, redlining, Jim Crow laws, and lynching. 3/13
Pull up a chair, kids. Let talk about Mississippi Congressman, John Rankin, a virulent racist who pushed for states to be able administer the distribution of GI Bill benefits to black veterans.
SPOILER ALERT: They weren’t. 4/13
SPOILER ALERT: They weren’t. 4/13
Rankin was the sponsor of bills that prevented interracial marriage and kept lynching from becoming a federal crime. He regularly used the n-word on the floor of the US House and refused to sit near Adam Clayton Powell Jr., an African American congressman from New York. 5/13
Lawmakers like Rankin called for black vets to be denied veteran’s unemployment benefits if there was any other work, even if that work provided less than poverty-level wages. Then postmasters who served black communities refused to deliver the forms to apply for benefits. 6/13
Meanwhile the VA pushed black veterans to black colleges and universities that were massively underfunded, unaccredited, and with so few black schools and so many black veterans applying, tens of thousands were turned away. 7/13
Those who applied to trade schools were often denied because those schools prioritized applicants based on race. 8/13
Redlining kept black veterans from obtaining home loans (which were administered locally, not by the VA) and if they did get a loan, racist covenants kept black veterans from being able to purchase those homes. 9/13
Those who did manage to overcome these obstacles often faced the threat of lynching. (Rankin regularly blamed black people for their own lynching, saying the victim was rioting, even when it was a lone black family surrounded by white mobs). 10/13
The denial of the GI Bill to black vets wasn’t limited to the south.
Because of redlining, of the 67,000 home loans given to veterans in NY and NJ, less than 100 went to black soldiers and sailors. You can find similar statistics for other northern cities, like Chicago. 11/13
Because of redlining, of the 67,000 home loans given to veterans in NY and NJ, less than 100 went to black soldiers and sailors. You can find similar statistics for other northern cities, like Chicago. 11/13
When people advocate for reparations for black communities, they’re not just talking about slavery. They’re talking about ALL of the above. Many Americans can say, “My grandfather or uncle fought in the war, went to college, bought a home and lived happily ever after.” 12/13
There are other Americans, the children and grandchildren of African American servicemen, who aren’t as fortunate. Something to keep in mind today, as you’re watching a rerun of Saving Private Ryan. 13/13
Yes, I know Rankin was a Dem. I also know Lincoln said, "I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the white and black races." He hated slavery, was fine with inequality. Racism is a US prob, not the prob of 1 party.
And in case anyone is wondering, yes, my family served too. Clockwise from upper left, my great-uncles Francis, Tommy, Edward, and Thomas (Chinese Air Force).
