I-Search Paper (How Black GI’s treatment in Europe during World War 2 differed from the racism at home in the US)

Part 1

For my research question I wanted to know how Black GI’s treatment in Europe during World War 2 differed from the racism at home in the US. Did this treatment affect their attitudes when returning home to the US? Prior to my research I knew that African Americans were still segregated in the military and were assigned to labor details with few exceptions. I have read about the mostly African American 761st Tank Division of which Jackie Robinson was a member at one time. The division received a Presidential Unit Citation and was on of the most effective tank battalions in the War, but I knew nothing of the day to day life of Black GI’s in Europe or occupied Germany. I wanted to find how racism affected Black GI’s during World War 2 in Europe. Was the treatment they received from Germans and other Europeans different from what they were subjected to in the US? If so did that have an impact upon their return to the US. I began by performing a google search on the subject. The sources I found reaffirmed that Black GI’s were treated better even by the people of Germany. One of those sources however added that although the German people were not racist toward the Black GI’s they still had to endure racism from their fellow White American soldiers and commanders. Overall, the sources I found did not expand on the experiences of Black GI’s in Europe during World War 2 beyond stating that there was no segregation and African Americans interacted freely with Germans.

Part 2

I started my search on google by searching the question “How were Black troops treated overseas during World War 2. This led me to site militarytimes.com and the article African-American GIs of WWII: Fighting for Democracy Abroad. The next google search was Black American soldiers in ww2 and racism in Europe. I clicked on the first site that came up. A paper on Oxford Academic, Shocking Racial Attitudes: Black GI’s in Europe . I then chose a New York Times article from the same search. When Jim Crow Reigned Amid the Rubble of Nazi Germany.

I was unable to find enough sources on this particular subject. The information about Black GI’s in World War 2 was very limited and searches combined information from different wars and different timeframes. My thoughts regarding that lack of information are that racism even affects the way history was recorded. I changed my search term to a specific region in an attempt to find more detailed information.

One of the primary sources I found was the article in the Military Times. African-American GIs of WWII: Fighting for Democracy Abroad. https://www.militarytimes.com/military-honor/black-military-history/2018/01/30/african-american-gis-of-wwii-fighting-for-democracy-abroad-and-at-home/ This article stated the vast majority of Black soldiers served in labor and supply units their uniforms made them Americans who were there to liberate. The article went on to describe how Germans were drawn to the culture of Black soldiers specifically jazz music. Which reminded me of a book I read about an African American military band that travelled through Europe during World War 1. I was able to get a little insight into why Black GI’s were well received by Germans but not how the GI’s felt themselves.

The second source I chose was a New York Times article. When Jim Crow Reigned Amid the Rubble of Nazi Germany https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/19/magazine/blacks-wwii-racism-germany.html

I found this source to be extremely interesting because it reminded me that Black GI’s were not completely out of the reach of racism. Black members of the US military were still subjected to racism and segregation from US troops including their commanders during the German occupation. Being assigned to mostly rural areas to do things like distribute food to hungry Germans, Blacks became liked by the population. Black GI’s interacted freely with the Germans. The lack of segregation and whites only signs allowed them to go to any store, restaurant, beach or bar. Something they could not do in the US which angered white troops who threatened to boycott those places unless Blacks were not served. This made me think that nothing had changed in Europe for Black GI’s. Still subject to racist treatment which they would have to return to one day.

Part 3

What I learned from this topic is that information on African Americans in the military is limited and shallow. I was almost forced to change my research question due to this. Researching history can leave you down many different paths in search of the desired information. Questions about history can always be broken down further.

The answer to my research question is that Black GI’s were not subjected to segregation and the kind of racism they faced in the US. African Americans could go into any bar, restaurant or anywhere they wanted to go and mix with whites. All things that both the de jure and de facto segregation back home prevented them from doing. I did not change my research question. I really wanted to find more on the subject maybe personal accounts from Black GI’s. This might have been possible with a more targeted search. Ultimately Black GI’s were treated far better by the people they fought against in Germany than their fellow US troops.