Harlem Hellfighters: The True Story of the 369th Infantry Regiment
My paper plans to focus on three main aspects of the history of the 369th Infantry Regiment, better known as the Harlem Hellfighters. The first section of the paper will focus exclusively on their origins and the prevalent social conditions at the outbreak of World War I. Specifically I would like to explore the racism they faced when they first enlisted and the U.S. Armys refusal to allow them to fight under American colors.
The second part of the paper will deal with their combat experience in the war, including details of how they came to fight for the French, their actual combat record, and the discrepancies between the French and American treatment of these men. It will examine the 369ths role in each individual battle, the distinctions they won, and their overall contribution to the war. In this section I would also like to focus on Corporal Henry Johnson the first American, white or black, to win the French Croix de Guerre (their highest combat award) who ran out of ammunition and fought off a patrol of Germans with nothing more than the butt of his rifle and a bolo knife. The actions of men like Johnson went along to gain the respect and admiration of the French, and gradually change at least some attitudes about the inability of black troops to fight in combat.
The third and final section of the paper will focus on the social and cultural changes that the 369th helped secure at home, as well as the continuing racism that still remained. Early African American leaders including W.E.B. DuBois and A. Phillip Randolph both credited units like the 369th for gaining increased rights for blacks and acting as an early precursor for the Civil Rights Movement. However they remained a target of racial violence, especially by groups such as the Ku Klux Klan. This last section of the paper will examine their lasting impact and this dual legacy of both progress on the one hand and continued racial barriers on the other.
The second part of the paper will deal with their combat experience in the war, including details of how they came to fight for the French, their actual combat record, and the discrepancies between the French and American treatment of these men. It will examine the 369ths role in each individual battle, the distinctions they won, and their overall contribution to the war. In this section I would also like to focus on Corporal Henry Johnson the first American, white or black, to win the French Croix de Guerre (their highest combat award) who ran out of ammunition and fought off a patrol of Germans with nothing more than the butt of his rifle and a bolo knife. The actions of men like Johnson went along to gain the respect and admiration of the French, and gradually change at least some attitudes about the inability of black troops to fight in combat.
The third and final section of the paper will focus on the social and cultural changes that the 369th helped secure at home, as well as the continuing racism that still remained. Early African American leaders including W.E.B. DuBois and A. Phillip Randolph both credited units like the 369th for gaining increased rights for blacks and acting as an early precursor for the Civil Rights Movement. However they remained a target of racial violence, especially by groups such as the Ku Klux Klan. This last section of the paper will examine their lasting impact and this dual legacy of both progress on the one hand and continued racial barriers on the other.
School:
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Department:
N/A
Research Advisor:
Vernon Burton
Department of Research Advisor:
History
Year of Publication:
2002