1. Minorities and WWII

2. African Americans in WWII
Served in every theater of war
,000 enlisted
million enlisted
Segregation
Segregated practices of civilian life spilled over into military service
Many were passed over in the draft (despite their desire to serve)
Those that were enlisted served in non-combat roles (maintenance, transportation, supply, etc)
By 1945, troop losses forced the army to allow Af. Americans into other positions (pilots, tankers, infantry men, etc)
The Tuskegee Airmen
Famous African American bomber division that flew more than 15,000 missions over Southern Italy from
Fighting for a Double Victory
Victory abroad, and expanded rights at home

3. Mexican Americans in WWII
Bracero Program- 1942
Temporary work program that imported workers from Mexico and Puerto Rico to meet labor shortages
Mainly agricultural, but also some industrial jobs
Substandard conditions- “box car camps”- limited access to services or contact with the native population
Zoot Suit Riots in Los Angeles- 1943
Zoot suits
A conflict between white and Mexican men erupted into widespread rioting
At the end of the war and the return of the workforce, many were required to return to Mexico

4. Native Americans in WWII
Over 44,000 Native Americans served in the military out of a total population of only 350,000
Navajo Code Talkers
Early in 1942 the idea of creating a wartime military code around the Navajo language was presented
Navajo is unwritten and incredibly complex
Initial 29 Navajo were trained in California where they developed and memorized the code
After training they were sent with a Marine unit into the Pacific
~400 Navajos would serve as code talkers
The code was never broken

5. Japanese Americans
Just over 100,000 Japanese lived in the US, almost all on the West Coast
After Pearl Harbor, nation began to question where their loyalties lay
Feb. 19, All people of Japanese ancestry (both citizens and aliens) were required to leave the West Coast
Heavy financial losses as families sold possessions and businesses to relocate
FDR created the War Relocation Authority- 10 internment camps across the West
Minimum security prisons- barbed wire and crowded barracks
Many Japanese men escaped the internment camps by enlisting
442nd Regimental Combat Team- most decorated military unit in WWII

6. Visions of the Internment Camps
Watch this film distributed by the War Relocation Authority
Complete Motion Picture Analysis Sheet
Read and analyze documents and pictures in packet.