African Americans in Vietnam W
Fighting on Two Fronts: African Americans and the Vietnam War, begins by briefly looking at how previous wars such as the American Revolution, WWI, WWII, and the Korean War dealt with race relations in comparison to the Vietnam War. Earlier wars had a segregated system that limited the contact between white and black soldiers, and it was not until the Vietnam War when soldiers were fully integrated. In a chronological order beginning with the draft and ending with the soldiers returning home, Westheider examined how full integration brought about many problems for the US military. Prior to writing about racial discrimination in the Vietnam War, Westheider collected enormous amounts of data that ranged from official government documents to journal entries from soldiers. Over nine hundred personal interviews from white and black soldiers of varying ranks helped ensure the accuracy of his reports. The extent of racial conflicts depended on many things including the setting, the personnel, and the timing of military events. Despite the sensitivity of racial issues Westheider remained objective and allowed the reader to form their own opinions about the US military and their handling of racism against African Americans in the Vie
Black servicemen agreed that increasing the number of black commanders would reduce tensions and better represent the African American soldiers. Regardless of the reasons all of the commanding officers interviewed did agree that measures were taken to "get rid of militants and trouble makers" . Westheider talks about black leaders and different organizations fighting for black rights but does not fully explain their differences or the significance of their actions. Westheider writes that blacks "received Article 15's in greatly disproportionate numbers relative to their overall percentage in the armed forces" and describes an incident where African Americans made up 27. The formation of gangs had both positive and negative effects for blacks. There were also enlisted men who saw black officers as puppets of the military and had little respect for their authority believing that black officers remained neutral on racial discrimination and did not benefit black servicemen. Blacks were discriminated against because of their culture as well. Westheider is not claiming that whites were the only ones to blame but states rather objectively that blacks as well as whites were equally as likely to start trouble. Westheider assumes the reader is familiar with population statistics and therefore does not elaborate on them, which causes confusion. The draft and recruitment requirements were said to favor the middle and upper class which meant, "African Americans were being drafted in disproportionately high numbers" because of their lower social and economic standing. Westheider has many counter arguments that enhance his objectivity by explaining why there appeared to be discrimination with promotions. There are no negative or discouraging pictures that show the conflicts or struggles of the African American soldier in Vietnam. The music played in local bars was often country and western, and did not appeal to many African Americans who favored soul or rock. " US military barbers were not trained on how to cut black hair and had no regulation style to follow.
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