Psychological Analysis of Black Swan
In the article Freedom, Equality, and Justice for All?, The U.S. Army and the Reassessment of Race Relations in World War II addresses the different factors between racism. Racism always has and is still one of the most powerful social problems in the United States and other European countries that has caused many people of color to feel like they are not welcomed in the world. The three main arguments in this article are equality, racism, and justice to end racism. This article shows how during the 1940s when WWII was happening, many African Americans and other colored people were treated and separated from white people while fighting for a country that did not appreciate them.
To start with, the first main point of this article is seeking equality within the military. During the war, many men and women faced many hardships with racial segregation, because they were not equal and were separated from the other races. The Jim Crow Law focused on racial segregation and how men and women of color could not have the same privileges as white people. The first part of the article is undermining how the United States believes that everyone is treated equally by giving a prime example of people who have joined the military that is of color. The African American veteran is informing the readers that during the time after the Jim Crow Laws had stopped being put to use, many people were still treating others as if the law was still active. For example, the author states “Private Wilson’s perceptive comment identified a core irony of the conflict: namely, that the United State military remained segregated during World War II, reflecting the values of the Jim Crow society it purported to defend”. From this quote, the author is exemplifying how the United States military is still following the Jim Crow law after the United States clearly said that they wanted equality for all people, including people in the military. When the United States declared equality for all of its people, they left out the fact that many people of color would still be treated with the same respect they had before they were considered equal, which is being excluded from all of the privileges that white people have.
Secondly, According to Margret Mead and Ruth Benedict, they describe racism as a “social and historical construction rather than a biological trait” which means racism is not something that your are born with and just know how to do, but yet taught by being around people who were also taught to have hatred for another race. 90 percent of white troops believe in having separate uniforms from African Americans in the military because they still follow the Jim Crow laws. Another example of racism against African Americans is when blacks and whites were fighting each other when they first got to camp and when they went to talk to them about why they fought, they faulted the blacks saying they promoted and magnified the problem. which shows how even when trying to fight for a country as a whole people can’t even put aside their differences. Soldiers still fought in segregated units throughout the war, but there were advances in the number of commissioned officers. Other forms of racism included barring African-Americans from the Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and Army Air Corps, and the Navy only allowed African-Americans as mess men. These conditions were not promising, and these policies have been called “Jim Crow military”. Some changes were made with the 1940 Selective Service Training Act which stated that all men between 18 and 36, regardless of race, were eligible to volunteer in naval and ground forces without fear of discrimination. It also prohibited racial discrimination in the selection and training of military personnel. This act attempted to change the makeup of the military, but it did not address the underlying issues present such as stereotypes and racism.
In conclusion, the article has shown many readers the challenges that African Americans were faced with when it came to racism. Black men who were in the military were treated as if they were nothing compared to the white men who were also in the military. Many white men thought that the Jim Crow laws still existed and that the only equal people were them. This article had some good points as to why many African Americans in the military did not get the respect that they deserved, and then it also had some weak points that could have supported the general idea of the article which is racial discrimination. Equality and justice for all is the United States number one saying but if this saying is not beneficial to everyone like African Americans, then when will it ever get better?
