Mastodawn

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[Warning: Some language may be offensive]

Harry Truman's journey to signing Executive Order No. 9981 involved overcoming his deeply ingrained racial prejudices. Initially, he wasn't a champion of Black Americans, but his transformation from a segregationist to a civil rights advocate was truly astonishing.

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Born on May 8, 1884, nearly two decades after the Civil War's end, Truman grew up in a segregated town in Missouri, once a pro-slavery state. Both sides of his family were connected to slavery, with grandparents who owned slaves. His mother, Martha Ellen Young, held a strong dislike for President Abraham Lincoln.

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Truman's upbringing shaped his perspective, influenced by his mother's beliefs and the prevailing views of the South regarding the War Between the States and Reconstruction. He spent his early years in Missouri, where segregation was accepted without much questioning, and, again, his grandparents from both sides had owned slaves.

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Living in this former slave state, the small-town rural environment was marked by segregation and subordination for many citizens. Black residents faced segregation in their living arrangements, schooling, and access to stores. In his early letters, young Harry Truman openly acknowledged his prejudices against Black and Asian Americans, reflecting on his background and views at that time.

https://www.trumanlibrary.gov/library/truman-papers/correspondence-harry-s-truman-bess-wallace-1910-1919/june-22-1911

In a June 22, 1911 love letter to his future wife, Bess Wallace, 27 year old Truman, serving as a corporal in the Missouri National Guard, penned a letter to his future wife, Bess Wallace.

“I think one man is just as good as another so long as he’s honest and decent and not a nigger or a Chinaman…”

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June 22, 1911 | Harry S. Truman

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Truman's transformation, from farm boy raised by Confederate sympathizers to U.S. president who signed the order to desegregate the armed forces is vividly traceable in his letters and memoirs.

“ I am strongly of the opinion that negros (sic) ought to be in Africa, yellow men in Asia and white men in Europe and America.” Truman wrote in the same 1911 letter to his future wife.

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From the same letter:

“Uncle Will says that the Lord made a white man from dust, a nigger from mud, and then threw what was left and it came down a Chinaman. He does hate Chinese and Japs. So do I. It is race prejudice I guess. But I am strongly of the opinion that negroes ought to be in Africa, yellow men in Asia, and white men in Europe and America.”

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During Truman's tenure as a U.S. Senator, he composed a letter to his daughter, Margaret, dated April 7, 1937. In the letter, he recounted a dinner at the White House with President Franklin D. Roosevelt, unfortunately using a derogatory name to refer to the black waitstaff.

https://www.trumanlibrary.gov/library/truman-papers/correspondence-harry-s-truman-margaret-truman-1927-1964/april-7-1937?documentid=NA&pagenumber=1

“They gave a real good meal at the taxpayers[’] expense — tomato soup, fillet of flounder, roast turkey, string beans, pineapple salad, chocolate ice cream and cake, candy and little cafe noir afterwards.”

“All these things were in courses, deftly placed and removed by an army of coons..”

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April 7, 1937 | Harry S. Truman

https://www.trumanlibrary.gov/library/truman-papers/correspondence-harry-s-truman-bess-wallace-truman-1921-1959/august-4-1939

On August 4, 1939, two years later, Truman wrote to his wife from Washington.

“Well this is nigger picnic day. But they don’t have ’em like they did in days past. I remember once going to Washington Park with our washwoman to a Fourth of August celebration. I’ll never forget it. Had chicken and catfish fried in corn meal and was it good!”

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August 4, 1939 | Harry S. Truman

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Truman's beliefs were deeply influenced by his upbringing in Missouri. The state had a troubling history, with 60 recorded cases of Black American lynchings between 1877 and 1950, ranking it second-highest among states outside the Deep South during that period.

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Growing up, Truman was exposed to a home environment that openly disdained abolitionism, Reconstruction, and even President Abraham Lincoln. He absorbed these sentiments from an early age, learning them at his mother's side.

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As a result, Truman embraced a strong belief in white supremacy. When he secured the position of FDR’s running mate in the 1944 DNC with help from Southerners, AL Gov Chauncey Sparks proudly celebrated their success, Sparks bellowed:

“The South has won a substantial victory. … In the matter of race relations Senator Truman told me he is the son of an unreconstructed rebel mother.”

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However, various mediating forces began to have an impact on Truman. His service as an officer in World War I and his post-war business interactions with a Jewish partner played a role in broadening his perspectives. As 1940 approached and he campaigned for re-election to the US Senate, it became evident that his viewpoint had matured.

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In a speech in Sedalia, Missouri, he said:

“I believe in the brotherhood of man, not merely the brotherhood of white men, but the brotherhood of all men before law. I believe in the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. In giving the Negroes the rights which are theirs, we are only acting in accord with our own ideals of a true democracy.”

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In 1940, Black-Americans constituted nearly 10 percent of the entire U.S. population, amounting to 12.6 million people out of a total of 131 million. During World War II, the Army emerged as the nation's largest employer of minorities.

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Out of the 2.5 million Black-American males who registered for the draft by December 31, 1945, more than one million were inducted into the armed forces. Additionally, numerous Black women volunteered and served in all branches of the military and across various theaters of operations during the war.

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To address complaints about discrimination against Black Americans at home during World War II, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 8802 in June 1941. The order aimed to ensure Black Americans' acceptance into job-training programs in defense plants, prohibit discrimination by defense contractors, and establish a Fair Employment Practices Commission (FEPC).

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Throughout history, Black Americans had served in the U.S. military, but their largest deployment occurred during World War II.

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By December 31, 1945, over 2.5 million Black Americans had registered for the military draft, and with many Black American women volunteering, the U.S. Armed Forces became the foremost employer of Black people.

Following Roosevelt's passing on April 12, 1945, now President Truman assumed responsibility for concluding World War II and allowed Congress to terminate the FEPC.

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Yudhvir Jul 29, 2023

@Deglassco if that is true, then why do white people hate them?

@savera prejudice and bigotry.

Patty A. Gray Jul 29, 2023

Thank god he outgrew being the dipsh*t son of a rebel mother.

@Pattyagray indeed. I believe his mother stayed an unreconstructed rebel to the end.

Patty A. Gray Jul 29, 2023

Argh……

@Pattyagray yes, it can be disturbing, but it’s important to put people in the context of their environment and time and not to sugarcoat it.

Patty A. Gray Jul 30, 2023

I deleted several half-written sentences after that argh because they pointed to my own past experience. Didn’t want to draw focus to that. I totally agree with you, no sugar-coating. I heard plenty of that language and more in high school in Nashville. It was an integrated school. I had just been moved there from a lily-white town in the northeast. On the upside, I never would have interacted with that many Black folks if we hadn’t moved. On the down side…

Patty A. Gray Jul 30, 2023

…on the down side, all the White kids assumed I shared their assumptions about color. I heard conversations meant only for White ears. That was my real education, beyond the classroom. I learned the Civil War had *never* ended, because these kids and their parents were still forging ahead with a rebel yell. I got out of there the minute I graduated. Oh-and sexism. It was racism and sexism all the way down. Taught me a lot.

Love your posts.

@Pattyagray thank you for sharing your experience. We are all learning from each other.

Georgiann Baldino Jul 29, 2023

@Deglassco At the end of Truman's term, he was low on the list of presidential rankings but has climbed to number 6, rising in stature due in part to desegregation in the military.

@obtener Yes, true.

SeeMoore Jul 30, 2023

@Deglassco my dad also largely overcame a racist upbringing. He worked for TWA and once got to shake Truman’s hand, it was his favorite interaction in a 54 year career, beating Pope John Paul II, dad was even a Catholic. He never missed a vote and he never once voted for a Republican.

Patty A. Gray Jul 29, 2023

This is a great thread! Well worth the read.

@Pattyagray 🙏

ChrisU Jul 29, 2023

His story shows that racism is learned and can be unlearned, or at least, suppressed enough to do the right thing.

@chrisU indeed. And we saw this also with Abraham Lincoln. That’s the kind of leader you want to have. Nobody’s perfect, but we can learn and continue to learn, from each other.

isotope239 🥸💻🇺🇦😣Jul 29, 2023

@Deglassco @[email protected] @BlackMastodon A good accompaniment to this excellent thread is the fact that yesterday was Buffalo Soldier Day: https://www.army.mil/article/248832/honoring_national_buffalo_soldiers_day

#BuffaloSoldier

Honoring National Buffalo Soldiers Day

SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, III. – Buffalo Soldiers Day is July 28, commemorating the formation of the first Army regiments comprised of African American Sold...

www.army.mil

@isotope239 thank you for the information. Reading it now.

isotope239 🥸💻🇺🇦😣Jul 30, 2023

@Deglassco I hadn't realized that there was a national day for the Buffalo Soldiers until I saw this in my local newspaper: https://www.abqjournal.com/multimedia/a-salute-to-the-buffalo-soldiers-at-historic-fairview-cemetery/collection_063de142-2d94-11ee-b629-a3462585b599.html#1 The Buffalo Soldiers are quite famous out here in the West.

A Salute to the Buffalo Soldiers at Historic Fairview Cemetery

Members of the New Mexico Buffalo Soldiers Motorcycle Club added the Buffalo Soldier flag to the U.S. flag, in honor of the 13 Buffalo Soldiers buried at the Historic Fairview

Albuquerque Journal

@isotope239 thanks for providing that. I didn’t know it either.

Maude Nificent Jul 29, 2023

thank you again for another illuminating thread 💐

@maudenificent 🙏

ES Michelson Jul 29, 2023

#Histodons #History #BlackHistory #BlackMastodon

Great thread from @Deglassco on #transformation.Truman had big flaws (extremely debatable A-bomb use for example) and this thread teaches us some racist thinking remained but he moved policy, and the country forward on race.

I won't give up on those who differ politically. #Kindness #Compassion #Patience never hurt. The opposite of the #SocialMedia norm. Mastodon is kind.

@esmichelson Agreed.

Stephen Bannasch (316 ppm)Jul 29, 2023

@Deglassco @[email protected] @BlackMastodon thanks for writing and sharing these amazing threads. The stories/histories are super important and you do such a great job in this constrained format.

@stepheneb 🙏

KIZILELMALILAR Ummeti Jul 29, 2023

@Deglassco @[email protected] @BlackMastodon
To save the OneLaw+ReligionForAll Tyranny.

Amendment of ARTICLE ONE

CONGRESS shall make no LAW respecting an ESTABLISHMENT of RELIGION.

(the Constitution of THE USA)

I think it is time to make this Amendment more picturesque ? :->

[Further Amendment of ARTICLE ONE]

CONGRESS shall make no LAW respecting an ESTABLISHMENT of RELIGION -
except of its own as it shall be ESTABLISHED by LAW made by CONGRESS....

GeezerTek Jul 30, 2023

@Deglassco @[email protected] @BlackMastodon I tell most people that my 20+ years in the military was the most non-racially guided experiences in my life. I found that for most veterans when your laying in the dirt bleeding, you really don't care what color the person skin is that is helping save your life. Thankyou for mentioning this event, it needs to be remembered. I am not just saying that because my last name happens to be Truman either.

@geezertek indeed.

Adeline_phenatypicals Jul 30, 2023

@Deglassco @[email protected] @BlackMastodon One of the many reasons Australians had to hate Americans when thy were forced on us during WWII was the overt racist, downright NAZI treatment of African American service personnel that my parents generation witnessed. Australia has its own racism problem, but it has not been the level of fascist that we witnessed then and continue to witness today. Look up the Wikipedia entry for "the Battle of Brisbane" to get an idea of how much we hated Americans.

Sensible Crone Jul 30, 2023

@Deglassco @[email protected] @BlackMastodon ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️

Dr. D. Elisabeth Glassco Jul 31, 2023

@susiemagoo 🙏