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
As the unpopularity of the war increased so did the number of protests and anti war movements. The US military realized that the new recruits were often reluctant draftees who were influenced by many different organizations. 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. Different black organization goals and objectives are not discussed yet Westheider insists that they had an impact on African Americans serving in Vietnam. Organizations may have influenced many African Americans but since there is little mention of their objectives or background the reader is confused and only partially informed about their impact. Had Westheider devoted a chapter to black organizations, their goals and objectives, or even briefly discussed their impact there would not be any confusion. Beginning with the draft, the reader is overwhelmed by the enormous amount of statistical data. Westheider discusses in a chapter what could have been best explained with a series of graphs. Earlier chapters focus on numbers while later chapters add a human element to the Vietnam experience. 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. It would be useful if the reader knew what percent of Americans were eligible for service, which would put the number of black recruits in perspective. Westheider assumes the reader is familiar with population statistics and therefore does not elaborate on them, which causes confusion. There is more than just statistical data, which indicates there was racial discrimination in Vietnam among US soldiers. In 1967 there were "no African Americans at all on boards in seven southern states" , therefore many southern blacks saw the drafting process as racist. Westheider does not solely blame the US military for its institutional racism but also refers to the social and economic conditions that made African Americans more likely to be drafted than their white counterpart. College students and skilled workers were often exempt from the draft and many African Americans, through no fault of their own, could not afford college nor attain highly skilled positions in the workforce. American society discriminated against blacks and according to Westheider, since the US military was a branch of American society, discrimination existed there as well. The Marines like the Army denied that racial discrimination existed and thought of all marines as green not black or white. However this "meant that black cultural needs were usually ignored in favor of white cultural needs." US military barbers were not trained on how to cut black hair and had no regulation style to follow. Military commanders were also ignorant to the fact that many black officers were more likely to have pseudofolliculitus also known as shaving bumps, a skin condition that led to scarring if shaving persisted. The military allowed a beard to be grown for a maximum of three months which forced the black soldier to either shave and face scarring or face disciplinary action. Along with inadequate hair products, African American magazines and clothes were in short supply. The music played in local bars was often country and western, and did not appeal to many African Americans who favored soul or rock. It was not until the mid 1970's that African American entertainers and music entered Vietnam. But Westheider describes that different tastes in mus
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 2462
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page double spaced)
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