St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1945-04-13
REMARKS ON THE 92ND DIVISION
AND WHY NEGRO SOLDIERS CATCH
THE BRUNT OF CRITICISM
By DAN GARDNER

sonnet mostly from the Southern
States where denial of equal edu-
cational opportunities are tradi-
tional where the Negro is con-
cerned.
He said that the proportion of
men in the division in the two low
est education classes are many
times higher than in other divisions
of the Army. This iliteracy, Glib
son felt, accounted for some of the
trouble in the division and was
possibly the answer to it's poor COM
bat record. He said that 1920 of
the 92nd is in Class 4 or Class 5 in
Army literacy tests. He declared
that 1870 of the soldiers in the
92nd Division We're in Class 4, semi
illiterate, according to division rec
ords. The lowest classification, he
said, is Class 5.
"Of charges Of cowardice leveled
against the division, Mr.. Gibson
said:
ats record of casualties and of
decorations is refutation Of any
charge of cowardice on the part of
Negro soldiers"
The fact that the South has
moved its main base of anti-Negro
operations in our armed forces to
Italy and other theatres of war was
seen in the fact that the men were
thoroughly indoctrinated with
southern theories about race while
in training in U. S. army camps in
the South.
In Italy some points of great dis
content is the segregated officers
club at division headquarters, and
the many run-ins with white MPs
who resent the spectacle of Negro
officers walking or socializing with
white italian girls on a basis of
equality.
"In spite of occasional bad re-
ports, particularly in the number of
'stragglers' in combat, the division
is still doing its job and will con-
tinue to do so," Mr.. Gibson stated.
"But," he added, "the problem of
poor attitudes of both white and
colored in the division is yet to
be solved" He made note of the
system of promotion of Negro Off
GERS in the division which has been
the cause of much discomfort.
While temporary setbacks in one
the cause Of much discomfort.
others, the War Department has
not yet made them public) has
brought the all-colored division
much unfavorable publicity on the
home front, the idea persists that
most of the reaction, both in Europe
and in Washington, is and must be
racial.
Where whites are concerned, ex-
plantations are legion. Where Ne
groes are concerned, the "goat" is
always present and the "goat" in
this instance is the common state
ment that Negroes aren't ready"
for combat, etc., etc.
As remarked by Ralph Matthews
Of the Afro-American, white troops
lost Corregidor, Bataan, the Philip
pines and other strategic places and
won undying fame as "heroes." The
question would arise in such cases,
what would be the attitude if Ne
groes had lost Bataan or Corregi-
dor? Would they have been prompt
ly labeled towards?
AS said by William T. Rose, at
is of the War Department to de-
termine why no program has been
worked out since 1910 to accord
equal training to all men going up
to front-line hell"
That answer can be found in the
hearts and minds of those in Wash
ington and elsewhere in the United
States who contend that the Negro
is still an inferior being and who
hold to the Hitler theory of race
as outlined in "Mein Kampf."