Basic Training of Black Military Soldiers During World War II (Unknown Training Photograph)

     Basic training of black military soldiers during World War II was in segregated units.

     See Unknown Training Photograph By Dr. Gladys Turner Finney.

     Click here: www.aaggmv.org

Family Research: Emmett DeWitt Turner, Jr.

                                                          Emmett DeWitt Turner, Jr.
                                                                    World War II
                                                         SC3c United States Navy, 866101

                                       
                                     Date of Birth: March 3, 1924, Kansas City, Kansas.

                                      Place of Entry: Kansas City, Kansas, June 14, 1943.

                                     Assignments/Location :
                                     NRS, Kansas City, Missouri
                                     USNTS, Great Lakes, Illinois
                                     US Naval Trade School, Hampton, Virginia
                                     Inshore Patrol, NOB, Norfolk, Virginia
                                     Sect. Base, Little Creek, Virginia
                                     CIC Group TRACEN, Little Creek, Virginia
                                     NAV TraSte, Newport, Rhode Island
                                     U,S,S. LACERTA (AKA-29)

                                     Decorations/Awards:
                                     World War II Victory Medal
                                     America Area Campaign Medal
                                     Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
                                     W/1 Bronze Star

                          Place of Separation: Kansas City, Kansas, January 7, 1946.
                         
                         Wife: Nevelyn Turner

                         Date of Death: August 16, 1987.

                         Buried: Section 45, Row 31, Site 1, Leavenworth National Cemetery.

                         Source: National Personnel Records

                         (c) copyright 2015

Family Research, SPC Freddie Lee Johnson

                                             

SPC Freddie Lee Johnson, Military Police
United States Army
Vietnam Era

Date of Entry: February 10, 1970, Ft. Knox, Kentucky

Advanced Infantry Training, Ft. Gordon, Georgia

 Date of  Discharge: January 15, 1972, Ft. Dix, New Jersey

                                             (c) copyright 2015

Family Research: Private First Class James Bluford, Jr.

                                           PRIVATE FIRST CLASS JAMES BLUFORD, JR.
                                                                       WORLD WAR II
                                                                UNITED STATES ARMY

                                                       
                                           Date of Birth: August 22, 1922, Grady, Arkansas

                              Place of Entry: 1639th Service Unit, Chicago, Illinois, May 18, 1943

                              Assignment/Location: 3738 Quartermaster Truck Company, Central Europe
                                                                   and Rhineland Campaign

                              Place of Separation: Camp Chaffee, Arkansas, November 16, 1945                                
                                                                  Wife: Freddie Mae Phillips

                                                                  Date of Death: June 13, 1974

                             Buried: Randolph Cemetery, Grady, Lincoln County, Arkansas


 
                               
                             

Family Research: Private First Class Roy Burr

                                                                  FAMILY RESEARCH

                                                             
                                                                       ROY BURR
                                                                     WORLD WAR II

                                                       Private First Class: United States Army

                                                       Date of Birth: February 27, 1920
                                               
                                             Assignment/Geographic Location: La Cygne, Kansas

                                                               Wife: Alice Turner Burr

                                                         Date of Death: October 15, 1995

                                             Buried: Leavenworth National Cemetery, Leavenworth, Kansas

                                              (c) copyright 2015




         

The Land of Kwame Nkrumah

The Land of Kwame Nkrumah
Part III.


                       

When we landed at the airport in Accra from Lagos, Nigeria, I was intrigued by the throngs of people outside the airport.  I felt the tiredness of travel. The trip had really begun in Nairobi, Kenya. No one was at the airport to greet us. Mr. F went to the Ethiopian Airlines Desk and was assisted in calling our host. A car was dispatched to pick us up.

Our host is H. E. Major General Zere Mariam, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plentipotentiary of
Ethiopia to Ghana. He is the father of another Ethiopian friend of Mr. F in the U.S.

The streets of Accra are full of energy. I am also energized by the sights and smells. The market place is a fascinating experience. The skill of bargaining is also required. The women are highly involved in the economics of small businesses. The kente cloth is colorful and beautiful, a rich heritage tradition. Women and nursing mothers carry their babies on the front in contrast to the women in Ethiopia who carry their babies on their backs. At the market place, there are no crying babies. They are secure and serene, nestle and snug against their mothers' chest.

Ambassador Zere Mariam takes us sight seeing. Sometimes his young son, Azazi, accompany him. Mr. F and the Ambassador talk economics and politics. Once when Mr. F. inquires about the Fishing Industry, we are taken on a lake where their are fishermen and fish stacked in the sun drying. Mr. F. and the Ambassador spend a day in Chad and may have gone as far as the Sudan. While they are away I visit with people whose names I have been given by friends back home. There is quite a middle class in Accra. Their favorite car seems to be the Mercedes.

Ghana is the former Gold Coast. Kwame Nkrumah led the Gold Coast to independence from the
United Kingdom as Ghana in 1957. Think Nkrumah. Think international symbol of freedom! During the Black is Beautiful Movement in the 1960s, African-Americans adorned afro hairstyles and dashiki dress. When I changed to an afro one of my white colleagues said "I liked you better hunky-fied." One of Mr. F's Friend, George Washington, changed his name to Baruti Nkrumah. Nkrumah's name is well-known among freedom loving people in the United States.

Dr. W.E.B. DuBois came to Ghana some years back at the guest of President Nkrumah. He died in 1963 and is buried here. Both are much loved for their vision of Pan-Africianism.

(c) copyright 2015

The Land of Jomo Kenyatta

Part II.
We are continuing our African Journey across the African Continent, East to West. We land at the Nairobi, Kenya airport from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. (January, 1974).

We check into the Nairobi Hilton. I am excited. Seeing a billboard of Jomo Kenyatta, the Father of the Nation, and people like me in the majority, is empowering. Kenya celebrated its tenth year of freedom and independence from colonial rule last year. Nairobi is one of the two major cities. It has the look and feel of a cosmopolitan city.

We spend our time sight seeing, eating and resting in our hotel. Mr. F. arranges for a tour guide and we see the familiar tourist sites. I will always remember the popular Wild Life Reserve. I took many pictures of the animals. Nairobi's assets are its wild life resources and admirable climate. The city is 1,661 meters above sea level. I enjoy walking on the streets, looking at the people, and walking between the hotel and shops. I feel completely safe. En route to the airport, I leave behind in the taxi the prints I purchased of  the revered first president Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya.

Excerpts from the poem: To "Our Mzee Jomo Kenyatta" By Ommar Nassar

"The father of our land of mountains, rivers and sun
  This land of plenty where once much evil was done
  Where the unity of the masses was one red-hot rod
  This land where the Mau Mau received the blessings of God.
  When the patriots fought to free it to every bit of sand
  That the people should enjoy the fruits of this land.

  Mzee, it was you who proclaimed our first economic war
  To enable every mwananchi to possess just a little more."

Excerpts from the poem, The Sons of Africa by Grace Ndelimiko
"Oh, Africa the continent of my birth,
Time is now here for you to rejoice,
Your sons now stand among men,
Their voices cannot longer be ignored,
Their initials they have carved,
among great names of the world,
Your lamentations are turned to expectations."

We rejoin Yemane, Trixie and little Zehai at the airport in Lagos, Nigeria.  The flight distance from Nairobi to Lagos is 2,368 miles. A beautiful flight day, we fly over Lake Victoria.

On immediate sight, there are mosquito bites all over the faces and arms of Yemane, Trixie and little Zehai. The guys decided we would bypass Lagos since Yemane had spent time there.They are flying back to the United States. I had enough time to deplane and set foot on Nigerian soil and haggle for the purchase of a female head carving in side the airport. So on to Accra, Ghana.

(c) copyright 2015