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The War At Home
75 years ago, Black veterans fought for America. They returned home and had to keep fighting.
World War II officially came to an end 75 years ago when Japan formally surrendered on September 2, 1945 during a brief ceremony aboard the Navy battleship USS Missouri, which was anchored in Tokyo Bay. Amid much pomp and circumstance, stoic Japanese leaders signed the Instrument of Surrender as did U.S. officials and leaders of the other Allied countries. When the ceremony was over, a parade of fighter jets flew overhead.
On the day of the ceremony, over 200 warships representing the U.S. Navy Fleet and the Allies were either present in Toyko Bay or sat just outside in the Pacific Ocean. Thousands of young sailors were aboard these ships; many of them had been at sea for a year. So, while they were witnessing history, they were more excited about returning home. Yet Black sailors looked forward to something more.
They hoped to return to a country that finally saw them as equal citizens. Even though they’d served in a segregated military, they were determined to represent America with valor; thus proving themselves worthy of having full rights and earning the respect that had so often eluded them before and during the war.
