WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (BP)–In the United States, there is no want of loyal servants when, in any capacity, they are needed. The United States Armed Forces is the spectacular cross-section of Americans who are willing to serve their country, and to the nth degree if necessary.
The brilliant faces of American soldiers in Iraq are those of the young men and women who have stalwartly accepted the challenges of leadership that carry with it sacrifice in order to change the lives of the long-oppressed inhabitants of a country beleaguered by three decades of remorseless dictatorship.
By its very nature, shoulder-to-shoulder and toe-to-toe service rendered to America by its military personnel levels the ground beneath them. The individual stories that mark each life with their acts of courage render them poignant. But especially poignant would be the stories of lives that tell the tales of soldiers who live and work in the military tradition of Crispus Attucks.
In the opening rounds of the Revolutionary War, Crispus Attucks, a valiant soldier, became the first American black killed.
In every American military engagement since, American blacks have served their country with dauntless loyalty. Many even went to battle with the Confederacy during the Civil War, lending validity to the country’s unique governmental system of checks and balances, though in the aftermath of that war, they received little of their government’s benefits.
Nonetheless, generations later the stellar rise of former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Colin L. Powell (U.S. Army Ret.) crisply defines the face of American blacks who serve the United States in the military. And generations later, in the United States military there are no class ceilings to impede growth or obstruct opportunity and personal development of blacks who serve. Notably, the armed forces are the only sector of American life where blacks are routinely promoted through the ranks to positions of high leadership.
Just 10 years of age when President Harry S. Truman ordered the desegregation of America’s armed forces, Powell states, “The freedoms [we] enjoy today are only possible because of the sacrifices of the soldiers who have served this great nation in war at various times for over 300 years. Since 1641 there has never been a time in this country when African-Americans were unwilling to serve and sacrifice for America….”
This same service of American blacks continues during engagements of America to defend itself, or to liberate others. Early in the war in Afghanistan, when a C130 crashed in Pakistan, a young woman radio operator became, historically, the first woman Marine to die in hostile engagement. Specialist Jeannette L. Winters, 25 was, African American. In the Gulf War II engagement, Shoshana Johnson, among the first prisoners of war in Iraq, is an American black.
The service and ultimate sacrifice of Specialist Winters, the service and recent captivity of Shoshana Johnson herald the indispensable service of all United States military women.
Their sacrificial example also keeps clear the plans, purposes, sacrifices and commitments of American blacks who serve the country through its armed forces, doing their part to keep it a great nation of liberties and freedoms.
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Terriel R. Byrd, Ph.D., is assistant professor of religion and director of urban ministries studies at Palm Beach Atlantic University, West Palm Beach, Fla.
