Name: _____________________________
Double-V Campaign – The African American Experience in World War II
Learning through an Oral History
Do Now: What is an Oral History? What are the advantages of conducting an oral history
study of a historical time period?
America is involved in World War II from 1941—1945. At home, during this time period, what is
life like for African Americans?
We will be taking a look at the life of Ray Elliot. Like his father before him, Ray Elliot served in a
segregated military. African Americans across the nation decided that they would defer their own
fight for civil rights until and only until the world war was won.
Why do you believe that African Americans made this decision?
Story Clip #1:
We had to think of different ways so that we could keep from being full of rage because we knew that
that would be counterproductive. And so, what we used to do is to have a symbol that kept us having
a vision. And the vision was a "Double V" victory sign. And every time we saw each other, we'd give
that. And that gave us courage and hope and patience, because what we decided was that we had two
wars to win. And once we fought against the...once we finished the war against the Facists and then
...we would be home...we'll fight against racism. So the "Double Victory" was gonna be when we got
back to this country, we would fight for racism. Now what that did was...against racism...that unified
us! That brought us together with a common goal, a common cause, so we became more focused on
how we were going to fight racism when we got back. And one of the big things we felt was we're
gonna take advantage of the GI bill and get our education. And that's the way we're gonna fight it
when we get back. But that kept us from being full of rage, especially. I know in the beginning we used
to kid about...in the segregated army, we had white officers in charge of us, commanding us. Now the
white officers generally were what we used to refer to as the "ninety-day wonders", you know, three
months of training and they become officers. And many of them were not the best qualified officers
because a lot of them were young and inexperienced and whatever. But we used to kid about how we'd
get into combat, we were gonna...actually...take care of them and get revenge against them. And so,
you know, we had it...we had to get those kind of thoughts out of our mind. And that's why Double
Victory "V" sign helped us to focus on what we could do when we got back.
In the first line, Elliot says “…keep from being full of rage…”. What would he be enraged about?
What does “Double V” or “Double Victory” mean? What is it trying to achieve?
What does Elliot mean by “ninety-day wonders”? How is he being sarcastic?
Story Clip #2:
What was so typical of so many of the white officers we had...some of
them were from the south, and during different....uh times I...different
places I was at...and uh...they...w....we...I think we felt they were
deliberately assigned to black troops by the government, because they
felt...we think that...southern white officers knew how to handle black
folks. They knew how to put'em in their place, they knew how to
beat'em down, and...have control over them... better than northern
officers who'd be too compassionate or too just in their ways, or
something. And...this played out in many cases ...the officers were not
properly trained. And that was another thing that really was a bitter
experience to have, when you're fighting for this country. And so...I
think that the movement...I think that the movement for social justice,
I think, started in the Army...
In 3-4 sentences, write a quick reflection on Ray Elliot’s experiences with white officers. Why can
the army not solve this problem?
Story Clip #3:
I was not in combat in any time during my service, in the service. Most of the time I spent in this
country, or a large part of it. And the thing that really...ah...I still harbor in my thoughts is the way
blacks were treated in this...especially in this country before we went overseas, while in uniform. And
these experiences are the things that stay and one of the most profound experience I had was when I
was in Biloxi, Mississippi, and we were told that whenever you go in town, they teach you...go
together...two, not three, 'cause that's a crowd and can cause a problem. But go buddy system. And I
was a loner anyhow, and I went in by myself one time, and I drifted into the white community. And
when I realized I was in the white community, I panicked, because I had heard when we got down
there, that we...the protection for blacks was very limited....there...so much injustice...so much
trumped up charges that were not right or true against blacks. And ...they come back from being on
pass... bandaged up and being beaten up for different reasons that were not found...no foundation.
And so I drifted into the white section. I panicked. I started looking for a bus stop. I found a bus stop,
and when I did, there were a lot of people standing around waiting for a bus, and so I said, I'm not
gonna stand there. I'm gonna stand near the curb. So I went over near the curb. I stood there at the
curb, and all of a sudden this young...this old man came over and he looked me up...and he looked
very, very serious and he said to me, "Step down there," and he pointed to the gutter, and I had my
uniform on, and uh...I says, "Why did you tell me to step down there in the gutter?" And he says,
"Where you from, boy?" Well, as soon as he said "boy," I knew what was coming. That's a derogatory
expression towards blacks. And I said, "I'm from..." I was bold. I said, "I'm from God's country." He
said, "That's why I told you to step down there," and as he was yelling at me; all these people that
were around waiting for the bus, they came forward, and they started surroun....almost surrounding
me, you know, and he was raising his voice in anger and rage. "What're you doing in this area? You're
up to no good! You've been up to something. You've done something! We're gonna get..." And so I
started walking away and I was walking...they start following me and as they...follow me, I started
running...and as they're running, they were running and call...shouting all kind of things that I had
done, in that area. And all I could think of was what it...I finally realized how it felt...finally felt
how...black folks, when they've been chased by a lynch mob, and that's what it felt like. How they must
have been so much in fear. And even though I'd heard about lynching and lynch mobs, only in that
moment that I experienced a situation that I could have been in danger, that I began to recog...realize
how much they had suffered...the blacks. And so that is why that experience has stayed with me. Uh...I
was lucky enough to run into the black community...we were told to stay in black community and I was
okay, but the thoughts of having...ready to die for this country...you know...and a uniform on... and
then, and others were ready to do harm to me, just was a terrible experience. There were many like
that, many experiences like that in the south, going through the south.
In 3-4 sentences, write a quick reflection on Ray Elliot’s experiences with white officers.
How does Elliot’s experiences reflect the historical time period of the pre-Civil Rights era?
How did this experience [and many others like it] fuel the need for the Double-V campaign? How
would Elliot have been a prime leader for this campaign?
Story Clip #4:
One of the things that I realized, too, I think, was the
government really, was not really at fault for
discriminating, having a discriminated army, in a sense.
They had no real choice, I felt, because otherwise there'd
be no unity in the fighting forces. There'd be if they went
against Jim Crow practices in the south, or went against
southern
positions,
southern
positions
that...[garbled]...they had to have unity, and so the only
way was to separate the forces to prevent riots and things like that. And so, that's one thing I like to
tell people, too, that...don't hold any bitterness against the government, because some people still do.
Even though Truman passed the...in forty–eight...the...desegregated the army...there were still those
feelings.
In 1945, President Harry Truman desegregates the armed forces. Why does Elliot say that this might
not be enough? What do you think Elliot believes the country will need?
Winston Churchill's "V" for victory sign became a ubiquitous symbol of the unified approach that
political leaders as well as regular people took toward the war. In this photograph taken in 1942, a
group of Tacoma, Washington, teenagers display the victory sign.
In January 1942, James G. Thompson, wrote a letter to the African American newspaper The
Pittsburgh Courier in which he reflected upon the dilemma that he and other black people faced
as they contemplated what their role in the Second World War would be:
“Being an American of dark complexion and some 26 years, these questions flash through
my mind: Should I sacrifice my life to live half American? Will things be better for the next
generation in the peace to follow? Would it be demanding too much to demand full
citizenship rights in exchange for the sacrificing of my life? Is the kind of America I know
worth defending? Will America be a true and pure democracy after the war? Will Colored
Americans suffer still the indignities that have been heaped upon them in the past? These
and other questions need answering; I want to know, and I believe every colored American,
who is thinking, wants to know...
The V for victory sign is being displayed prominently in all so–called democratic countries
which are fighting for victory over aggression, slavery, and tyranny. If this V sign means
that to those now engaged in this great conflict, then let we colored Americans adopt the
double V V for a double victory. The first V for victory over our enemies from without, the
second V for victory over our enemies from within. For surely those who perpetrate these
ugly prejudices here are seeking to destroy our democratic form of government just as
surely as the Axis forces.”
What are the authors thoughts regarding the Double-V campaign?
What is the comparison the author makes between the Double-V campaign and our enemies, the
Axis forces?
In the following week’s newspaper, the Courier printed that they had printed the article to test the
popularity of the Double-V campaign. They found large support. In fact they said that “this slogan
represents the true battle cry of colored America…Americans all, are involved in a gigantic war
effort to assure the victory for the cause of freedom—the four freedoms that have been so nobly
expressed by President Roosevelt…” How is the Double-V campaign a continuation of FDR’s Four
Freedoms?