Racial Conflict in the U.S. Army During the Vietnam War Era

In September 1969, African American journalist Wallace Terry reported on “another war being fought in Vietnam — between black and white Americans.” After the 1948 integration of the military, the U.S. Army had tried to be color blind, seeing not Black or white but just olive drab, but by 1970, the Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel, Gen. Walter T. Kerwin, noted: “In the past year racial discord has surfaced as one of the most serious problems facing Army leadership.” So in the midst of fighting a deeply unpopular overseas war, the military also created the Defense Race Relations Institute (DRRI) and developed mandated race relations training. Joining me to discuss race relations in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War era is Dr. Beth Bailey , a Foundation Distinguished Professor in the Department of History at the University of Kansas and Author of An Army Afire: How the US Army Confronted Its Racial Crisis in the Vietnam Era . Our theme song is Frogs Legs Rag , composed by James Scott and performed by Kevin MacLeod, licensed under Creative Commons. The mid-episode music is “ Old Soul Record ” by Musictown from Pixabay and is free to use through the Pixabay license. The episode im…