Date/Time
Date(s) - 11/21/2019
6:30 pm - 7:30 pm
Location
Maplewood Public Library
Categories
World War I was a significant period of transition for the draft-age African-American male residing in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1917. African-American soldiers and their families trusted that enlistment in the war effort would provide them greater opportunities for the social, economic, and political gains previously denied them. For most of them, this expectation was not realized. The African-American WWI veteran and the Black community’s progress towards a more accepting and inclusive society moved at a painstakingly slow and arduous pace. This presentation will discuss the soldiers’ journey from the combat battlefields of France to the urban battlefield of St. Louis. Presented by Peter Taylor, United States Air Force retired, for his Masters of Art thesis in American Cultural Studies of University College at Washington University in St. Louis, and currently a Danforth Urban Fellow at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis.