Blood for Dignity: The Story of the First Integrated Combat Unit in the U.S. Army

My father is one of the brave men featured in this book. He was and will always be my hero. Guess I'm a little biased, but those are the facts. It's a shame 50+ years had to go by before any Bronze Stars were awarded to the men for their bravery.

As the son of a 99th Division infantryman, I heard stories of The Battle of the Bulge, and the Remagan Bridge battles. So when I saw this unique book on the first "integrated" army units of WWII, many serving in the 99th, I purchased it. Just as Chinese workers were rarely pictured in the 19th Century railway construction photos, black soldiers never appeared in popular WWII films, except when seen as laborers, servants, orderlies, or drivers. This book helps to initiate wider recognition of these men and a historical correction. Each of the early chapters contain contemptuous outrages of life in the U.S. Army, including racist incidents, segregated Red Cross centers, poor training, and earned combat medals that were never delivered to African American soldiers. German POW's were treated better than black soldiers, in many cases, and one can imagine life for soldiers from the Northern states who were shipped to racist Southern states for training, such as at Camp van Dorn. The book details how at the end of the war, black combat soldiers were quickly sent back to their old units, sowing bitterness. The dignity for their spilled blood did not come until fifty years later. Colley, who briefly outlines the contributions of black soldiers in colonial American armies, the Civil War, and the Spanish American War, opens this book in the heat of a battle, when black volunteers come to rescue their fellow infantrymen in K Company on March 13, 1945. 2,221 African American soldiers in about 52 platoons were allowed to volunteer for combat assignments as the war was coming to an end. This book mainly focuses on members of the 5th of K (99th Infantry, 394 Infantry Regiment, K Company, 5th platoon, led by Lt. Richard Ralston) and the 5th of E. The author introduces the reader to these men's lives prior to war, and shows their evolution into combat troops. By the close of the war, as Iserlohn falls, and the 394th crossed the Altmuhl, they are grizzled veterans. An excellent book, an exciting read, and a necessary contribution to American History.