WEBVTT - Black WWII Veterans were Denied the G.I. Bill

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<v Speaker 1>Right now, it is time for the way Black History Fact.

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<v Speaker 1>In today's way Black History Fact comes from history dot Com.

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<v Speaker 1>I'll share a bit. When Eugene Burnett saw the neat

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<v Speaker 1>tracked houses of Levittown, New York, he knew he wanted

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<v Speaker 1>to buy one. It was nineteen forty nine, and he

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<v Speaker 1>was ready to settle down in a larger home with

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<v Speaker 1>his family. The newly established Long Island suburbs seemed like

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<v Speaker 1>the perfect place to begin their postwar life, one that

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<v Speaker 1>he hoped would be improved with the help of the

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<v Speaker 1>GI Bill, a piece of sweeping legislation aimed at helping

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<v Speaker 1>World War Two veterans like Burnett prosper after the war.

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<v Speaker 1>But when he spoke with the salesman about buying the

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<v Speaker 1>house using a GI Bill guaranteed mortgage, the door to

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<v Speaker 1>suburban life and Levintown slam firmly in his face. The

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<v Speaker 1>suburb wasn't open to black residents. The Burnetts weren't the

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<v Speaker 1>only Black Americans for whom the promise of the GI

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<v Speaker 1>Bill turned out to be an illusion. Though the bill

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<v Speaker 1>helped white Americans prosper and accumulate wealth in the post

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<v Speaker 1>war years, it didn't deliver on that promise for veterans

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<v Speaker 1>of color. In fact, the wide disparity in the bill's

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<v Speaker 1>implementation ended up helping drive growing gaps in wealth, education,

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<v Speaker 1>and civil rights between white and Black Americans. While the

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<v Speaker 1>GI Bill's language did not specifically exclude African American veterans

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<v Speaker 1>from its benefits, it was structured in a way that

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<v Speaker 1>ultimately shut the doors for the one point two million

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<v Speaker 1>black veterans who had bravely served their country during World

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<v Speaker 1>War II and segregated ranks. Again, I want to share

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<v Speaker 1>that this is from History dot com, not Ramses dot com,

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<v Speaker 1>not Q dot com, not CIVI exci fort a, History

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<v Speaker 1>dot com. Right, let me continue. When lawmakers began drafting

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<v Speaker 1>the GI Bill in nineteen forty four, some Southern Democrats

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<v Speaker 1>feared that returning black veterans would use public sympathy for

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<v Speaker 1>veterans to advocate against Jim Crow laws. To make sure

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<v Speaker 1>the GI Bill largely benefited white people, Southern Democrats drew

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<v Speaker 1>on tactics they had previously used to ensure that the

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<v Speaker 1>new deal helped as few black people as possible. From

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<v Speaker 1>the start, black veterans had trouble securing the GI bills

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<v Speaker 1>benefits veterans who did qualify could not find facilities that

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<v Speaker 1>delivered on the bill's promise. Black veterans in a vocational

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<v Speaker 1>training program at segregated high school in Indianapolis were unable

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<v Speaker 1>to participate in activities related to plumbing, electricity, and printing

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<v Speaker 1>because inadequate equipment was only available to white students. Simple

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<v Speaker 1>intimidation kept others from enjoying Gibill benefits. In nineteen forty seven,

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<v Speaker 1>for example, a crowd hurled rocks at black veterans as

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<v Speaker 1>they moved into a Chicago housing development. Thousands of black

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<v Speaker 1>veterans were attacked in the years following World War Two,

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<v Speaker 1>and some were singled out and lynched. Though Mississippi Congressman

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<v Speaker 1>John rankin Hart had lost the battle to exclude black

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<v Speaker 1>men from BA unemployment insurance, it was doled out inequitably.

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<v Speaker 1>Most men who applied for unemployment benefits were kicked out

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<v Speaker 1>of the program if any other work was available to them,

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<v Speaker 1>even work that provided less than subsistence wages. Southern postmasters

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<v Speaker 1>were even accused of refusing to deliver the forms to

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<v Speaker 1>black veterans needed to fill out to receive their unemployment benefits.

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<v Speaker 1>Black veterans and civil rights groups protested their treatment, calling

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<v Speaker 1>for protections like the black involvement in the VA and

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<v Speaker 1>non discriminatory loans, But racial disparities in the implementation of

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<v Speaker 1>the GIBA had already been set into motion. As years

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<v Speaker 1>went on, white veterans flowed into newly created suburbs, where

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<v Speaker 1>they began amassing wealth and skilled positions, but black veterans

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<v Speaker 1>lacked those options. The majority of skilled jobs were given

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<v Speaker 1>to white workers. The housing boom almost entirely excluded Black Americans,

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<v Speaker 1>most of whom remained in cities that received less and

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<v Speaker 1>less investment from businesses and banks. Though the GI Bill

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<v Speaker 1>guaranteed low interest mortgages and other loans, they were not

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<v Speaker 1>administered by the VA itself. Thus the VA could co

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<v Speaker 1>sign but not actually guarantee the loans. This gave white

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<v Speaker 1>run financial institutions free reign to refuse mortgages and loans

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<v Speaker 1>to black people. We now know this as redlining, which

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<v Speaker 1>if you don't know anything about redlining, please look that up.

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<v Speaker 1>But this is what led to that, and then there

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<v Speaker 1>was a mass shift in wealth away from black folks

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<v Speaker 1>after that as well.