“A rigorously researched, richly etched re-creation of the formation of the all-black Ninety-third Infantry Division, which fought in the Pacific theater.” —Journal of American History This fascinating history shows how African-American military men and women seized their dignity through barracks culture and community politics during and after World War II. Drawing on oral testimony, unpublished correspondence, archival records, memoirs, and diaries, Robert F. Jefferson explores the curious contradiction of war-effort idealism and entrenched discrimination through the experiences of the 93rd Infantry Division. Led by white officers and presumably unable to fight—and with the army taking great pains to regulate contact between black soldiers and local women—the division was largely relegated to support roles during the advance on the Philippines, seeing action only later in the war when U.S. officials found it unavoidable. Jefferson discusses racial policy within the War Department, examines the lives and morale of black GIs and their families, documents the debate over the deployment of black troops, and focuses on how the soldiers’ wartime experiences reshaped their perspectives on race and citizenship in America. He finds in these men and their families incredible resilience in the face of racism at war and at home and shows how their hopes for the future provided a blueprint for America’s postwar civil rights struggles. Integrating social history and civil rights movement studies, Fighting for Hope examines the ways in which political meaning and identity were reflected in the aspirations of these black GIs and their role in transforming the face of America. “A marvelous book.” —Annals of Iowa
In 1930 almost 13,000 African Americans worked in the coal mines around Birmingham, Alabama. They made up 53 percent of the mining workforce and some 60 percent of their union's local membership. At the close of the twentieth century, only about 15 percent of Birmingham's miners were black, and the entire mining workforce had been sharply reduced. Robert H. Woodrum offers a challenging interpretation of why this dramatic decline occurred and why it happened during an era of strong union presence in the Alabama coalfields. Drawing on union, company, and government records as well as interviews with coal miners, Woodrum examines the complex connections between racial ideology and technological and economic change. Extending the chronological scope of previous studies of race, work, and unionization in the Birmingham coalfields, Woodrum covers the New Deal, World War II, the postwar era, the 1970s expansion of coalfield employment, and contemporary trends toward globalization. The United Mine Workers of America's efforts to bridge the color line in places like Birmingham should not be underestimated, says Woodrum. Facing pressure from the wider world of segregationist Alabama, however, union leadership ultimately backed off the UMWA's historic commitment to the rights of its black members. Woodrum discusses the role of state UMWA president William Mitch in this process and describes Birmingham's unique economic circumstances as an essentially Rust Belt city within the burgeoning Sun Belt South. This is a nuanced exploration of how, despite their central role in bringing the UMWA back to Alabama in the early 1930s, black miners remained vulnerable to the economic and technological changes that transformed the coal industry after World War II.
Small though they were, PT boats played a key role in World War II, carrying out an astonishing variety of missions where fast, versatile, and strongly armed vessels were needed. Called "weapons of opportunity," they met the enemy at closer quarters and with greater frequency than any other type of surface craft. Among the most famous PT commanders was John F. Kennedy, whose courageous actions in the Pacific are now well known to the American public. The author of the book, another distinguished PT boat commander in the Pacific, compiled this history of PT-boat operations in World War II for the U.S. Navy shortly after V-J Day, when memories were fresh and records easily assessable. The book was first made available to the public in 1962 after Kennedy's inauguration as president of the United States interest in PTs was at a peak. Bulkley provides a wealth of facts about these motor torpedo boats, whose vast range of operation covered two oceans as well as the Mediterranean and the English Channel. Although their primary mission was to attack surface ships and craft close to shore, they were also used effectively to lay mines and smoke screens, to rescue downed aviators, and to carry out intelligence and raider operations. The author gives special attention to the crews, paying well-deserved tribute to their heroism, skill, and sacrifice that helped to win the war.
The New Class Society introduces students to the sociology of class structure and inequalities as it asks whether or not the American dream has faded. The fourth edition of this powerful book demonstrates how and why class inequalities in the United States have been widened, hardened, and become more entrenched than ever. The fourth edition has been extensively revised and reorganized throughout, including a new introduction that offers an overview of key themes and shorter chapters that cover a wider range of topics. New material for the fourth edition includes a discussion of "The Great Recession" and its ongoing impact, the demise of the middle class, rising costs of college and increasing student debt, the role of electronic media in shaping people's perceptions of class, and more.
This narrative tracks the experiences of three veterans while providing a comprehensive account of Troop G activities during the war years. The text follows the regiment from its time as mounted cavalry based in Fort Clark to New Caldonia, where the men gave up their horses to become infantymen in General Douglas MacArthur's conquest of New Guinea and the Philippines. Never as famous as the federalized infantrymen of the Texas 36th, the men of the 112th have often been overlooked in discussions of World War II, and this text seeks to restore them to their rightful place in the history of the Pacific theater operations.
This book explores how class-based resources and interests embedded in large organizations are linked to powerful structures and processes which in turn are rapidly polarizing the U.S. into a highly unequal, 'double diamond' class structure. The authors show how and why American class membership in the 21st century is based on an organizationally-based distribution of critical resources including income, investment capital, credentialed skills verified by elite schools, and social connections to organizational leaders.
Extensively revised, the second edition of The New Class Society includes innovative new sections and concepts throughout the book that identify and explore how complex organizational structures and actions create and perpetuate class, gender, and racial inequalities. The authors describe how 'inequality scripts' shape the hiring and promotion practices of organizations in ways that provide differential opportunities to people based on class, gender, and racial memberships. The authors also illustrate how privileged class members benefit from organizationally-based and perpetuated forms of inequality. The second edition retains its provocative argument for of an emerging 'double-diamond' social structure and its focus on class interests that are rapidly polarizing American society. New figures, tables, and references incorporate the latest information and research findings to document and illustrate key topics, such as the distribution of wealth and income, globalization, downsizing, contingent labor, the role of money in politics, media content and consolidation, the transformation of education, and the erosion of democracy. The second edition combines scholarship with an engaging style and flashes of comic relief-with several cartoons by some of the best satirists today. The book, accessibly written for undergraduate students, has been widely adopted in courses on stratification, economic sociology, and American society.
The Second Western Megapack presents a wide-ranging selection of western stories sure to get your pulse racing. Here are action tales of the old west by masters such as Zane Grey, Ed Earl Repp, Robert E. Howard, Clarence E. Mulford, Max Brand -- and many more. More than 2,000 pages of great reading! Complete contents: QUICK PAY FOR MAVERICK MEN, by Ed Earl Repp TOM’S MONEY, by Harriet Prescott Spofford WHILE SMOKE ROLLED, by Robert E. Howard THE AFFAIR AT GROVER STATION, by Willa Cather THE OUTLAW PILOT, by Stephen Payne READY FOR A COFFIN, by Gene Austin BULLDOG CARNEY, by W. A. Fraser DUST, by Marcet and Emanuel Haldeman-Julius THE JIMMYJOHN BOSS, by Owen Wister THE APACHE MOUNTAIN WAR, by Robert E. Howard ABOVE THE LAW, by Max Brand WITH GUTS, GUN, AND SCALPEL, by Archie Joscelyn THE END OF THE TRAIL, by Clarence E. Mulford THE WILD-HORSE HUNTER, by Zane Grey THE HONK-HONK BREED, by Stewart Edward White THE TEXAN SCOUTS, by Joseph A. Altsheler THE ROAD TO BEAR CREEK, by Robert E. Howard A KINSMAN OF RED CLOUD, by Owen Wister NO REPORT, by S. Omar Barke THE LAST OF THE PLAINSMEN, by Zane Grey GUNMAN’S RECKONING, by Max Brand LITTLE BIG HORN MEDICINE, by Owen Wister THE LONE RANGER RIDES, by Fran Striker MAN SIZE, by William MacLeod Raine COLUMBIA AND THE COWBOY, by Alice MacGowan And don't forget to search this ebook store for "Wildside Megapack" to see all the entries in the Megapack series -- including volumes of science fiction, fantasy, horror, mystery, westerns, classics, and much, much more!
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