Historical Overview of Racism in the Military

Abstract : This overview is designed to assist the reader in acknowledging and understanding the historical context of overt racist and discriminatory policies and practices in our military and how these dynamics and policies were perpetuated within the Armed Services. In this study of racism in our military, the reader may gain insight into how military leadership has been involved in racism and discrimination, and its effect on racial minority members throughout American history. The examples presented in this text do not include all racial and ethnic minority groups. However, it generally reflects the different types of racist policies and practices that have been researched and documented.