This poignant history of the Tuskegee Airmen separates myth and legend from fact, placing them within the context of the growth of American airpower and the early stirrings of the African American Civil Rights Movement.
The Tuskegee Airmen -the first African American pilots to serve in the U.S. military-were comprised of the 99th Fighter Squadron, the 332nd Fighter Group, and the 477th Bombardment Group, all of whose members received their initial training at Tuskegee Army Airfield in Alabama. Their successful service during World War II helped end military segregation, which was an important step in ending Jim Crow laws in civilian society.
This volume in Greenwood’s Landmarks of the American Mosaic series depicts the Tuskegee Airmen at the junction of two historical trends: the growth of airpower and its concurrent development as a critical factor in the American military, and the early stirring of the Civil Rights Movement. Tuskegee Airmen explains how the United States’s involvement in battling foes that represented a threat to the American way of life helped to push the administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt to allow African American soldiers to serve in the Army Air Corps. This work builds on the works of others, forming a synthesis from earlier studies that approached the topic mostly from either a black struggles or military history perspective.
16 original documents relating to the creation and performance of the Tuskegee Airmen during World War II, each accompanied by a brief description that provides historical context
28 short biographies of black aviation and military pioneers, important people among the Tuskegee Airmen, as well as several of the Airmen themselves
A comprehensive bibliographic description of major secondary works on the Tuskegee Airmen, World War II, airpower, and black participation in the American military
A glossary of specialized terms pertaining to the military, aviation, World War II, and African Americans
