The Port Chicago 50 by Steve Sheinkin

Post date: May 18, 2015 2:41:20 PM

This is the true story of a heinous event that occurred during World War II and that the United States Navy wanted to forget about. In fact, many people have forgotten about or have never heard of it, yet it is an important event in the Civil Rights Movement. This is the story of 50 African Americans who stood up against discrimination after being charged and convicted of mutiny.In 1944, segregation in the military was legal and rampant. Like in all branches of the military during World War II, very few jobs were open to African Americans in the Navy. One of the few jobs they were allowed to perform was the loading of ammunition onto Navy ships at Port Chicago in San Francisco. It was very dangerous work and the men were not given any instructions on how to handle ammunition safely. On July 17, 1944 a massive explosion at Port Chicago killed over 320 servicemen and wounded hundreds more. When the survivors were ordered to go back to work and load ammunition under the same working conditions, 50 of them refused. This is the story of what happened to them.