Before World War II (1939–1945) began, many African-Americans lived in the South. They eked out a living as tenant farmers or sharecroppers. As the nation prepared for war, better paying factory and manufacturing jobs became available in the North and on the coasts. Those opportunities encouraged many African-American men and women to relocate. Black Americans also moved to southern cities, such as Birmingham and Mobile, which grew into important military manufacturing centers. Those shifts from one part of the country to other parts led to other changes. People from different backgrounds came in contact with and worked with one another. Those experiences made black Americans determined to resist racial discrimination.
Although the U.S. government denounced Nazi racism overseas, white Americans maintained their own racist system of inequality and violence against black citizens. In many parts of the country, African-Americans were denied the right to vote. They attended segregated and inferior
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schools. They faced discrimination or exclusion from branches of the military and certain jobs. And for some black workers, high unemployment and low wages remained.
The contradiction angered African-Americans. They demanded that the nation live up to its highest ideals. The Pittsburgh Courier, a black weekly newspaper, launched a "Double V" campaign in 1942. It called for "victory over our enemies from without" — the Germans and the Japanese — and "victory over our enemies from within" — American racism. Black Americans took those words seriously. They strongly supported the war effort and they also engaged in protests against racial injustice at home.
A. Philip Randolph led the way. He was the president of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, a black labor organization. For decades, Randolph had challenged racial inequality. In September 1940, Randolph was part of a delegation that met with President Franklin D. Roosevelt and demanded that the president end segregation in the armed forces. Roosevelt did not act.
In January 1941, Randolph decided to take a more forceful approach. He proposed a m
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<span>During the winter of 1777-78 the continental army morale was low. This period belongs to the American revolutionary period . during this winter the american soldiers were starved, stuck with diseases and more than 25000 soldiers were killed by feb 78. this terrible period was mainly due to the location where the army was stationed. army was stationed at the valley forge.</span>
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