Ethnic minorities in the U.S. Armed Forces during World War II comprised about 13% of all military service members. All biologically male adults aged 18-64 in the US were subject to the draft for most of the war, though Japanese citizens were prohibited from being drafted until 1944; all service members were subject to the same rate of pay. The 16 million men and women in the services included 1 million African Americans,Honoring Black History. World War II Service to the Nation U.S.Army official websiteAfrican Americans fought freedom home and abroad during World War II "The National WWII Museum, New Orleans" along with 33,000+ Japanese-Americans,"Japanese-Americans at War: World War II Memorial". National Park Service. United States Department of the Interior. Accessed May 11, 2017. 20,000+ Chinese Americans,"Asian-Americans in the United States Military: Fact Sheet". State of New Jersey. Accessed May 11, 2017. 24,674 American Indians,Burnstein, Alison R. Walking In Two Worlds: American Indians In World War Two, Diss. Columbia University, 1986. University Microfilms International. Web. 26 April 2015. 65. Details: 21,767 in the Army, 1,910 in the Navy, 874 in the Marines, 121 in the Coast Guard, and several hundred Native American women as nurses. and some 16,000 Filipino-Americans. According to House concurrent resolution 253, 400,000 to 500,000 Hispanic Americans served. They were released from military service in 1945–46 on equal terms, and were eligible for the G.I. Bill and other veterans' benefits on a basis of equality. Many veterans, having learned organizational skills, and become more alert to the nationwide situation of their group, became active in civil rights activities after the war.
White minority participation The majority of the American population at the outbreak of the war were of European descent, including Italy, Germany, and Ireland. A considerable number of groups legally defined as white could still be considered ethnic minorities at the time, particularly those from Southern or Eastern Europe. Detailed tabulations were not kept for these groups by the U.S. military, which simply listed them all as "white". Separate statistics were kept for African Americans and Asian Americans.World War II By The Numbers, The National World War II Museum, New Orleans. Retrieved on August 22, 2007.
Latino-Americans
Hispanic Americans, also referred to as Latinos, served in all elements of the American armed forces in the war. They fought in every major American battle in the war. According to House concurrent resolution 253, 400,000 to 500,000 Hispanic Americans served in the U.S. Armed Forces during World War II, out of a total of 16,000,000. Most were of Mexican or Puerto Rican descent. By another estimate, over 500,000 Mexican-Americans servedLorena Oropeza. "Latinos in World War II". National Park Service of the United States. U.S. Department of the Interior. Accessed May 11, 2017. plus over 65,000 Puerto RicansDept. of Defense; "Number of Puerto Ricans in the U.S. Armed Forces during National Emergencies". and smaller numbers of others. Hispanic-Americans constituted 3.1% to 3.2% of the total who served. A number of Hispanics served in senior leadership positions, the highest ranking being Marine Corps Lieutenant-General Pedro Del Valle.
The exact number of Hispanics serving in the US military is unknown as, at the time, Hispanics were not tabulated separately, but were generally included in the general white population census count. President Roosevelt had personally demanded all Mexican-Americans be classified as white as part of his "Good Neighbor" policy with US-friendly Latin American nationsPatrick D. Lukens, A Quiet Victory for Latino Rights: FDR and the Controversy over Whiteness (University of Arizona Press, 2012) while most Puerto Ricans had always been considered legally white since the island was annexed on part of its population being of majority-European descent (the average Puerto Rican being 66% European, 18% Native American, and 16% West African). While the military did not document the numbers of Hispanic servicemen and servicewomen, the US Census did note that less than 2% of the general population was of Hispanic origin;US Census, 1940. if true this would mean Hispanic-Americans were overrepresented in the armed forces.
Jewish-Americans
Over 550,000 Jewish-Americans served in the armed forces during World War II, account for 3.5% of the roughly 16 million American soldiers in total, the highest number of Jewish soldiers of any participating country.Grayzel, Solomon: A History of the Jews: From the Babylonian Exile to the Present (Philadelphia: The Jewish Publication Society, 1968), p. 786. There were 4,770,000 American Jews at the time, accounting for 3.6% of the US population, meaning they were proportionally represented.Grayzel (1968), p. 785 22 Jewish-Americans obtained the ranks of general or admiral during the war, including Major General Maurice Rose, and 49,315 earned citations for valor in combat. The total number of Jewish-American war casualties was 38,338, with 11,000 killed.Jewish Virtual Library.
Polish-Americans Americans of Polish descent were common in all the military ranks and divisions, and were among the first to volunteer for the war effort. They were heavily motivated by the Nazi policy of extermination towards the people of occupied Poland, the first country attacked during the war. Polish Americans were enthusiastic enlistees. They composed 4% of the American population at the time, but ultimately composed 8% of the U.S. military during World War II, with over 1,000,000 joining the U.S. armed forces.Haiman, Miecislaus (January–June 1946). "The Polish American contribution to World War II". Polish American Studies. Polish American Historical Association. 3 (1/2): 35–37. Polish general Władysław Sikorski toured the United States in a failed attempt to raise large numbers of Polish-Americans for segregated battalions, saying that they were "turning their backs" on Poland by not joining the cause.Kochanski, Halik (2012). The Eagle unbowed: Poland and the Poles in the Second World War. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. . Page 271.
Italian-Americans Over 1.5 million Italian-American soldiers served in World War II, accounting for 10% of the armed forces, of whom 14 won Medals of Honor.Marton, Eric. "Italian Americans: The History and Culture of a People." Page 148. Quote Vice President Nelson Rockefeller: "I think of the 1.5 million Americans of Italian descent who made up ten per cent of the armed might of the United States in World War II, and many of these men you have met in years still well remembered." While Italian-Americans were in general enthusiastic participants in the Allied cause, several Italian-language newspapers were forced to close because of past support of the fascist government of Benito Mussolini.Di Stasi, Lawrence (2004). Una Storia Segreta: The Secret History of Italian American Evacuation and Internment during World War II.
Arab-Americans Over 30,000 Arab-Americans are estimated to have served during the war, accounting for 0.2% of soldiers. Most were of Lebanese descent.Haiek, Joseph. "Arab-American Almanac." 6th Edition. December 1991. Page 33.
Armenian-Americans During World War II, about 18,500 Armenians served in the armed forces of the United States.Tashjian, James H. (1952) The Armenian American in World War II. Boston: Harenik Association A number of them were decorated for their service, including Col. Ernest Dervishian, a native of Virginia, who was awarded the Medal of Honor. US Marine Harry Kizirian is considered the most decorated soldier of the state of Rhode Island. Another Marine Captain, Victor Maghakian is considered one of the most decorated American soldiers of the war. The highest-ranking Armenian-American during World War II was Brigadier General Haig Shekerjian (who had previously served in the Pancho Villa Expedition and as an American military attache in the Middle Eastern theater of World War I). He was appointed Commanding General of Camp Sibert, Alabama , which was used extensively as the main training camp for chemical warfare troops, and remained in that position until 1945. Shekerjian also gave numerous speeches during the war encouraging Americans of Armenian descent to enlist.A Tribute to Brig. Gen. Haig Shekerjian.
Possible reasons for ethnic minority participation
The participation of ethnic minorities in the US armed forces during World War II highlighted an inconsistency in American ideology at the time. The United States invaded German-occupied Europe to fight against Nazi Germany and their ideas of a master race, while at the same time perpetuating extreme levels of racism and discrimination at home to all minorities, most prominently African Americans. These soldiers and sailors were aware of this perceived double standard, and thus began the Double V campaign for a "Double Victory": a victory against National Socialism and Fascism abroad, and a victory against racism at home. The black soldiers fought for equal citizenship and better job opportunities. W.E.B. Du Bois declared that in order to win World War II, we must also win the “War for Racial Equality” at home.Takaki, Ronald T. "Introduction: A Different Memory." Introduction. Double Victory: A Multicultural History of America in World War II. N.p.: First Back Bay, 2001. p 7.
As the enlistment statistics below demonstrate, some men were drafted, others enlisted voluntarily. Ethnic minorities gave many patriotic reasons for wanting to participate in the War effort. For many, it was an exciting role and essential to identify with one's pride and courage. For some, fighting in the war was a way to prove their patriotism and honor their love for their country. Those who fight for this reason considered themselves Americans, independently of race, and thus felt obligated or proud to fight for their country. Others took a strategic approach, serving in the U.S. armed forces with the belief that once they returned as veterans the U.S. would have to do away with racial discrimination and segregation. Others still recognized the opportunity to achieve financial security for their families; jobs in the armed forces could provide them with steady incomes when they were often excluded from jobs in the defense industries and trade unions at home. Women were not drafted, but they enlisted with the same motivations as the men. Japanese Americans who were US citizens volunteered in large numbers, especially in Hawaii. The Cuban-American community, based in Florida, saw military services and opportunity for adventure, patriotism and financial aid to their family.
Detailed instances of racial discrimination
Whatever their reasons for joining, they all faced further discrimination in the U.S. armed forces. At the start of the War, all branches of the U.S. military were segregated. President Harry S. Truman ordered the end of military segregation with his Executive Order 9981 in 1948, but racial discrimination and segregation continued in the U.S. armed forces through the Korean War. Some states did not desegregate their National Guard until the mid-sixties.
African American soldiers and sailors were banned from fighting on the front lines, and were assigned menial tasks in place of positions in combat. However, in some cases of emergency or shortage, African Americans were brought to the front lines, including during the Invasion of Normandy and the Battle of the Bulge. Mess-attendant Dorie Miller left his station to fire at the attacking planes during the Attack on Pearl Harbor. Some special African American units, such as the Tuskegee Airmen, also fought in combat.