Topic: Black Soldiers

1 chapters across the catalog

70: Four Freedoms
2:46:07 - 2:49:29

70: Four Freedoms

Patriotic Duty and the Optics of the Draft

Historical footage of the 1940 draft highlights how the government used the "optics" of wealthy individuals like Winthrop Rockefeller enlisting to encourage the general public. The hosts note that while black men stepped up to fight in hopes of gaining social standing, the relationship remained "rocky." They contrast the clear "enemy" of the 1940s with the "invisible enemy" of the current pandemic.