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Courrier at the time printed the letter which questioned why an African American should give the ultimate sacrifice for his country when he would not receive citizenship in return. Black soldiers returning home would not receive any of the rights of any other American citizen, no matter the statis of their military service. The Courrier, still not wanting to appear in any way unpatriotic, printed a Logo on the editorial page on February 7th,1942.. Two large V's; printed under one, "Victory Against Facism Abroad", printed under the other, "Victory Against Racism At Home". There were no explanations, no long winded editorials, no calls to rise up. Simply a call for two separate yet equal victories.

Not knowing what the response would be, or what response they wanted for that matter, the publishers let the readers and American people decide what should happen next. They were immediately inundated with support from across the country, other African American publishers picked up the story and ran with it. The Double V Campaign was formed and began to change the United States and, in turn the world.

As the United States was emerging as a super power in the war effort in Europe, all eyes were on the domestic front. Could the American public settle the instability of the Civil Rights movement while fighting a war overseas? How would the United States prove that Democracy can work in any country in the world if all people in it's own country are not equal?

There were no large scale riots, just a weekly editorial or pictorial in the Courrier picked up and spread across the country newsroom by newsroom, demanding "that African Americans risking their lives abroad in the military be given full citizenship rights at home". This small group of Civil Rights pioneers turned the focus of the world on their fight for equality. By working with government agencies and community action committees, African Americans managed to change the constitution to include rights for those serving in the military as well as the civilian workforce.

On July 26th, 1948, President Truman signed Executive Order 9981 to ensure "equality of treatment and opportunity in the armed forces". Combat troops would remain segregated until the mid 1950's, but promotions had increased in amazing numbers.

All research done at www.pbs.org

Learn more about this author, Christine Cameron.
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