IRVING, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) — A new exhibit focusing on the experiences of African-Americans during World War II is coming to a museum in Irving, a spokesman said Wednesday.
The Irving Archives and Museum will present the special exhibit, which is called “Fighting for the Right to Fight: African-American Experiences in World War II” and is produced by the National World War II Museum. Opening on Friday, January 27, it features materials including artifacts, photos, and oral histories that illuminate the challenges and triumphs African-Americans faced during World War II, both at home and abroad.
Before and during the war years, blacks in many parts of the United States were subjected to systematic discrimination and largely treated as second-class citizens. The 1886 Supreme Court decision in Plessy vs. Ferguson it had not yet been repealed, and Jim Crow’s “separate but equal” regime remained the law of the land in many states, including Texas.
But even their experiences with oppression and racism at home didn’t stop thousands of African Americans from rushing to enlist and fight for freedom, despite the inequality they faced at home. The exhibit is meant to show how many of those who enlisted were inspired by ensuring equality, segregation into combat and non-combatant roles, and how the fight for “Double Victory” influenced the Civil Rights Movement.
Among the pieces featured in the exhibit is an original eight-minute video about the Tuskegee Airmen narrated by television personality Robin Roberts, whose father flew with the Airmen during the war. Other stories featured document the experiences of Sammy Davis Jr., Medgar Evers, and many other lesser-known African-Americans who served during World War II.
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The exhibition will be open until April 14, 2023.
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