On American Soil: How Justice Became a Casualty of World War II (V. Ethel Willis White Books xx) - Softcover

Hamann, Jack

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0295987057 ISBN 13: 9780295987057

Publisher: University of Washington Press, 2007

Synopsis

During the night of August 14, 1944, an Italian prisoner of war was lynched on the Fort Lawton army base in Seattle--a murder that shocked the nation and the international community. It was a time of deep segregation in the army, and the War Department was quick to charge three African American soldiers with first-degree murder, although there was no evidence linking them to the crime. Forty other black soldiers faced lesser charges over the incident, launching one of the largest and longest army trials of World War II.

In this harrowing story of race, privilege, and power, Jack Hamann explores the most overlooked civil rights event in American history. On American Soil raises important questions about how justice is carried out when a country is at war, offering vital lessons on the tensions between national security and individual rights.

About this title

From the Author:

The injustice revealed in ON AMERICAN SOIL inspired Rep. Jim McDermott to introduce HR 3174, a bill demanding that the Secretary of the Army revisit the infamous Fort Lawton court-martial.

The bill has dozens of co-sponsors, and was assigned to the House Armed Services Committee.

From the Back Cover:

In August 1944, one of the largest staging areas for American soldiers headed to the Pacific was Fort Lawton, an army base in Seattle. The army was segregated then, and the barracks housing the African American troops were isolated from the rest of the fort. Just yards away stood the barracks of a compnay of Italian prisoners of war, also segregated. The violent death of one of these prisoners launched the largest and longest army court-martial of World War II. The events surrounding this extraordinary trial-- all but buried for more than a half century-- are now recounted in this harrowing story of race, privilege, and power.

About this edition

• Publisher: University of Washington Press
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0295987057
• ISBN 13: 9780295987057
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 358