Bringing the War Home . . . (II)

( Part one of this article appeared in yesterday's CRIMSON. )

IN THE past three years, mistrust and hostility between black and white American troops have increased to a dangerous extent. There have been beatings, killings, racial slurs from both sides and cross burnings.

In one incident, more than 200 black inmates of the Long Binh stockade donned white kerchiefs and African-styled robes made from Army blankets and went on a rampage that left one white inmate dead, scores injured and the stockade in shambles. The uprising was one of the worst prison riots in modern Army history. Military officials blamed overcrowding and racial tensions.

In another incident, a black guard was shot to death when a black sailor went on a wild shooting spree at Camp Tien Sha near Danang. That episode followed rioting along China Beach by black Marines and sailors brandishing M-16 rifles.

Other-incidents:

A black Marine sergeant with a reputation for being tough on black militants and a white major narrowly escaped death when a black Marine exploded a grenade under the orderly room of the 5th Communications Battalion at Danang.

Two white sailors were tried for inciting a riot at the Tan My enlisted men's club. They were found guilty of disturbing the peace.

When white officers at Chu Lai refused to give rides to black Marines, they were severely beaten. Later name-calling whites triggered a riot at the enlisted men's club; two whites were so badly injured that they were evacuated home. Clubs at Qui Nhon and a dozen other places have been wrecked by racial melees.

On the walls of bars and latrines through-out the country, whites infuriated blacks by scrawling such phrases as "Niggers eat shit" and "I'd prefer a gook to a nigger."

A fight between black and white Marines at a tank battalion base near Danang almost ended disastrously when a dozen black Marines in black shirts and gloves showed up armed with rifles and grenades to help another black who was being beaten by whites.

At Tan Son Nhut Air Base on the Saigon outskirts, a white trooper was shot and wounded by a black GI he had been stalking with shouts of "I'm going to kill you, nigger." The white was described as a race baiter and a bully.

Roving gangs of black 1st Air Cav troopers at Bien Hoa and of 9th Division soldiers at Dong Tam have waylaid unsuspecting whites.

When Martin Luther King was murdered, whites burned crosses at Cam Ranh Bay and flew Confederate flags over bases at Danang. After appearing on the cover of Time for the story of "The Negro in Vietnam," Army Airborne Sgt. Clide Brown found a cross burning outside his tent.

"The military establishment is hailed as being one of the most democratic institutions in America," observed Petersen. "This implies that everything is as it should be. there are no separate and dual standards. Once the young black arrives in the military, however, he finds that this is not the case. The military is simply an extension of American society. Even though the rules have been written to make opportunities readily available and equal, you'll run into one or two prejudiced individuals who can influence 15 blacks who will influence others. The harm grows. Furthermore, in any war zone, once you've committed your life to a 'true cause' and find that you are still subjected to different standards, it tends to infuriate you to the extreme. That is what's happening out here."

The black soldier is no longer silent over the discrimination he experienced a decade ago. "When I came into the Army in 1956 everything was quiet," said Maj. Wardell C. Smith of Des Moines, lowa, a black who was inspector general for the 3rd Brigade of the 82nd Airborne Division. "No one was raising any hell about the prejudice and discrimination going on. The Negro soldier didn't know which way to go as far as speaking out against it. Every time he tried to, he got kicked in the head. Now they can speak and somebody will listen. And some feel that since they are going to face death, it doesn't matter what happens."

After racial slurs, Confederate flags, and the intimidation that comes with wearing Afro style haircuts and using black power signs and trappings, blacks most complain about their failure to get coveted rear area assignments, medals and promotions on an equal basis with whites.

Among all black enlisted men surveyed, nearly half believe that blacks are assigned more dangerous duty than whites. Even some whites agree. "Percentage wise, I believe blacks do get more dangerous duty," said Dennis Camire, a white soldier from Clarksdale, Miss. Another white, Sgt. Dan G. Miller of Ft. Dodge, Iowa, agreed. "I think you have to honestly say that the black man in our brigade receives less consideration that his fellow white soldier. He has almost no chance of getting a support job."

The belief is well founded. Defense Department figures cited by Charles Moskos Jr. in his boo. "The American Enlisted Man," show that black combat deaths have been running about one-third above the proportion of blacks stationed in Southeast Asia.

Four of every five enlisted blacks and 41 per cent of the black officers said that whites are awarded medals at a greater rate than blacks. Nearly 20 per cent of the white enlisted men thought so too. And almost 64 per cent of the black GI's and 45 per cent of the black officers believe that whites are promoted faster.

The black soldier's bitterness deepens when his natural gravitation toward other blacks, his use of black power signs and banners, and his wearing of Afro-styled haircut is repressed.

These frustrations were illustrated in a remarkable, though confidential, report made by a Marine Division Commander in the I Corps battle zone. His insight into the "very deep layer of bitterness" among his black troops demonstrated a rare understanding of racial tensions at that high level. The two-star general summarized the grievances that he found in the following question:

Why is the natural gravitation of blacks to each other viewed as bad and subsequently labeled as black power plotting?

If restrictions are placed on banners, why is not the same restriction place on the display of Confederate flags as is placed on the display of black power banners?

Why are black soldiers ostracized by superior noncommissioned officers and labeled as troublemakers within the units?

Why is there a feeling among enlisted blacks that their superiors are not concerned with their problems?

Why are whites who freely associate with black soldiers ostracized by superior noncommissioned officers and also labeled as trouble makers?

Why are blacks threatened with transfer to the northernmost region of the Division's area of operation-the most dangerous place-at the slightest provocation?

Most black GI's, 58 per cent, and many black officers use the clenched fist black power sign as a form of greeting or recognition of one black by another. But a third of the white enlisted men and more than 40 per cent of the white officers in my survey condemn its use. "They shouldn't make that sign," complained Staff Sg. Bobby Edwards of Woodsboro, Texas. "That is a show of rebellion and strength." Specialist Lane Bragg of Los Angeles, a squad leader in a mortar platoon in the 82nd Airborne, recalled a white captain chastising him for making the sign to a black sergeant. "What's this clenched fist sign mean?" the Captain yelled. "That sergeant is a good man. You're just a black nigger."

Six black enlisted men in ten and half as many officers now wear Afro style haircuts though most whites object to them. "I had an Afro cut," Air Force Sgt. Herbert Harrison of Trenton, N.J., complained bitterly. "But I went through hell wearing it. So I shaved my head bald."

BLACK PRIDE and culture, as on the college campus, have spilled over into other areas:

At remote fire support bases along the Cambodian border, scores of blacks have banded together to present their complaints against racial epithets and slow promotions.

Aboard the boats that sweep the Delta and on the roads that connect bases, black sailors and soldiers raise black power salutes in common recognition and often fly black flags.

In rear areas black soldiers, attracted by common music, language or hate, live when they can in all black hootches, like "The Little Ghetto" in Danang, "Hekelu" in Chu Lai, and "Hootch 8" in Cam Ranh Bay. On the walls, white pinups have been replaced by black ones; one hootch sports more than 500 such photographs. "I don't want no stringy haired beast broad with 'hidden beauty' on my wall," said one black Marine at the Little Ghetto. "Black is beauty."

Many blacks sit together in enlisted men's clubs, scorning "hillbilly" and "country and western" music, or make their way alone to smoke pot and drink beer.

In Saigon's "Soul Kitchen" black GI's greet each other over spareribs, pork chops, chittlins, grits and cornbread with more than 57 varieties of black power handshakes that may end with vowing to die for your comrade by crossing the chest Roman legion style.

One company commander leading his 1st Air Cav Division troops into the field was startled to find his black soldiers wearing black berets and shirts instead of the regulation helmets and fatigues.

Ron Karenga's Swahili-speaking "US" movement for black culture, pride and self-defense has spread to at least four Marine and Army bases in I Corps. And in Bien Hoa and Cam Ranh Bay, Black Panthers in Army uniform have circulated their party literature.

In the 1st Marine Division, Lance Cpt. Gene Johnson of Norfolk, Va., joined the Ju Ju's, a 200-member black protective (against white prejudice and intimidation) group "because the white man won't mess over us if we stick together. By acting in unity we can make our protest much stronger." Lance Cpl. Roddie Latimer of Washington, D.C., joined the Mau

Mau's, a sister group of similar size and philosophy begun by blacks in the same division. "Whites think we're starting some sort of black power movement," explained Latimer, "or plotting some kind of riot. But if you're not tight with the brothers [blacks] in the 'Nam, you can't get over. We want them [whites] to know that we are definitely together. Mess with one of us, and you mess with all of us."

And in Danang, black Marines have designed a flag for black soldiers in Vietnam. A red background symbolizes blood shed by blacks in the war and in race conflict in America. A black foreground represents the face of black culture. At the center are crossed spears and shield, meaning "violence if necessary," surrounded by a wreath, symbolizing "peace if possible." The flag bears a legend in Swahili, meaning "My fear is for you."

So not surprisingly, 76 per cent of the black soldiers insist on being called "black" or "Afro-American," rejecting the traditional white label, Negro, which only six per cent accept.

The heroes of the black soldiers today are drawn from among the most militant black spokesmen. Eldridge Cleaver receives the approval of 72 per cent; Malcolm X, 70 per cent, and Cassius Clay, 69 per cent. Edward Brooke, the only black U.S. Senator, draws the approval of less than half; black sailors refer to him as an "Oreo"-a cookie, black on the outside, white on the inside. Another moderate, Roy Wilkins, received only 53 per cent backing. The NAACP leader, highly popular with Whitney Young among the black soldiers of 1967, is roundly criticized today for condemning the black studies movement. "I dig the militant brothers," said Jessup. "Nonviolence didn't do anything but get Martin Luther King killed." Young drew the support of 51 per cent.

Nearly 59 per cent of the black GIs said they preferred to eat with blacks only; 60 per cent wanted to live in all black hootches or barracks, and 57 per cent believe that they would be better off in all-black fighting units or an entirely black military.

At the "Little Ghetto," Doby explained his preference for self-imposed segregated living. "It's like you're at home," he said. "You can do your thing and be yourself. You can't-talk and act natural when you're around the beast."

There may be one color-Army or Marine Corps green-in the foxhole, but there are two worlds when the races relax. During off-duty hours 56 per cent of he black GI's seek out other blacks; on liberty and R and R trips, even more travel only with blacks. One in five blacks said he depised whites, and only 17 per cent counted whites among their best friends.

"They'll try to sock it to a brother if they can," said Pfc. Alfred Exum Jr. of Denver, an assistant gunner on a 102 howitzer in the 82nd Airborne. "Just like civilian life, the white doesn't want to see the black get ahead."

To try to solve the growing racial tension in Vietnam, the military command in I Corps has tried to air and resolve complaints through 190 race relations committees. The results have been mixed.

The 101st Airborne Division's "watch" committee has stopped meeting altogether, well before I left Vietnam, despite continued grumblings among blacks. One Marine battalion commander has no faith in the procedure even though the Ju Ju's in his outfit continue their clandestine meetings.

Commanders with more foresight have encouraged militants to participate in the meetings along with white enlisted and officer personnel. Black Panther sympathizer Washington sat on one such group at Tien Sha, and Cpl. Joseph Harris of Los Angeles, a Karenga backer, twice arrested during the Watts riot, participated in one at the Marine base in Chu Lai. Both Washington and Harris were given jobs to keep whites and blacks in line at their enlisted men's clubs. When Harris suggested commemorating the anniversary of King's death, the Marine command supplied food and soft drinks for 300 black soldiers and Marines. The demonstration turned into a picnic and passed without incident. Heggs, on his own time and theirs, taught black history to black and white airmen, soldiers and sailors in the Danang area. At Tan My and Bien Hoa, black sailors and airmen meet regularly to plan black culture events and discuss their mutual problems.

My observations suggest that commands elsewhere would do better by opening such channels and showing such tolerance. Suggested Petersen: "The only way to reduce tension is to sit commanders at all levels down and give them a course in race relations as part of their military curriculum." "But," injected Capt. Freddie Harris of Tampa, Fla., a black company commander in the 9th Division, "you got to admit there is a problem first."

INCREASINGLY, the military is doing just that. And that is a first, though small, step in the right direction.

A recent Army assessment of racial tensions at bases around the world warned commanders that "to take an ostrich-like approach to racial fear, hostility and misunderstanding is indefensible, especially when the signs can be read in the racial obscenities written by both groups on latrine walls and can be heard from an alarming number of black soldiers who readily complain they suffer injustice in the Army solely because of their race."

The official study also took note of disturbances at Camp Lejeune, N.C., where some 30 black and Puerto Rican Marines attacked 14 whites; one of the white Marines died. Racial antagonisms led to a brawl among 200 black and white soldiers at Fort Bragg, N.C. And 17 Marines were injured when blacks and whites, just returned from Vietnam, fought each other at Kaneohe Air Base in Hawaii.

Noting that "all indications point to an increase in racial tensions," the study predicted more trouble "unless immediate action is taken to identify problem areas at the squad and platoon levels:"

Subsequently, Secretary of Defense Melvin R. Laird has appointed an Inter-Service Task Force on Education and Race Relations to develop an educational program for use throughout the Armed Forces. Commanders at Lejcune and elsewhere have modified their restrictions on Afro haircuts and black power salutes and banners.

L. Howard Bennett, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Civil Rights, has proposed five immediate steps to curb the "dangerous increase in racial troubles" he has found in Europe and Vietnam. Bennett wants race relations instruction for every basic trainee. Instruction for every serviceman in the real meaning of black power signs - "a time for the black brothers and sisters to unite" and "work together" to "get into the mainstream of American life." Open forums where blacks and whites will discuss racial problems face to face. On-post social activities in which both black and white women from nearby communities will participate. And literature, films, recordings and entertainment which appeal to blacks.

There is the danger that these recommendations, however much enforced, may be too little too late. None of these suggestions are aimed, for example, at discrimination in awards, promotions and battle field assignments. And for many blacks, nothing short of an end to hostilities in South-east Asia can make any sense while the White House exercises "benign neglect of the racial issue" and ignores black needs and while Southern police continue to eliminate black problems with gunfire.

To what extent the black serviceman in Vietnam turns his war experience into violent or peaceful conduct when he returns home depends largely on his adjustment to civilian life and what consideration American society gives to his economic and educational needs.

The black soldier is returning home more militant than when he left. "I was a dead man when they told me I was going to Vietnam," a black paratrooper told me as he prepared to jump into the Ashau Valley. "I have nothing to lose here or back home. The white man has told me to die."

White friendships the black soldier makes drinking from the same canteen or ducking the same bullets are not as evident as they were three years ago when I first went to Vietnam. A few whites today refer to "my soul brothers" and make the black power sign. But most black soldiers don't expect such friendships to change the racist world to which he will return.

Many black soldiers may become so busy socially and economically that their militancy will fade somewhat when they return. "They have a lot of time on their hands over here to get worked up," said Smith. "A lot of what they think they will do, they just won't. They won't be so closely knit. And they will have girls, wives, families and jobs to worry over."

To help many of the 120,000 black servicemen returning to civilian life each year, the National Urban League operates a housing, job, school and welfare referral service. But the program is limited by size and official support. Since 1967 only 27,000 black veterans have been actually helped. Lewis C. Olive Jr., a former West Pointer who helps direct he League's veterans affairs department, believes that with greater help from the military more blacks would learn about the program. Meanwhile, the League intends to computerize the service and increase the number of participating cities from nine to 40.

Originally, the Pentagon encouraged commanders in the field to alert black troops to the service. If he was interested, the black soldier independently wrote the League, which in turn, contacted a branch in the soldier's home town. But the military's help fell off when Congressional objections were raised. Now the League must depend largely on its own advertising in servicemen's newspapers and black publications to spread the news of the service.

A significant number of veterans are sure to continue to believe that America owes the black soldier a debt for his service in Vietnam and for his suffering at home. In Vietnam, this young black is coming increasingly to believe that if America does not meet this demand peacefully, he will ose the means he has learned in the paddies and the jungles - violence.

"When I come back, the Man's going to want to talk and I ain't going to want to listen," said Cpl. Joseph Harris. "'Oh, son,' he'll say to me. 'Don't worry about it. We'll give you your freedom in time.' My ancestors did the talking, and I don't have the time."

COPYRIGHT, 1970,