The 761st tank battalion, also known as The Black Panthers, was an African American tank battalion, consisting of thirty black officers, six white officers, and 676 black enlisted men. They were known as The Black Panthers due to the insignia upon their battalion badge being a black panther, underneath which lay their motto: “Come out Fighting”.
In October of 1944, The Black Panthers became the first African American tank battalion to see combat in WWII. They fought in France and Belgium and played a significant role in the Battle of the Bulge: they helped break through the Siegfried Line, which was a defensive system of pillboxes and strongpoints built along Germany’s western frontier. They also contributed to the liberation of Gunskirchen, part of the Mauthausen concentration camp.
The 761st was deployed under General George S. Patton, who greeted the battalion with the following speech:
“Men, you’re the first Negro tankers to ever fight in the American Army. I would never have asked for you if you weren’t good. I have nothing but the best in my Army. I don’t care what color you are as long as you go up there and kill those Kraut sons of bitches. Everyone has their eyes on you and is expecting great things from you … Don’t let them down and damn you, don’t let me down!”
However, during a time when discrimination against African Americans was practically the norm, even Patton had his own racial biases. In private, he noted that he didn’t believe that African Americans had the intellect to make quick, well-evaluated decisions during combat. But The Black Panthers didn’t let him down—far from it. They advanced farther east than nearly any other US unit and served for over 183 days in a row after arriving on the battlefield (similar units typically served for only a couple weeks). For their efforts and many contributions to the Allied war effort, the 761st tank battalion received eleven silver stars and 300 purple hearts. Due to common racial discrimination during and directly after WWII, it wasn’t until 1978 and 1997 that the battalion received a Presidential Unit Citation and Bill Clinton awarded them with the Medal of Honor, respectively.
The Black Panthers can truly be considered war heroes. Not only were their actions in the war vital to the victory of the Allies, but they had fought and died for the sake of a country that many of them only ever saw discriminate against them.
Your post was very well written and informative! I found it quite surprising how even the most effective and successful African-American units, such as the Tuskegee airmen and even the 761st, didn’t receive the same amount of recognition as the white units due to a segregated America. Even though they accomplished more (by breaking Germany’s strong defenses, liberating Gunskirchen, etc.), they weren’t given their proper recognition until years after WWII had ended. Although segregation and racism still ran rampant throughout America, the distinguished service of these units helped convince President Harry S. Truman’s issue of Executive Order 9981, which led to the end of segregation in the services.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.history.com/news/761st-tank-battalion-black-panthers-liberators-battle-of-the-bulge
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/761st_Tank_Battalion_(United_States)
This was a very detailed and well written post! However, it is surprising to see the continuity of the pattern of a lack of recognition for successes achieved by African Americans. This has been seed for years throughout history, especially in the 54th Massachusetts Infantry that fought for the Union Army during the Civil War, but received little to no recognition until Memorial Day in 1897.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/the-54th-massachusetts-infantry