SemesterTWO: WWII Letter

Dearest Mama,

How are things back home in New York? I miss you and Charlotte more than ever. I received a letter from her couple months ago said she gave birth to a beautiful baby boy. I hope you have been keeping yourself busy and checking your health like the doctor said. It’s been a whole year since I’ve last heard from you and a lot has changed since then.

They finally moved me from working out there on them roads and cleaning hospitals. I got the chance to go to a school called the Tuskegee Institute. It’s a training ground for only us negros to be trained as pilots in the Army Air Corps. Yes, mama I’m going to be flying them big ole planes. You might have heard bout congress passing that civilian Pilot Training act back in June, well since the passed that I was trained to become a pilot then took the civilian pilot exam test in March. Once I passed my exam I started training out at the Montgomery airport until they approved the Tuskegee Kennedy field for us to practice flying on.

Back when I was working in the military hospitals cleaning rooms and serving foods I ran into a lot of racist bastards but also a lot of brave men. Some of the wounds and stories they have told me about the frontline give me nightmares. They say if things keep going as steadily as they have been they might have to begin drafting in more soldiers. I guess they desperate for men out there on them battlefields, I heard from one of my pals that there planning to put some of us negros out there on the front lines with the other white soldiers. The south is so much different out here from back home mama, but the weather isn’t much different its been around 65 degrees. The weather here is generally mild in the spring and fall but hot in the summer. temperature can be in the mid-30’s during winter to the low 100's in the summer.

there are so many people that say and do such hurtful things to us cause the way we look. Sometimes when were being transported we aren’t allowed in certain parts of Alabama because of the ignorant whites that like to give us a hard time. Once we were ordered to sleep outside in troop tents while over 180 German prisoners slept in barracks. I guess as long as there skin isn’t colored there still seen as better than us.

I don’t understand how they can look at us so different, aren’t we all Americans?
It took a lot for them to finally convince the war department to let us fly In battle there are still many people against the idea of us negros flying out there but I am set to depart out in May. I am scared that something will go wrong and this will be the last time you hear from me So I just wanted you to know that I love you and think about you every day. Please continue to pray for me

-Your son