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When Alex Haley enlisted in the Coast Guard, few occupations were open
to African Americans. But the future literary giant ignored tradition and
created opportunities for himself.
In 1943, a 23-year-old steward's mate first class wrote about what he
found in the Coast Guard. As an African American man in the Coast Guard, he
had a different view of the service than did many of his contemporaries. Full
of idealism, he recorded his thoughts about race relations and personal
success for African American men in the Coast Guard.
That steward's mate, Alexander P. Haley, wrote to then-Executive
Secretary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
(NAACP) Walter White, outlining the results of his informal study.[1] Haley had observed his fellow "colored"
shipmates to learn if individual attributes helped shape institutional
attitudes toward "the Negro in military life, particularly Naval,"
or if there were other factors.
Following the advice of his father, who told him that the military
experience would benefit him in later life, Haley joined the Coast Guard in
1939. Although he had completed two years of college, the only job open to
Haley was that of a nonrated mess attendant for the
ship's officers--not an uncommon situation for African Americans entering the
Coast Guard in that era. In the late 1930s, the Coast Guard had about 900
officers and 800 stewards. Most stewards were Filipino; about 100 were
African American, and another 100 white, Japanese, or Hispanic.[2] While
Haley accepted his position, his educated and inquisitive mind pondered the
situation, especially as he saw the "white boys" who entered the
Coast Guard at the same time as he had succeeding in other occupations. When
he asked his officers why there were no blacks in other ratings, they
answered, "you just can't, that's all," without further
explanation.
Haley looked for the underlying cause of this widespread acceptance of
the status quo. "Finally," Haley wrote, "it dawned upon me--it
was the [African American] boys themselves." This led to another
question--why his shipmates and the African American stewards on other
cutters exhibited this behavior. He asked and found that the average
education of the stewards was about fourth or fifth grade and "they [the
stewards] had little or no desire to branch out or learn anything."
Haley also found that many liked the daily routine of washing dishes and
serving tables and "were satisfied with it."
Haley did not ask the white crew for their thoughts, but had he asked,
he might have found comparable educational backgrounds. The requirements for
basic reading and arithmetic skills for enlisted advancement were less than a
decade old, and many older petty officers--white and black--were functionally
illiterate. The tradition of professional enlisted men in the Coast Guard did
not begin until about 1936. Before 1930, the Coast Guard actively sponsored
short-term enlistments and kept only a handful of experienced warrant and
petty officers to train the younger men. All recruiting and basic training of
new men were done directly on the cutter they served. In 1941, the Coast
Guard and Navy, unlike the Army, turned away English and non-English-speaking
illiterate inductees. It was not until 1 June 1943 that the two services
began accepting illiterate men (64% of whom were white); most attended a
12-week course at Camp Peary, Williamsburg, Virginia,
that brought them to a fourth-grade level.[3] This
level was considered sufficient for basic military training purposes.
Haley began to test the
established system of treatment of African Americans in the Coast Guard and
became a self-styled "guinea pig." As part of shipboard training in
the late 1930s, all hands except "colored personnel" were required
to attend classes in signal hoists, Morse code, and semaphore. These classes
did not exclude the blacks, but did not require African Americans to attend.
Haley said his mess mates considered themselves lucky for not having to
attend the boring classes. But Haley sought out and attended the classes
religiously. He described himself as soon becoming more proficient at the
drills than his white shipmates. Haley absorbed as much as he could about
deck work, navigation, clerical routine, and any other shipboard topic he
could. His mess mates thought him crazy for working at learning. The results
of his demonstrated interest surprised him. He still considered that racial
prejudice was the root cause of keeping African Americans in service roles,
but this idea began to dissolve as the white crew discovered his interest in
learning was sincere. He proudly wrote that "the white members of the
crew ... began to show me respect and took much of their time to show me
things."
When he transferred to his next ship, he found the stewards much the
same. He continued his learning routine and found that "rather than
trying to hinder me, the white personnel [were] more than glad to lend me a
hand in anything I undertook." Haley found that prejudice was earned,
and used himself and his ambition to succeed to break down some stereotypes.
When World War II began, because of his learned skills, he was
transferred to the ship's office, where he did the duties of the yeoman for
six months. He continued his observations of his fellow African Americans and
their attitudes and was disappointed in the "new colored man in the
service." Haley found that although this "new" man was better
educated, "he was flatly demanding--he had no interest whatever in
things that the service, prior to that time, had held 'hallowed,' regulations
and such. Consequently, he [the black man] fared badly." The new men
demanded chances at ratings for which they were not qualified; Coast Guard
policy required they be given a chance, but "due to practically nothing
but inattention and indolence a great portion of them flopped
miserably." After failing, this group "seldom hesitated in wailing
that they were victims of discrimination," causing heightened racial
tensions within the crew and making it harder for "willing" men to
receive help to succeed. Other African Americans followed Haley's example of
hard work, diligence, and interest; grabbed opportunities; and succeeded magnificently.
In 1943, Haley transferred to the USS Murzim
(AK-95), where, because of a severe shortage of trained men, he stood signal
watches. Because of his exceptional service on the signal deck, they advanced
him to steward's mate first class. They offered him signalman first class,
but he declined it so he could return to the ship's office. Following the
advice of his senior steward, 25-year veteran Percival L. Scott, that
"opportunity ain't every night," Haley
applied himself to being the best. He became the editor of the ship's
newspaper, The Seafarer, and noted he had "an office of my own"--a
sure indication of success. Continuing his study, he noted with pride that
although the Murzim had a predominately southern
crew, he was one of the most respected men on it. In a shipboard contest,
they voted him the most popular, most versatile, and the best shipmate.
Haley's greatest praise came from his captain, Lieutenant Commander
James E. King, U.S. Coast Guard. King wrote a letter recommending Haley for
appointment to the Coast Guard Academy. Haley noted that he had yet "to
see a more commending letter." But Haley had a pragmatic view of the
recommendation. He knew the tenor of the era and that the Coast Guard had
less than a dozen African American officers. He feared that "someone [in
Coast Guard headquarters] might not think it feasible and kill it then and
there." Haley wanted to be an officer because only officers had the
power to "be in a position to help others of my race who will come
along."
Haley's goal was to transform the attitudes of men in the naval
service. In his letter to the NAACP's White, Haley explained that he wanted a
position where he could "help them become the type of men that the Navy
[and Coast Guard] really wants and will give every possible chance."
Among these men he did not include those with "chips" on their
shoulders, but those "willing to apply themselves wholeheartedly in
order to achieve the numerous ends open to them." Haley praised the
Coast Guard for the opportunities it gave him and those willing to apply
themselves to such opportunities.
Despite this praise, Haley called the hope of an appointment to the
Academy vague at best. Although Haley hoped the NAACP would support his
appointment because he felt himself uniquely qualified for the appointment,
he understood "that someone who has no idea of the possibilities of
someone ... will pass judgment against it." Nonetheless, he would accept
the decision and continue encouraging and helping others as best he could.
Haley had excellent family training and educational background before
he enlisted and carried this knowledge into his service career. His service,
work ethic, and personality transcended period racial barriers. He discovered
in his test that regardless of ethnic origin, if a person showed genuine
interest, there would be help from all corners to achieve those goals. He
noted that insolence or discourteousness created or continued stereotypes,
prejudice, and disunity. Haley's goal was to become an officer in the U.S.
Coast Guard. He wrote that this was what he wanted, but if denied the
opportunity, he did not cast blame or "wail" discrimination. He
vowed to be the type of sailor who would bring honor and credit to the U.S.
Coast Guard. In keeping with his positive attitude, he was rewarded in 1950
by becoming the first Coast Guardsman to attain the rank of chief petty
officer in the new journalist rating.[5]
Haley showed the positive attitude and educational zeal that should be
taught and employed by all. He set examples and gave opportunities, showing
that people who seized chances and worked hard succeeded, but those that did
not failed. Haley found the Coast Guard a place of opportunity and made semper paratus his guide for
every opening that came his way.
- NAACP
1940-55. Legal File. U.S.
Coast Guard Discrimination, 1943-44 (Microform) (Frederick, MD:
University Publications of America, 1989). Part 9, Series B, Reel 25,
frames 0684-0691. Letter from Alexander P. Haley to Walter White, 26
November 1943. Unless otherwise noted, all quotes included are derived
from this letter.
- Holcombe
M. Robertson, A Study of Syphilis in the Coast
Guard (Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1937). This report
indicates that there were 757 men in the "steward's
department" of the service--364 Filipinos, 99 African Americans,
294 others (Japanese, Hispanic, white).
- Cyril
O. Houle, Elbert W. Burr, Thomas H. Hamilton,
and John R. Yale, The Armed Forces and Adult Education (Washington, DC:
American Council on Education, 1947), pp. 172-191.
- Alex
Haley, "The Most Unforgettable Character I've Met," Reader's
Digest 78 (March 1961), pp. 73-77.
- It
is a common misunderstanding that the journalist rating was created for
Haley. But his statement in his book Roots (New York: Doubleday &
Co., 1976), p. 668--that "the U.S. Coast Guard's hierarchy created
for me a new rating-journalist"--regularly has been misinterpreted.
Haley meant that he was offered and took a new rating when it was
created for the Coast Guard in 1950. The occupation had been in the Coast
Guard for a decade before Haley enlisted.
PHOTO (COLOR): The Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore, Maryland,
is converting the former USS Edenton into the USCGC Alex Haley. The cutter is
being upgraded for habitability, environmental compliance, and improved
mechanical systems. The Alex Haley also will have a flight deck. The
conversion will be completed in July 1999; the Alex Haley will be homeported in Kodiak,
Alaska.
~~~~~~~~
By William R. Wells II,
U.S. Coast
Guard (Retired)
Master Chief Wells is a researcher and author of Coast Guard and
Revenue Cutter Service history, who also teaches US. history
in the U.S. Navy's PACE program.
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