World War I Archives - Institute of the Black World 21st Century

The Harlem Hellfighters were war heroes. Then they came home to racism.

By IBW21News & Current Affairs

The Harlem Hellfighters were the most celebrated Black regiment in World War I but were largely forgotten after returning to the United States, where they faced racism and discrimination. (via…

August 24, 2021

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Racist Double Standards in Death, as they were in life for World war veterans of color

By IBW21Video/Audio

This video makes the powerful point that Britain and other European countries fail to honor and memorialize Black and Brown soldiers who fought and died for “democracy” in the…

November 3, 2018

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The Second Sight of W.E.B. Du Bois

By IBW21Editors' Choice

By Chris Hedges, Truthdig.com — Chris Hedges gave this talk Friday at the Left Forum in New York City. W.E.B. Du Bois, more than any intellectual this nation produced in the first half of the 20th century, explained America to itself. He did this not only through what he called the “color line” but by exposing the intertwining of empire, capitalism and white supremacy. He deftly fused academic disciplines. He possessed unwavering…

June 6, 2018

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Eluard Luchell McDaniels, Spanish Civil. War Volunteer, Batea, Spain, May 1938. Image Courtesy of the Tamiment Library, New York University

African American Anti-Fascists in the Spanish Civil War

By IBW21Editors' Choice

Anti-fascist volunteer Canute Frankson explained his motivation in a letter home in 1937: “We will build us a new society—a society of peace and plenty. There will be no color line, no jim crow trains, no lynching. That is why, my dear, I’m here in Spain.” By Peter Carroll, BlackPast.org — Approximately 90 African Americans fought in Spain during the civil war that engulfed that nation between 1936 and 1939.…

May 3, 2018

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