done!
While the soldiers began moving toward the Vosgues sector of the French battlefront, August 6, 1918, active anti-Negro propaganda became evident. The American Army at Chaumont, suddenly, sent out data from the General Headquarters. Headquarters was setting forth, at length, the American attitude toward Negroes. The data was addressed to the French Army, all the Prefects(Govenors), and Sous-Prefects(Mayors) of France. The data stated what the French Military Mission should be. The data warned against social recognition of the American Negroes. The literature stated that Blacks were prone to deeds of violence and were threatening America with degeneration, etc. The White troops backed this propaganda by warnings and tales wherever they preceeded the movements of the Blacks.
This misguided effort was lost on the French. In some cases, peasants and villagers were scared at the approach of Negro troops. This fear, however, was only temporary. Everywhere the Black soldiers went, they soon became the best liked of all foreign soldiers. Black soldiers were received in the best homes.
When-ever the Negro soldier could speak French or their hosts understood English, the soldiers poured forth their stories of injustice and wrong into the French population and received deeply sympathetic ears.
There was the impudent swagger of many White troops, with their openly expressed content for "Frogs"(French). White troops displayed their evident failure to understand the first principles of democracy in the most democratic lands. In spite of all this, the soldiers finished the work of freedom and democracy which had thus begun.
No sounding words of President Woodrow Wilson could change the minds of thousands of Frenchmen. White Americans attempted to give the impression that American Black soldiers were disloyal and coarse. White American men attempted to force color prejudice on the French people but the French knew better. The French were not fooled by the White American attempts because they had already owed their salvation to Black West Africa.
Little was published or openly said, but when the circular on the American Negro prejudice was brought to the attention of the French ministry, it was quietly collected and burned. In a thousand delicate ways, the French expressed their silent disapproval. One incident occured in a provincial town where a
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J.Linzy-17