African American Soldiers: Black Soldiers During The Civil War

Black Soldiers Black soldiers made their first major impact in the United States military during the Civil War. Upon their entrance into the armed forces, African Americans were discriminated against by the white soldiers. A regiment in the Union army called the Buffalo soldiers was viewed as inferior. None of the white soldiers wanted to fight with this group, so the Buffalo soldiers were sent to the far west where they could fight and not interfere with the whites. The Buffalo soldiers operated in the west from 1867-1896. During this span, fourteen medals of honor were awarded to the Buffalo soldiers, the highest military award. These soldiers became known for their bravery and courage in battle. This angered the whites, who did not want African Americans in the military. However, the courage demonstrated by the Buffalo soldiers allowed for other African American regiments to be created (“Buffalo Soldier”).
It was typical for white Americans to be prejudiced towards African Americans.

The first example of this came during WWII, when Black and white American regiments fought side by side for the first time in American history. Deploying black soldiers during the Civil War allowed for African Americans to gain respect, even if it took sixty years (“Lynch”). The Union army did not allow runaway slaves from the South to serve in their army. However, in 1863, Congress passed the Second Confiscation and Militia Act, freeing all slaves in the South who had masters serving for the Confederacy. Now, these free slaves fled to the North and were allowed to join the Union. When Lincoln passed the Emancipation Proclamation, thousands of Blacks enlisted into the Union army. Unfortunately, the Union did not use the Black regiments as much as they should have, and Blacks soon began to stop enlisting. Again, acts of racism by whites affected Blacks