The 1950s saw the end of the Buffalo Soldiers as segregated units within the United States Army. The Korean War was a watershed moment in US military history because it was the first conflict that put President Harry Truman's Executive Order 9981, which desegregated the US military, into action. The Twenty-fourth Infantry was the last Buffalo Soldier regiment to be desegregated. They fought in the Korean War until the fall of 1951 when they were transferred away from the front and desegregated. An estimated 600,000 African Americans served in the armed forces during the Korean War; roughly 9.3% of Americans killed in Korea were African American. |
Last updated: July 19, 2024