African Americans on the Home Front

African American women saw the majority of their advancement on the homefront. While men left to fight in the war, they still needed supplies and support from home, and many African American women took up the vacant jobs in manufacturing products to support the U.S military. Organizations like the YWCA and Red Cross were crucial for providing opportunities for African American women to join the war effort, provide employment, and make social progress.

Nursing was a particularly important field for African American women during World War IImmediately after the Armistice, several black nurses were dispatched by the Red Cross alongside their white counterparts to care for German prisoners of war and black soldiers, an important instance of integration for a greater purpose. Their efforts went largely unrecognized in white communities, but spurred African American women to push for equitable treatment and pay for their work. Their efforts were also embolded by the surging suffrage movement occurring across the United States at the same time.