Introduction

For African Americans, World War I was a war on multiple fronts. Not only were African Americans helping against the  perceived threats from other countries around the world, they were also for equality and respect within their home country which had considered them property only fifty years before. Despite the adversity that African Americans faced when trying to aid their country during World War I, many still saw this as an opportunity to push towards equality and fight against racism.

Whether it was being deployed in France during the war or assisting on the homefront in the war effort, African Americans sought out to form their identity as equal Americans during World War I. Despite facing obstacles while fighting in Europe, when they returned home after the war, and receiving the services and respect that was given to their white counterparts, many African Americans fought to push racial equality in the United States. Many joined groups like the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to push for equality and rights in a country that they fought for and defended.

The experience of African Americans was a battle for much more than resisting powers overseas, it was an effort to gain equality in their own home, fighting and defending a country that has oppressed them for over 400 years.