Existing comment:
The NEW Brigade:
The battalion, regiment, or brigade of midshipmen, as they have variously been called, has reflected American society. For more than a hundred years, the Naval Academy echoed the white, male-dominated establishment.
Soon after the Civil War, three blacks -- James Conyers, Alonzo C McClellan, and Henry E Baker Jr -- received appointments as midshipmen at the Naval Academy. For a variety of reasons, probably not least of which was the prevalent attitude toward blacks, all left the Academy within a year. These pioneers had made the first small steps toward integration of the Academy, but not for sixty years would two more make the attempt. Neither James Lee Johnson nor George J Trievers stayed more than a semester. Ostracized and harassed by many midshipmen, befriended by few, Brown persevered. In 1949, he became the first African-American graduate of the Naval Academy.
Wesley Brown did not open wide the gates of the Academy to minorities, but they were open. Over the next twenty years, only 34 blacks graduated from the Academy. In the 1970s, a minority recruitment program was initiated which showed immediate results: from 1970 to 1974, the number of minorities at the Academy increased from 27 to 178, Black graduates have followed the same career paths as their white colleagues: admirals, generals, astronauts, and business leaders.
Wesley A Brown -- USNA 1949:
During latter stages of World War II, American attitudes towards race began slowly to change. Even so, when Wesley A. Brown was admitted to the Academy with the Class of 1949, life was not easy.
Buildings around the Yard are named for heroes of the Navy and Marine Corps. The Academy's new field house is named for Wesley A. Brown who demonstrated his courage not on the field of battle, but in a daily battle against prejudice. His commission into the Navy was a recognition of his victory.
Charles F Bolden Jr -- USNA 1968:
Bolden accepted a commission in the US Marine Corps upon graduation and took flight training. Upon receiving his wings in 1970, he flew A-6 Intruders in Vietnam, making more than 100 sorties. Following two years as a recruiting officer in California, Bolden graduated from the Test Pilot School at Patuxent River, Maryland. In 1980, he was selected for the astronaut program and made four space flights. In June 1994, Bolden left NASA and returned to active duty in the Navy and Deputy Commandant of Midshipmen. Following that tour, Charles Bolden promoted to brigadier general in the Marine Corps.
J. Paul Reason -- USNA 1965:
Following graduation, Reason served in a destroyer escort, then received training in nuclear propulsion engineering. Most of his subsequent sea-going assignments were in nuclear-powered surface ships: cruisers Truxtun and Mississippi, and the carrier Enterprise. In 1976, he became Presidential Aide to President Jimmy Carter, then tours executive officer on board destroyer Coontz and commanding officer of the nuclear powered destroyer Bainbridge. After several group commands, Reason, appointed to vice admiral, assumed command of Naval Surface Force, US Atlantic Fleet; then with a fourth star became Commander in Chief, US Atlantic Fleet in December 1998.
Lillie Mae Chase:
Annapolis was a segregated town. Even as large numbers of blacks were being admitted to the Academy, they, their families, and their dates were denied admission to restaurants and theaters because of their race. Several women, including Ms Chase, or "Mama Lil", opened their heart and homes to these midshipmen. In these private settings, African-American midshipmen found a home away from home, a place to share experiences, provide support, and get a home-cooked meal. Some believe that if it were not for the generosity and love of these women, they could not have endured the sense of isolation they felt as a very small minority at the Academy. Their perseverance paid off, to the benefit of their nation. Among the midshipmen supported by Lillie Mae Chase are leaders in the Navy, Marine Corps, astronauts, and business. |