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Celebrating African American Military Milestones
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Gabrielle “Gabby” Womack
Alongside churches and schools, the military is one of the oldest and most important institutions in the U.S. The U.S. Armed Forces include the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. Even though an army has existed since the start of the Revolutionary War in 1775, the official U.S. military was not formed until the U.S. Congress had its first session on September 29, 1789.
African Americans have served in every war on American soil and abroad since the French and Indian War, also known as the Seven Years War. However, they served predominantly in segregated units. When allowed admission, African Americans faced harsh mistreatment in the military academies, received demeaning military assignments (often relegated to the galley and not to combat), and were denied promotions and the opportunity to serve as leaders.
(This story was produced in partnership with Just Media, a national hub for grassroots storytelling on the politics of policing and justice reform.)
The countdown is on for Georgia's runoff elections on Jan. 5, pitting incumbent Republicans David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler against their Democratic challengers, Jon Ossoff and Rev. Dr. Raphael Warnock. With mail-in and early voting in full swing, Georgians of faith are working around the clock to mobilize their communities to vote.
The Democratic Party hopes to draw on Warnock's pastoral background to mobilize Black Christian voters. Warnock is the senior pastor of the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church, the home congregation of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The linkage to King is core to Warnock's candidacy. For churches and many faith-based groups, on the other hand, the focus is nonpartisan. As Pastor Lee May from Transforming Faith Church in Decatur put it, "If our people come out to vote, we win."