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I As I Saw It: The Memoir Of An African American Soldier By Bruce Wright

Decent Essays

I read the article, “World War I as I Saw it: The Memoir of an African American Soldier.” This article consists of a memoir written by Bruce Wright and an introduction written by his grandchildren, Tracey Spencer and James Spencer. This article was published in the Massachusetts Historical Review in 2007. Before the memoir, an introduction written by Bruce Wright’s grandchildren appears. In it, they write of his personality and family, as well as a brief introduction to his life in the army. The memoir begins with Bruce stating that his company (Company L) was the only African American company in the Massachusetts National Guard. Bruce was shocked that the Colonel in charge of the regiment treated Bruce Wright’s company no different than what he treated the white companies. After moving to many different camps around Massachusetts for drill, Company L was sent to North Carolina. Here, Company L experienced ill treatment from many white soldiers. There was so much fighting between the men that soon Company L was moved to another camp. Then, at the end of March 1918, Company L set sail for France. The trip was difficult for the soldiers, with nothing but rough …show more content…

It was also nice to hear stories from his training days as well as his days spent overseas. Bruce Wright’s portrayal of “No Man’s Land” described not only the appearance but also the smell. I have only ever seen pictures of “No Man’s Land” and none came close to what he described it as. He stated that many of the men in his company fought in hopes that it would make life easier for the other African Americans at home. I connected this to a class discussion of this belief. Overall, this article was an intriguing read, I enjoyed reading of the war from a perspective I had not heard before. However, I wish Bruce Wright had continued his memoir, as it would have been nice to read of his trip and arrival

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