World War 2: How the Men of the USS Mason Helped to Integrate the U.S. Military
Photo: Negro sailors of the USS MASON commissioned at Boston Navy Yard 20 March 1944 proudly look over their ship which is first to have predominantly Negro crew, 1943 - 1958, National Archives and Records Administration.
The men of the USS Mason made history during World War II as our nation's first ship manned by a predominantly black crew.
Launched on November 17, 1943, the Evarts-class destroyer escort carried an enlisted crew of 160 serving under Lt. Commander William M. Blackford and five other white officers. Prior to the Mason, black men in the Navy had been limited to support roles such as cooks, stewards, and laborers, and even had to wear different uniforms than those worn by other sailors. The commissioning of the Mason came about as a result of intense pressure from First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and others to integrate the armed forces.
But the transition wasn't easy, with the Mason's crew forced to confront intense racism in the naval ranks and a widespread belief that the "social experiment" would fail. The men of the Mason responded to the hostility and doubts by performing their duty, which often times was dangerous, with extraordinary bravery and dedication. Their exploits, escorting supply ships and intercepting German U-boat messages in the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, were chronicled by African American journalist Thomas W. Young, who was commissioned by the Navy as a war correspondent aboard the Mason.
Photo: USS Mason (DE-529) off the U.S. Atlantic coast east of Boston, Massachusetts (position 42-23N, 69-07W), 28 August 1944. Photographed from a blimp of squadron ZP-11. Starboard broadside aerial view, August 28 1944, NHV Photo #: 80-G-245458 via http://www.navsource.org/archives/06/529.htm, US Navy Employee.
The Mason's story might have remained lost to history if not for the efforts of a small but determined group that included the Destroyer Escort Sailors Association, the USS Mason Association, Congressman Charles Rangel and author Mary Pat Kelly, whose book Proudly We Served helped bring attention to the men of the Mason. In 2004, the book was made into the movie Proud, starring renowned actor and activist Ossie Davis in his final film role as Signalman Second Class Lorenzo DuFau, the last surviving member of the Mason crew.
The growing clamor to recognize the contributions of the men of the Mason resulted in the Navy finally awarding the long-delayed commendation to surviving crewmembers in 1995. And in 2003, the Navy commissioned a new ship in honor of the heroes of the Mason the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Mason, the only U.S. Navy ship ever named for a crew––whose motto is “Proudly We Serve.”
Photo: Persian Gulf (Jan. 2, 2005) — The guided missile destroyer USS Mason (DDG-87) patrols the Northern Persian Gulf. Mason is on her first deployment to the Persian Gulf as part of the USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) Carrier Strike Group, to support coalition efforts in the Global War on Terrorism, 2 January 2005, United States Navy, Photographer's Mate 2nd Class Peter J. Carney.
The courage and commitment of the Mason's crew helped pave the way for the integration of the armed forces by President Harry S. Truman in 1948. By countering the prevailing notions of black inferiority, the men of the Mason helped to win both the battle against the Axis powers and the battle at home against racism and discrimination. This notion was enshrined in the Double V (for "Double Victory") Campaign, a national effort that called on African Americans to give their all to win a victory overseas, while calling for a victory for equal rights in the U.S.
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