Oral History of Johnny Hemphill

Essay # 45939

African-American Studies
Anthropology
History > U.S. World Wars

This is an oral history of an African-American, WW II veteran. It is the result of four hours of interviews.

1,538 words () | 0 sources | MLA | 2003 United States

Paper Summary:

The paper presents a straightforward history of the man and then provides some analysis to place his experience in the context of world events.

From the Paper:

"Johnny Hemphill, born in Asheville in 1924, was drafted into military service in 1942 directly after graduation from high school. He was initially taken to Fort Bragg in Fayetteville, N.C. for a battery of tests to determine his physical and mental condition. At the time, Fort Bragg served as a sorting point for soldiers and draftees from North and South Carolina so Hemphill, along with two friends from the Asheville area, boarded a bus for Fayetteville to await their fates. Hemphill recalls being desirous of a position in the National Guard, as he perceived it as an institution where ?a colored guy could really get ahead, could actually move upwards.? This stood in direct contrast to what Hemphill had heard about other branches of the military; "my brother had just gone to the army and he told me, "don't you go in the army?, he said "don't you go where you got to sleep on the ground.?"

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APA Citation:

Oral History of Johnny Hemphill (2012, January 15). Retrieved February 13, 2012, from http://www.academon.com/Essay-Oral-History-of-Johnny-Hemphill/45939