Soldiers honored during Black History Month

February 25, 2009
By Greta Myers
Public Affairs Reporter

“It was 2 A.M. and the civilians were all under curfew,” said UIS student Danual Carnell Berkley. A Criminal Justice major, Berkley recalled an early morning ambush attempt by terrorist insurgents while he was serving as a gunner in the United States Army in Iraq in the summer of 2007. 

While driving down a Mosul road that had been closed off for three days, Berkley’s unit knew that the insurgent fighters had time to plan an ambush.  But his unit, the Army’s 66th Transportation Company, was trying to get their convoy of civilians to the Turkish border. 

The fight began when an insurgent’s bomb took out the first vehicle in Berkley’s convoy.  This was followed by several rounds of mortar from the insurgents. 

Berkley operated his machine gun while his humvee pushed through the “kill zone”.

“My job was to return fire at muzzle flashes and shadow figures,” he said.
“The fight lasted 10 to 15 minutes,” said Berkley, “But it seemed like lots of time, with lots of bullets falling around.”

For his actions during the firefight, Berkley received the “Army Accommodation Medal with Valor.”

Last Saturday, Illinois soldiers like Berkley were honored at the Illinois State Military Museum for Black History Month.  The exhibit featured contributions that spanned 234 years. 

One such soldier honored was Private Andrew Lewis.  A former slave, Lewis fled Missouri to join the Illinois 29th Infantry, United States Colored Troops in 1863.  During his presentation at the event, Robert Davis of Springfield dramatized the life and words of Private Lewis.

“The play is another way to talk to young people and get them to understand the black troops’ role in the Civil War,” Davis said.

Davis, who is the great-grandson of slaves, has been involved in history dramatizations for over 30 years. 

“I think about those men who are enjoying freedom.  I think of those that are buried at Camp Butler,” Davis said, “I think of those that spent 2,3,4 years walking those roads, looking for their families, and not finding them.”

Lewis fought in numerous civil war fights, including the James River Campaign and the massive union defeat, the Battle of the Crater.

But despite the hardships, Lewis fought, “For our children, our lives and our dignity,” his character said, “We had to get into that Civil War and fight.”
Lewis was one of 180,000 African-American troops who joined the Union Army during the Civil War.

“They had the patriotism and pride like all soldiers, but they had a unique purpose,” said Richard Schachtsiek, Assistant Curator at the Illinois State Museum, “To show that they were as capable as anyone else,” he said.

After the Civil War ended, the 29th returned to Springfield, where it was “mustered” out or discharged from duty at the Old State Capitol, in November 1865. Though they won the war, the soldiers in the unit found it harder to receive the pension and veteran benefits given to white soldiers.
“Slavery ended, but racism didn’t.” Davis said. 

The museum also featured an exhibit that paid tribute to black soldiers during World War I. 

“In 50 years, the weapons and the equipment had changed—but the attitudes, in a lot of ways had not,” said Schachtsiek.

But despite segregation, 2 million African-Americans registered for the draft in 1917.   Of these, over 380,000 were deployed, with over 200,000 troops sent to France. 

Because the French were being beaten so badly, some American units were “loaned” to the French Army during WWI.  The Illinois 8th National Guard, which is under the 93rd Division of the National Guard, was once such group, said Victor Young, of Springfield who lectured on the war during the event.

Soldiers in the 8th turned in their American equipment and were given French supplies instead, Young said. They fought in the Muse Argonne and St. Mihiel Sectors. Though the equipment was often outdated and inferior to the American supplies, the soldiers appreciated the respect that the French people gave them.

And despite being barred from the “Paris Victory Parade” by officials in the U.S. Army, the entire 93rd Division received the honorable “French War Cross” before returning to Rockford on February 1919.

The fair treatment from the French sparked something in the soldiers when they returned home, Young said.

“In the summer of 1918, race riots began.  These soldiers demanded better treatment,” he said. “It was the beginning of civil rights.”