Vivid Account of Black Troops in WWI Combat

Vivid Account of Black Troops in WWI Combat The American Foreign Legion: Black Soldiers of the 93d in World War I. Frank E. Roberts. Naval Institute Press. 263 pages; photographs; maps; notes; index; $29.95 (ALiSA member's cost, $23.96).

In this book, Frank E. Roberts provides a chronicle of the experiences of the four black regiments that served with distinction in the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) but were assigned to French divisions throughout their combat service.

America entered World War I at a time when Jim Crow laws and racism permeated the society and politics of the country. Blacks hoped that their participation in the war effort would help tear down the …