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Joe Louis: 50 Years An
American Hero
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While some blacks believe
that every black with a name should be out there carrying the
banner, I believe that there are many ways to do that. Joe Louis
carried it the best way he knew how--by using the skill with
which he was endowed. In that sense he was a leader.
Joe Louis was an American hero, especially during the war
years. But while white Americans loved him and cheered for him,
he was still a black. And the rules applied to all blacks. They
cheered for him when he went into the Army, but he went into a
segregated Army. He fought to make the world safe for democracy,
but in a segregated situation. The people that were cheering for
Joe Louis were the same people who, when Lena Horne went to
Arkansas to sing for the troops, put the German prisoners in
better seats than the black enlisted men.
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Vernon E. Jordan, Jr.
Former President, National Urban League, Inc.
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