TRANSITIONS

Jimmy Carter
Oct 1, 1924 - Dec 29, 2024
39th President, politician and humanitarian, a man of integrity and truth

Nikki Giovanni
Jun 7, 1943 - Dec 9, 2024
Author, commentator, activist, educator

Quincy Jones
Mar 14, 1933 – Nov 3, 2024
Musician, composer, arranger, impresario

James Earl Jones
Jan 17, 1931 – Sep 9, 2024
EGOT actor par excellence

Rickey Henderson
Dec 25, 1958 - Dec 20, 2024
All Star NBL left fielder played with the Oakland Athletics

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Thomas Fleming Speaks About the Port Chicago Disaster

Submitted by Max Millard, excerpted from Thomas Fleming's memoir, "In the Black World,"

…here's what he wrote about Port Chicago. At the time of the accident, Tom was the editor of the Reporter newspaper, before it merged with the Sun to make the Sun-Reporter.

The Navy was using black recruits on the docks at Port Chicago, near Martinez in upper San Francisco Bay, to load the live ammunition that came in on trains from factories and was transferred to ships. Vessels at the port carried everything used by the fighting men in the Pacific theater.

"You had black kids 18, 19, 20 years old who weren't properly trained, loading the ships 24 hours around. I don't think the government should have had those inexperienced young kids down there, who didn't know how to handle the lethal cargo. On July 17, 1944, ammunitions ship exploded accidentally, killing 320 men, including more than 200 blacks.

I was shocked. I wanted to go, but I had no way to get up there. The talk around the area, and perhaps in all of black America, was why the Navy did not use professional longshoremen in loading those cargo ships, as they did for ships that were docked in San Francisco. I wrote editorials on the Port Chicago incident, after studying the stories and talking with a lot of people, especially young sailors from Mare Island.

After the incident, when some of the black sailors refused to go back to work under the same conditions, they were court-martialed, charged with mutiny, and sent to jail. Their records were never cleared. But when you go into the armed forces, you're supposed to face danger, and you have to do whatever the officers tell you, or you can expect to be punished."

NOTE: For a more detailed description of the Port Chicago incident and the mutiny trial, read the Robert Allen book, The Story of the Largest Mass Mutiny Trial in U.S. Naval History. Despite public outcry and the NAACP legal defense of the 50 sailors who faced court martial (Thurgood Marshall was involved,) these 50 and the other men who were accused of mutiny and dereliction of duty served time and were dishonorably discharged from the service. These events took place in 1944, 80+ years ago. All of the men involved have passed away. It wasn’t until July 18, 2024 that the Navy and the U. S. Government exonerated 256 men – 80 years after the incident. – ed.

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2025 BLACK HISTORY MONTH KICK-OFF
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2025, NOON

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THE SOCIETY IS MOVING, AGAIN!
Stay tuned. retrofitting project at 762 Fulton has been delayed to January 2026. The Society is staying in our home for now. BUT, we will face the eventual retrofit project and what that will mean for us. If you can help, please contact the Board of Directors either directly or at Info@sfaahcs.org