Lecturer tells true story of Glory, blacks in Civil War
February 2, 2006
KOKOMO, Ind.—Many of the most effective and valiant Union soldiers and spies during the U.S. Civil War were African Americans. Hari Jones, a leading authority on African American military service throughout U.S. history, will speak about these Civil War heroes Wednesday, February 15, at Indiana University Kokomo. The 7:30 p.m. presentation in Kresge Auditorium is open to the public.
Proudly joining the Union cause during the “War of the Rebellion” (Civil War), Americans of African American descent saw themselves as working “in league with the U.S. Constitution . . . to end slavery in the United States,” said Jones, assistant director/curator of the African American Civil War Freedom Foundation and Museum in Washington, D.C. Many contemporary Americans first learned about these sacrifices from the 1989 film Glory, which focused on the all-black troops of the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. In his talk, Jones will cover some of the movie’s historical inaccuracies. For example, Glory depicts the 54th’s foot soldiers as largely poor and uneducated men. In reality, Jones said, some 75 percent of the regiment’s members were college graduates. “I will also discuss why the 54th got so much media attention during the Civil War and after, even though a number of the colored regiments had more ‘glorious’ histories,” he said.
The IU Kokomo History/Political Science Club, a student organization, is sponsoring Jones’ lecture. Club president Ryan Carmichael of Bunker Hill called the talk “an opportunity to examine a part of U.S. history we have all been taught, but from a point of view that many of us may have previously missed.” The talk also complements a special course on the Civil War and Reconstruction era, being taught at IU Kokomo this semester by visiting Ball State University professor Scott Parkinson.
A retired Marine Corps captain, Jones has written and lectured extensively on the military service history of African Americans, including interviews with the History Channel and the Canadian Broadcasting Network. He currently serves as content designer for a new National Park Service historic site in Tuskegee, Ala., honoring African American pilots and aircrews who trained there for WWII missions.
Persons without campus parking passes should follow signs to event parking for this lecture.
