In: Economics
question has to be in two paragraphs for history class for study guide exam
Explain the Brownsville Incident and its effect on African Americans.
The Brownsville Incident (1906) occurred in Brownsville, a town in south Texas, where a race-related fracas occurred on August 13, 1906 that resulted in one white civilian being injured and another being killed. White townspeople have blamed the newly deployed 25th Infantry African-American soldiers at nearby Fort Brown. President Theodore Roosevelt discharged the entire 167-men regiment without honor, with all the soldiers stating their innocence. Roosevelt did not expel the White Officers, who attested at the time of the melee in town that the soldiers were in their barracks.
No military trial ever took place. The soldiers were cleared of wrongdoing by a Texas judge. Nonetheless, Roosevelt sided with Brownsville's white citizens who had committed to the soldiers becoming guilty. He sent investigators to evaluate the August 13 events, but his mind was already composed. The investigation, dated 7 February 1909, confirmed the civilians ' stories and concluded that the regiment was at fault. The dismissal of the innocent soldiers by Roosevelt is generally considered his greatest mistake as president. The men lost their careers, their wages, their pensions and their military honours. Roosevelt faced many-sector criticism, but never backed up, changed his mind, or apologized.
Journalist John Weaver examined the evidence in 1970, and interviewed those who were still alive. He concluded that Brownsville's white citizens had deceived past prosecutors, and that the soldiers were innocent of the charges against them. Weaver's work has stirred the United States. Congress to carry on another study. Their findings mirrored Weaver's, and in 1972, Congress overturned Roosevelt's dismissal order and restituted the soldiers.