- Collection:
- Civil Rights History Project
- Title:
- Julius W. Becton oral history interview conducted by David P. Cline in Ft. Belvoir, Virginia, 2015 December 15
- Contributor to Resource:
- Becton, Julius W. (Julius Wesley), 1926- interviewee
Cline, David P., 1969- interviewer
Bishop, John Melville, videographer
Civil Rights History Project (U.S.) - Date of Original:
- 2015
- Subject:
- Prairie View Agricultural and Mechanical College
United States.--Army--African American troops
United States.--Army.--Infantry Division, 93rd
African American generals--Interviews
Civil rights movements--United States
Discrimination in the military--United States
Generals--United States--Interviews
Korean War, 1950-1953--Personal narratives, American
United States--Race relations - Location:
- United States, 39.76, -98.5
United States, Virginia, Fairfax County, Fort Belvoir, 38.7119, -77.14589 - Medium:
- personal narratives
interviews
oral histories (literary genre)
video recordings (physical artifacts) - Type:
- MovingImage
- Description:
- Julius W. Becton recalls events that led to his service in the military. He highlights being the first African American to hold many of his positions in academics, the military and post-military career. Emphasizing how the integration of the military influenced his attitude towards racial issues, he offers a unique perspective on the Civil Rights Movement. He expresses deep pride for his efforts to advance himself, his family, race, and country through his military service.
Recorded in Ft. Belvoir, Virginia, on December 15, 2015.
Civil Rights History Project collection (AFC 2010/039: 0135), Archive of Folk Culture, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Copies of items are also held at the National Museum of African American History and Culture (U.S.).
Lieutenant General Julius W. Becton, Jr., United States Army, retired, was born in 1926 in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. He joined the Army Air Corps in July 1944 and graduated from Infantry Officer Candidate School in 1945. Becton originally separated from the Army in 1946, but he returned to active duty in 1948 when the Army was officially desegregated. Eventually, rising to the rank of Lieutenant General, he served during both the Korean War and the Vietnam War, and retired from the U.S. Army in 1983 after nearly 40 years of service. After retirement, he has held numerous positions including: Director of Disaster Assistance for the Agency for International Development (AID), the director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), president of Prairie View A & M University, and Superintendent for the District of Columbia school system.
The Civil Rights History Project is a joint project of the American Folklife Center, Library of Congress and the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of African American History and Culture to collect video and audio recordings of personal histories and testimonials of individuals who participated in the Civil Rights movement.
In English.
Finding aid http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.afc/eadafc.af013005 - Metadata URL:
- http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.afc/afc2010039.afc2010039_crhp0135
- Language:
- eng
- Additional Rights Information:
- Collection is open for research. To request materials, please contact the Folklife Reading Room at http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.afc/folklife.contact
- Extent:
- 8 video files (Apple ProRes 422 HQ, QuickTime wrapper) (3:08:47) : digital, sound, color.
transcript 1 item (.pdf) : text files. - Original Collection:
- Civil Rights History Project collection AFC 2010/039: 0135
- Contributing Institution:
- American Folklife Center
- Rights:
-
