In the Persian Gulf War, Americans of all races fought in integrated units under the leadership of the first African-American to serve as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Indeed, the United States armed forces of the 1990s are arguably the most integrated institution in American society. But it was not always so.

Robert J. Jakeman is Assistant Professor of History at Auburn University.

"Jakeman's scholarship is thorough and impressive. The prose is clear. . . . A fine case study of black protest and institution building in the forgotten years before the Civil Rights Movement."

—Raymond Wolters

"Robert Jakeman has done an excellent job of giving meaning to the aviation experience. He clearly explains that the decision to create a segregated flight training program at Tuskegee Institute came about as a result of the confluence of three forces: the continued attention of African-Americans in the military, the growing interest of the community in aviation, and the emergence of civil rights as a major issue."

—The Journal of Military History