Bryanna Pullins / Website Manager

     “To support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign or domestic” is a quote Truman said July 26, 1947. 

     What does this truly mean? From a young age, I have been force-fed the idea that once you join the military, you spend your days training, fighting, and preparing for the next big war or attack. 

     Now, while that is not necessarily false, much more happens behind the scenes. My family is not new to the military scene. Going back three generations, my family has been dedicated to serving their country, but what did this truly look like?

     My Grandmother, Wanda Coleman, is among the many brave people who served our country. Straight out of college, at the age of 20, she served in the U.S. Army from 1975 to 1977.

     Military service was not new to her family, as it was Coleman who followed in the footsteps of her siblings. 

     “There were seven of us, and out of the seven, six of us went into the military,” Coleman said.

     This family legacy was not what convinced her to go into the military. A friend talked Coleman into joining the military, “We were both supposed to go in at the same time, be in the same platoon, and all of that. I went, and she didn’t.”

     Though supported by her parents, they worried that joining the military was the right move for her. 

     “I was a naive young lady–that was another reason my family was scared about me going into the military. I didn’t pay any attention to what was going on in politics or with the government,” Coleman said. “I just knew my girlfriend asked me to join the buddy system, you make good money, and you pay for your schooling, so that’s why I was there.” 

     Coleman had a clear goal in mind, and she planned to see it to the end. With the support of her family and the strength within herself, she proceeded with her military career.

     At the time of Coleman’s enlistment, MOS (Military Occupational Specialty), which refers to a service member’s job, was not available. This means that enlistees had no control over what their assignment/job would be. 

     Despite this change, Coleman continued with her intentions. 

     “Looking back, I was reminded that it was a stock control specialist [an assignment in which I was placed], but I never really worked in it; I became a battalion mail clerk, which I loved,” Coleman explained.

     The assignment of ‘battalion mail clerk’ included “handle[ing] the mail for the entire battalion in different companies within the battalion,” Coleman said. “I picked up the mail, sorted the mail and delivered the mail [on the military base].”

     Regardless of her given position, basic training was still required. Coleman recounted this as one of the hardest times for her. 

     “It was rough, but I loved it. My family was concerned about it because they didn’t think that I could do it, but I became a squad leader and then a platoon leader, and I was selected to call cadence,” Coleman said. 

     Those successful basic training did not go without its challenges.

     “The only time I got very frustrated and cried was at the firing range. Something was wrong with my weapon. They didn’t know, and I didn’t know it. I have three chances to qualify, and I only had one left,” she said.“I went to the bathroom that night and cried in the shower…and then the next day when I was going to qualify they checked my weapon and saw that the site was off. It wasn’t my fault it was the weapon, and I qualified that day.”

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     In January of 1977, Coleman made the decision to leave the U.S. Army. 

     “I had just gotten engaged, and while we were [off post], my first sergeant called and told me I got selected to go down to Germany. Well, my fiancé didn’t want to go to Germany. He would have had to re-enlist, and he didn’t want to re-enlist to go down to Germany. Well, the only way I could get out was to be expecting or to get out of the service, so the only choice I had was to get out of the army,” Coleman said.

     To this day, Coleman regrets that decision. She wishes she would have gone to Germany and traveled more rather than getting married. 

     “I had my sergeant trying to convince me to go, and he said that if it was true love, it would be there when I got back,” Coleman explained.

     Given Coleman’s decision to leave the Army, she often feels undeserving of veteran status due to her time served: “I don’t feel as important as the rest of the veterans.” 

     While some, including Coleman, had a pleasant military service this is not the case for others.

     Family member Mary Johnson* served in the U.S. Army as well. 

     “I served a year, six months, and 23 days to be exact. From December the 9 of 1975 until July 1 of 1977; although, I signed up for a three-year term,” Johnson said. 

     Johnson joined the military at the age of 20, seeking the ability to afford college. Her family was worried about her joining the military due to her meekness and physical size. They feared she would not be able to withstand the grueling training.

     Her parents and the part of the world she lived in underestimated her. 

     “I think it’s common in the military, as well as in law enforcement, because that is part of my background as well,” Johnson said. “Females are considered to be weaker vessels or weaker persons, and less important, less qualified and so more desired positions were offered to males or not offered to people of color.”

     However, Johnson needed an escape from the place she called home. 

     “It was a need to provide financial support, and in all honesty, it was a need to escape my home environment… most of my childhood and home life was unsafe and very dysfunctional,” Johnson said.

     Johnson was able to find a new home while in boot camp: “We were like family, like sisters. It didn’t matter the color or the background, so that [community] did exist, and I did have that experience.”

     Johnson was later assigned to the 497th transportation motor pool as a transportation dispatching clerk.  

     “I was responsible for preparing the daily maintenance deadline report of our transportation vehicles and equipment, also for scheduling services and repairs for that fleet and equipment,” Johnson said. 

     After her assignment, Johnson became isolated in the motor pool. 

     “I was the only female assigned to the dispatch office, which is stressful, and uncomfortable, but I was able to do the job, ” Johnson said.

     It was not until then that she was subjected to racist comments and sexual harassment by a superior. 

     “I had a white male supervisor, [a] sergeant who was narcissistic, toxic and just not the best supervisor to be under his leadership. He would tell off-colored jokes,” Johnson said.

     Johnson went on to recount a racist joke involving a young African American child: “And I laughed out of fear, insecurity, coming from a dysfunctional home and other reasons that I am aware of and unaware of because it wasn’t funny, and I didn’t want to laugh, and because I was by myself, and it was just he and I, it was in my best interest to go along to get along, in that environment.”

     Johnson believed she could handle such comments; however, this treatment did not stop with the sergeant. 

     “There was one soldier with a friend who would be waiting for me that would just say very off-colored and unwarranted things to me, of a sexual nature. It made me fearful because I was always by myself, so he would wait for me,” Johnson said. 

     This behavior continued until Johnson no longer felt safe going to work. She prayed that God would stay with her and not test her at this time. Her fear led her to no longer leaving her room.

     Johnson then recounted a time when the captain of her company gained access to her locked room.

     “It felt like I had been drugged, but I didn’t do drugs, I didn’t drink and I couldn’t explain why I couldn’t get out of my bed,” Johnson said. “I don’t know if anything happened to me or why he was in my room. I just know shortly after that, I ended up in the hospital.”

     The hospital examined her and later sent her to the main hospital in Washington, D.C. where she was transferred to their psych ward. 

     “I was hospitalized from March of 1977 until I was discharged from the military in July of 1977,” Johnson said.

     The anti-psychotic meds were forced on Johnson until she was discharged. 

     “I was sent home where I escaped with a 100% disability rating,” Johnson said.