Alaska Public Media's Wesley Early talks to Ian Hartman, one the authors of the new book, “Black Lives in Alaska: A History of African Americans in the Far Northwest.”
“Black Lives in Alaska: A History of African Americans in the Far NorthwestAuthor and historian Hartman says while most of early Alaska history focuses on territorial days and the Klondike Gold Rush, Black people lived and worked in the region long before.You’re not really talking about Alaska really coming under U.S. control until the 1860s and 70s. But there is an Alaskan Black presence that predates even the treaty of purchase that I think people would be a little bit curious about.
Black soldiers were segregated and marginalized in the lead-up to World War II, but they proved their mettle with their work on the Alaska Highway. Yeah. So as you pointed out, oftentimes, we think about the Alaska-Canadian Highway having somewhat of a sizable Black troop presence to build that. But there is this other component, which would have been the Aleutian campaign.
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