Daughter of 1st Black Marine says it's 'unbelievable' to see 'my dad caught up in DEI'
Alfreda Masters, the daughter of the first enlisted Black man to serve in the Marine Corps, told ABC News she finds it "unbelievable" that the webpage honoring her father's service has been taken down as a part of diversity, equity, and inclusion, or DEI, scrubbing at the Pentagon.
Alfred Masters, after whom she is named, was sworn in to the Marine Corps in 1942 after he was "rejected from the Marines ... because they didn't think Blacks were good enough," Alfreda Masters said.
After a chance encounter with a Marine recruiter in Oklahoma City who asked Masters if he'd like to become the first Black Marine, to which he said yes, Masters enlisted. He served in a segregated unit in World War II in Guam and the South Pacific, where he rose to the rank of technical sergeant.
"I'm sad and angry at the same time," Masters said of the removed Marine Corps webpage that honored Black History Month and her father.
The Marine Corps article, which now leads to a 404 error code, noted President Ronald Reagan's designation of February as Black History Month and honored the Marines of Montford Point, who "broke ground for the right to serve amongst all who come from different racial and ethnic backgrounds."
"During a time of hardship, African American Marines honored the call, stood for what they believed in and had the courage to leave home during the nation's time of need despite the fact that their basic rights were often disregarded by their fellow Americans," the webpage said.
Masters said that "it first hit" that her father had been "caught up in the DEI thing and wouldn't get his just due" when she called Camp Lejeune, a Marine Corps base, about his being honored for Black History Month.
"Very politely, very diplomatically, they said they couldn't do it," she said. "They're proud of all Marines."
The Marine Corps, in a statement to ABC News on March 26, said it "only removed content" promoting "cultural awareness months" like Black History Month. It noted that content associated with Montford Point Marines, some of which mention Masters as the first enlisted Black Marine, "were left in place."
"The Montford Point Marines, including TSgt. Masters, remain a special part of our history," the statement said.
Masters said the removal is an act that amounts to erasing history.
"It's history. It's not Black history. It's American history," she said.
"All our history erased. ... We can't believe it," she said. Yet there will no doubt be resilience, she added.
"I have faith in this country," she said. "My friends have faith in this country -- in democracy. Nobody I know wants to live in Russia or China. No. We'll get back what's our due. … It's just another battle."
Masters overcame his fair share. After he was discharged two days before Christmas 1945, Masters "was determined to get home to his family by Christmas," his daughter told ABC News.
"When he got to Jim Crow South, he no longer could sit with his fellow Marines in the passenger car," she added. "And there was no 'colored' car to leave that day for Oklahoma."
The Marines insisted he be allowed on that train, riding in the mail car and sitting on a milk can. He arrived home on Christmas Day.
