When I was a young Marine sergeant, I was “adopted” by a group of African-American Marines called the Montford Point Marines. During World War II, Montford Point was the training base for African-American Marines before the armed forces were desegregated by President Harry S. Truman. The Montford Point Marines who adopted me were career Marines, most of whom had fought in three wars. This was a proud, professional and patriotic group of men. Realizing their options were limited, they chose to stay in the Marine Corps and make it a career. Each one of them were senior enlisted men, first sergeants and sergeant majors. They also had something else in common. They were all married to school teachers.
While the men at Montford Point acquiesced to the ceilings placed above their heads, the women acquiesced to being placed in a box. The men, although capable, could not be elevated to officers. The women, although brilliant, could not be moved to another professional path.
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