World War II Opens New Doors

America's entry into the Second World War prompted the American Red Cross to recognize the value of integrating African Americans more fully into its work. An astute vice chairman, James Fieser, was quick to grasp the opportunity to integrate national headquarters and make changes in its personnel policies.

African American Leaders Meet With the Red Cross (1942) In l942, the American Red Cross addressed the need to actively involve African Americans in its war work and invited representatives of 13 organizations to participate in extensive talks on how blacks could best help the Red Cross meet the nation's needs. Among the participants were Brigadier General Benjamin O. Davis; Mary McLeod Bethune, founder of Bethune-Cookman College; Dr. F. D. Patterson, president of Tuskegee Institute; and Jesse O. Thomas, the first African American professional hired by the American Red Cross. The activities were a great success and led to the breaking down of racial barriers within the organization. In l943, African Americans began filling professional positions overseas, working in clubs, and providing social services.

Dr. Frederick Douglass Patterson (1901-1988) The distinguished educator Dr. Frederick Douglass Patterson became the first African American member of the American Red Cross Central Committee in 1946. Three years earlier he had founded the United Negro College Fund. In l933 he had been appointed the third president of Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, the historically black college founded in l88l by Booker T. Washington. In this 1946 photograph, Dr. Patterson (left) is shown talking with American Red Cross Chairman Basil O'Connor, (right) who was also chairman of the Tuskegee Board of Directors and Jesse O. Thomas, special assistant to the director of Domestic Operations of the American Red Cross. Dr. Patterson continued his association with the Red Cross serving on its Board of Governors from l957-60. In June l987, he received the highest civilian recognition in America, the Medal of Freedom, from President Ronald Reagan.

Jesse O. Thomas (1885-1972) On May 1, l943, Jesse O. Thomas was named special assistant to the director of Domestic Operations of the American Red Cross. He was recruited by Vice Chairman James Fieser to deal with minority issues. Thomas helped break down racial barriers at national headquarters, opening the way for black professionals to begin serving in the American Red Cross. Prior to his appointment at the American Red Cross, Thomas worked at the U.S. Treasury Department, served as a field secretary for the National Urban League, and was a member of the Colored Advisory Commission in connection with the Red Cross Mississippi flood relief operations.

Jesse O. Thomas (1885-1972) at the Potomac Club, Paris (1945) In l943, African Americans began filling positions overseas, working in clubs and providing social services. During the Second World War, hotels in Europe, North Africa, and Asia were converted into special clubs that provided entertainment, relaxation, and refreshment for weary soldiers. Unfortunately, the clubs' operations reflected the segregated culture of the U.S. military. In September l942, a special American Red Cross committee chaired by Dr. F. D. Patterson issued a statement that read in part: "Clubs patronized largely by Negro soldiers should have a predominantly Negro staff; and those clubs patronized largely by white soldiers should have a predominantly white staff. Both white and Negro personnel should be appointed for all clubs and American soldiers of all races should be welcome at all clubs." The Red Cross adopted the suggested policy immediately, but the troops themselves tended to congregate by race. During an inspection tour, Jesse O. Thomas visited the Potomac Club in Paris, where his sister-in-law, Ruby Kelley, served as director.

At an isolated location in France, American Red Cross Clubmobile worker Margaret Lamb gets ready to serve the refreshments, while the soldiers assist with the music.

Clubmobile Service in France (1945) Red Cross operations boomed during the Second World War. In l945, over 7.5 million volunteers provided support to nearly 40,000 paid staff around the world. American Red Cross personnel followed the invasion forces in Europe and the Pacific. Clubmobile Service operated in the European Theater of Operations. Its courageous members often carried coffee and doughnuts to soldiers for many miles over roads too rough for regular travel. Doughnuts became closely associated with the American Red Cross: the organization purchased enough flour between l939 and l946 to make 1.6 billion of them. At the U.S. government's request, the Red Cross charged rear-area troops for their refreshments, creating a public relations problem that persists to this day. Red Cross women served doughnuts at the rate of 400 per minute during the years l944-46.

Dr. Charles Drew (1904-1950) at Presbyterian Hospital, New York (1941)

The distinguished scientist Dr. Charles Drew was a pioneer in the field of blood plasma preservation and storage. He received his medical degree from McGill University School of Medicine and continued his studies at Columbia University, where he wrote a thesis entitled "Banked Blood." In l940, he was asked to help administer the Blood Transfusion Betterment Association of New York to aid thousands of civilians who were wounded in Britain during the German bombing raids. The same year, he developed a system to produce plasma, separating it from blood matter. Between August 1940 and February l941, approximately 10,500 units of liquid plasma were shipped to London to support the Plasma for Britain Project. In February 1941, Dr. Drew became the first medical director of the first American Red Cross Blood Bank in the United States, which produced dried plasma that could be preserved longer than the liquid version. The pioneering medical research of Dr. Drew saved the lives of thousands of wounded Allied servicemen during the Second World War. He received the NAACP's Springarn Medal for his work in the British and American blood plasma projects. Dr. Drew worked diligently under the constraints of a segregated society to help citizens of the world, regardless of their race or ethnicity.

For more than 50 years, the Red Cross has been committed to providing the nation with the safest and most reliable blood and plasma products. The organization's blood program of today is a direct result of the work of medical pioneer Dr. Charles Drew more than 50 years ago. Dr. Drew was instrumental in developing blood plasma processing and transfusion therapy, and his work with the Red Cross blood program during World War II laid the foundation for modern day blood banking. The Charles Drew Institute, named in his honor, is the centerpiece of the Red Cross biomedical training system.

Portrait of Dr. Charles Drew by Betsy Graves Reyneau (1943/44) This portrait of Dr. Charles Drew by Betsy Graves Reyneau (l884-l964) was sponsored by the Harmon Foundation, a New York organization devoted to the support and promotion of African Americans. The Harmon Foundation commissioned a collection of portraits representing the most outstanding African Americans for an exhibition that traveled nationally from l944 to 1954. The Charles Drew portrait was included in this landmark show, which was recreated in a special exhibition "Breaking Racial Barriers: African Americans in the Harmon Foundation Collection," organized by the National Portrait Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution.

American Red Cross Museum Collection