Rating: 
Summary: Ugly Chapter of American History Uncovered
Review: "White MPs were called in... armed with machine guns...They shot everything that moved, until nothing did; not one defenseless soldier got away. When the shooting stopped, over 1200 members of the 364th were slaughtered." In December of 1943, over one thousand black soldiers were slaughtered at Camp Van Dorn, located just outside the sleepy southern town of Centreville Mississippi. These enlisted men weren't killed in combat with the enemy, but lined up and mowed down, unarmed, by white soldiers acting on orders from superiors in the US Army. Unbelieveable, isn't it? The first thought I had upon hearing about the incident was that it couldn't possibly be true. So, I got my hands on the book, The Slaughter, written by Carroll Case, a local, white Mississippi journalist who blew the cover off this shocking, long-rumored massacre. And as I examined the proof offered by the author in his carefully-researched text, the shock of recognition set in, even though the truth remains difficult to swallow. Nobody wants to think that a government-sanctioned Holocaust of African-Americans could have occurred during WWII. Or that it was successfully hidden for over 50 years, despite the military's ability to keep so many of its operations an absolute secret. But Mr. Case has pieced together the scenario which led to this unthinkable crime against humanity, relying on a combination of eyewitness accounts and declassified documents unearthed by way of a Freedom of Information Act inquiry. Thus, we learn, for instance, that the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, some five months before the atrocity, filed an affidavit with the Secretary of War on behalf of the 364th Infantry, an all-black regiment. NAACP attorney Milton Konvitz attached to his appeal the emotional letters of several members of the 364th which eloquently but desperately complained about their mistreatment on the basis of race. The book explains that the regiment had specifically been relocated from Phoenix to the Deep South because of insubordination. The black soldiers had repeatedly complained about the unequal treatment of blacks and whites in the armed forces. So, they were shipped to a remote outpost in Mississippi in order to have their rebellious spirit broken by an even more repressive social code. At Camp Van Dorn, however, matters only went from bad to worse as the African-American soldiers still refused to capitulate. And when white officers observed that the surly attitude of these Northern blacks were beginning to infect their obedient Southern brethren, extermination was ordered as the final solution.
Rating:
Summary: Ugly Chapter of American History Uncovered
Review: "White MPs were called in... armed with machine guns...They shot everything that moved, until nothing did; not one defenseless soldier got away. When the shooting stopped, over 1200 members of the 364th were slaughtered." In December of 1943, over one thousand black soldiers were slaughtered at Camp Van Dorn, located just outside the sleepy southern town of Centreville Mississippi. These enlisted men weren't killed in combat with the enemy, but lined up and mowed down, unarmed, by white soldiers acting on orders from superiors in the US Army. Unbelieveable, isn't it? The first thought I had upon hearing about the incident was that it couldn't possibly be true. So, I got my hands on the book, The Slaughter, written by Carroll Case, a local, white Mississippi journalist who blew the cover off this shocking, long-rumored massacre. And as I examined the proof offered by the author in his carefully-researched text, the shock of recognition set in, even though the truth remains difficult to swallow. Nobody wants to think that a government-sanctioned Holocaust of African-Americans could have occurred during WWII. Or that it was successfully hidden for over 50 years, despite the military's ability to keep so many of its operations an absolute secret. But Mr. Case has pieced together the scenario which led to this unthinkable crime against humanity, relying on a combination of eyewitness accounts and declassified documents unearthed by way of a Freedom of Information Act inquiry. Thus, we learn, for instance, that the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, some five months before the atrocity, filed an affidavit with the Secretary of War on behalf of the 364th Infantry, an all-black regiment. NAACP attorney Milton Konvitz attached to his appeal the emotional letters of several members of the 364th which eloquently but desperately complained about their mistreatment on the basis of race. The book explains that the regiment had specifically been relocated from Phoenix to the Deep South because of insubordination. The black soldiers had repeatedly complained about the unequal treatment of blacks and whites in the armed forces. So, they were shipped to a remote outpost in Mississippi in order to have their rebellious spirit broken by an even more repressive social code. At Camp Van Dorn, however, matters only went from bad to worse as the African-American soldiers still refused to capitulate. And when white officers observed that the surly attitude of these Northern blacks were beginning to infect their obedient Southern brethren, extermination was ordered as the final solution.
Rating: 
Summary: The book that breaks an important news story...
Review: "The Slaughter: An American Atrocity" is a book that breaks an important news story. It exposes what is perhaps the single worst racial atrocity in American history... the heinous killing of over 1,200 black soldiers on an Army base in southwestern Mississippi during World War II. The perpetrator was none other than the United States Army itself. Over 13 years of research and eyewitness interviews led author Carroll Case to expose the 55-year government cover-up of the slaughter. The book includes recently declassified government documents as well as letters written by the soldiers pleading for help just prior to the massacre. As Corporal Anthony J. Smirely, Jr., a member of the 364th Infantry stationed at Camp Van Dorn, Mississippi, wrote on May 31st, 1943: "I beg of you to please, from my heart, please do something for the fellows and myself who are among the unfortunate to be in this State of blood -- Negro blood -- that is constantly flowing in the streets." As a direct result of this book's publication, Congressman Bennie Thompson has called upon Secretary of the Defense William Cohen for a full investigation. The NAACP has demanded an immediate response from the Secretary of the Army. The American people have a right to hear this story.
Rating: 
Summary: Extreme Lack of Evidence of In-Depth Research!
Review: (NOTE: ** means new paragraph. I was an English professor for 11 years; it can't be helped! :o]) **I have no doubt that SOMETHING happened at Camp Van Dorn in 1943. Only those who are blatantly racist or locked away in ivory towers can still pretend that the United States Army was not often as cruel to its African-American employees as it was to its international enemies. President Truman did not just make drastic changes to the military system because he needed a new project. He knew that amends needed to be made -- and quickly. **My consternation about this book is its stark lack of in-depth research. In part one, we learn more than we need to about Case's efforts to learn about the atrocity at Van Dorn. While the process of acquiring information is often an interesting travelogue, Case does not offer enough substance to show that the fruits of his 13 years of labor were not in fact spoiled on the vine. **I find it offensive that Case does not dispute the widely accepted version of the 364th's misconduct. I was reminded of "The Confession of Nat Turner" as I read part one. I tend to dismiss that confession because it is written by an amanuensis. We have only David Gray's word about what Nat Turner's motives were; Gray's is the only voice we hear from Nat Turner; therefore, Nat himself is actually silenced. Such is the case with the victims of the Van Dorn horror. Why should we believe that they were as disruptive as they are reported to be by people who still refer to African-Americans as "niggers"? **Case has verbatim transcriptions of the photocopied letters he places at the end of the 40-page "facts" section. Ultimately, only five pages of the facts surrounding the incident can be found in part one. I could perhaps understand why he decided to tell the whole story in novel form IF the novel were the well-written result of a full disclosure of some detailed and well done research. Alas, his work is poorly presented, and Carroll's case is not just half-baked, it is nearly raw. **It is therefore very easy for the rabidly racist and those who would deny that anything happened at all to say the book is false. I won't know about the total veracity of what seems a plausible incident until I do some research of my own, but I do know that had he written about the facts in painstaking detail, nobody would give a second thought to those who malign the truth of this incident. **I truly wasted my money on this one and would give it zero stars if I had the option!
Rating:
Summary: Extreme Lack of Evidence of In-Depth Research!
Review: (NOTE: ** means new paragraph. I was an English professor for 11 years; it can't be helped! :o]) **I have no doubt that SOMETHING happened at Camp Van Dorn in 1943. Only those who are blatantly racist or locked away in ivory towers can still pretend that the United States Army was not often as cruel to its African-American employees as it was to its international enemies. President Truman did not just make drastic changes to the military system because he needed a new project. He knew that amends needed to be made -- and quickly. **My consternation about this book is its stark lack of in-depth research. In part one, we learn more than we need to about Case's efforts to learn about the atrocity at Van Dorn. While the process of acquiring information is often an interesting travelogue, Case does not offer enough substance to show that the fruits of his 13 years of labor were not in fact spoiled on the vine. **I find it offensive that Case does not dispute the widely accepted version of the 364th's misconduct. I was reminded of "The Confession of Nat Turner" as I read part one. I tend to dismiss that confession because it is written by an amanuensis. We have only David Gray's word about what Nat Turner's motives were; Gray's is the only voice we hear from Nat Turner; therefore, Nat himself is actually silenced. Such is the case with the victims of the Van Dorn horror. Why should we believe that they were as disruptive as they are reported to be by people who still refer to African-Americans as "niggers"? **Case has verbatim transcriptions of the photocopied letters he places at the end of the 40-page "facts" section. Ultimately, only five pages of the facts surrounding the incident can be found in part one. I could perhaps understand why he decided to tell the whole story in novel form IF the novel were the well-written result of a full disclosure of some detailed and well done research. Alas, his work is poorly presented, and Carroll's case is not just half-baked, it is nearly raw. **It is therefore very easy for the rabidly racist and those who would deny that anything happened at all to say the book is false. I won't know about the total veracity of what seems a plausible incident until I do some research of my own, but I do know that had he written about the facts in painstaking detail, nobody would give a second thought to those who malign the truth of this incident. **I truly wasted my money on this one and would give it zero stars if I had the option!
Rating: 
Summary: Extremely valuable information, but impossible to sweeten .
Review: Any information on the USA's history is valuable, be it an atrocity or victory. Our history books are already sweeten to the point that no one is sure of whom actually made that history. I appreciate the actual facts in the beginning of the book, but the fictional story does not soften the blow of the inhuman acts that took place. What about the families of the victims? Will their 1200 stories be heard? Will there be justice? These questions where missing is this book along with the answers. It reads like an old American history book, too many unanswered questions.
Rating:
Summary: This Story Keeps Moving Along; Answers Deserved
Review: Carroll Case, a Mississippi reporter, partly documented the alleged 1943 mass murder at Camp Van Dorn of over 1,000 African-American soldiers of the 364th Regiment in his book, "The Slaughter." His book is a real page-turner. Even the history surrounding the name of the fort is fascinating.
Historically, the base had an interesting start; it was named after Major General Earl Van Dorn , a Confederate Civil War hero who resigned his commission in the United States Army in 1861 offering his services to the Confederacy. Civil War enthusiasts would know that Van Dorn's most renowned battle was routing Union forces at Holly Springs, Mississippi in December 1862, and that he also had a reputation for drinking and womanizing.
The general's life ended on May 7, 1863, not on the battlefield, but in his office in Spring Hill, Tennessee, where he was shot by a local doctor for allegedly having an affair with the doctor's wife. A later spin was put on the story, that the physician and his wife may have been Union spies.
The real story opened in Louisiana where the 364th originated as the 367th, but trouble began for the black soldiers assigned there, after three of their men were accused of raping a white woman. Thurgood Marshall was involved as an NAACP attorney trying to help the black soldiers, but the 367th was "changed" to the 364th and the soldiers were shipped to Phoenix, and then on to the newly constructed base in Mississippi named after Van Dorn.
Meanwhile, so many questions are left unanswered:
Why did the Army construct a large lake and earthen dam on Camp Van Dorn property which are isolated from public access but connected by a private road directly to the railroad?
Why did the Army tell the NAACP there was no more classified information on the 364th... and yet the NAACP has unearthed at least ten additional boxes of intelligence reports and records marked "TOP SECRET"?
The case, obviously, is not closed. Currently, at least one of Mississippi's historians is quietly collecting records for another book they should provide some answers. "The Slaughter," however, is the place to start.
Rating:
Summary: Entirely False
Review: I am presently the owner of the land that was Camp Van Dorn. It has been in our family for over 150 years . Mr. Case actually has avoided to mention that he interviewed people that actually were alive at the time and lived less than 1\4 mile from the camp. My aunt being one of the people he interviewed absolutely denies any thing of that such happened. After reading this book it is a shame that such inciting and inaccurate material was ever published
Rating: 
Summary: First Hand Account Of Alleged Incidents
Review: I will try to make this very short without covering every event that has occured to me since 1999. First let me say that the book is just that, fiction and nothing more. I started to research my family history around 1999, hoping to find the Grandfather that I never met. My father was raised by his mother and he had no memory of his father at all. My Grandmother always told my father that his father was away in prison. I found my Grandfather in 2002, he was alive and well and living in Tampa Florida. (Very Long Story) During the course of my research, I read just about everything I could on the 364th, not knowing that my Grandfather was a member of the unit during the alleged events! He was number 3,305 on the unit roster. My father was united with my Grandfather after a 60 year time span! My father and I saw him twice before his death on the 6th of August 2003. I questioned him about the alleged allegations and he said that they did not occur! If anyone would like more information, feel free to email me at calsana39@hotmail.com.
Rating:
Summary: First Hand Account Of Alleged Incidents
Review: I will try to make this very short without covering every event that has occured to me since 1999. First let me say that the book is just that, fiction and nothing more. I started to research my family history around 1999, hoping to find the Grandfather that I never met. My father was raised by his mother and he had no memory of his father at all. My Grandmother always told my father that his father was away in prison. I found my Grandfather in 2002, he was alive and well and living in Tampa Florida. (Very Long Story) During the course of my research, I read just about everything I could on the 364th, not knowing that my Grandfather was a member of the unit during the alleged events! He was number 3,305 on the unit roster. My father was united with my Grandfather after a 60 year time span! My father and I saw him twice before his death on the 6th of August 2003. I questioned him about the alleged allegations and he said that they did not occur! If anyone would like more information, feel free to email me at calsana39@hotmail.com.
|
