I arrived at Fort Carson, my last duty station, in late summer 1970 straight out of prison after serving 13 1/2 months with my time commencing at Long Binh Jail (LBJ) in Viet Nam in 1968. It was said that 90% of the soldiers there were Viet Nam Returnees. I was one of them. Opposition to the War was prevalent and tensions were high. Morale, if you can call it that, must have been and was at an all time low. As soon as you entered the post oppression slapped you in the face and hard. Racial “disturbances” were nearly a daily occurrence. Many soldiers were writing to their congressman complaining about conditions at the post and in the military in general. No one can forget the “Riot (Rebellion)” on “B” Street involving almost exclusively black soldiers in open revolt against the government and its agents, the MP’s, Local police and other law enforcement agencies.
The situation had gotten out of control. There was open rebellion, which manifested itself in many ways. The Pentagon was hard pressed to deal effectively with a rapidly disintegrating army. A combination of Soldiers own militant demands and the government’s untenable position led to the founding army different councils at Ft. Carson with varying degrees of power and influence. The “Junior Officer’s Council”, the “Enlisted Man’s Council”, The “Senior NCOs Council” and The “Racial Harmony Council” were among the most prominent of these councils. The “Racial Harmony Council” was, by virtue of its make-up and scope, the most influential and powerful of all the councils. These events transpired a long time ago and subsequently documentation and people’s recollection of those events to some extent are sketchy. I’m posting to the “Stop The WAR Brigade” Site documents that have been in my possession since my departure from Ft. Carson, December 1970. I encourage anyone who has documents, press articles, photos etc. to contact us and share your thoughts, experiences and views on the subject.
Just to set the record straight, I was elected to the position of Chairman, taking over from the first chairman SP4 Melvin Hutchinson, as were all other “officers” serving on the council by members of the RHC. No one was appointed to any position during my tenure as Chairman. The soldiers participating in the RHC elected individuals to their posts by majority vote. Several references have been made to the RHC in articles and websites and some of the information therein is inaccurate if not false. The “RHC” was neither a Panacea nor a Placebo. Debates raged and political consciousness either heightened or awakened and when it was all said and done, people went their own separate ways but, I believe, they were transformed, for the most part, forever and in a positive sense. Especially now with war raging in Iraq with Iraqis and Soldiers dying daily and plans for even more murderous wars on the horizon it’s important that soldiers now get a comprehensive and truthful view of the history and tradition of resistance in the US Military in all of its forms of expression.
Note: I’ve included the picture of Lt. General Dewitt C. Smith(later Chief of Personnel, US Army) on this page for several reasons. Most importantly because he supported the “RHC” without reservation with all that that entailed: scorn, ridicule, threats etc. I had many conversations with him and learned a great deal about the Army and some of its history. He never tried to influence the work of the “RHC” with his rank and made a point of emphasizing the “Leave your rank at the door” Policy of the “RHC” which promoted lively discussions to say the least with no holds barred. Gen. Smith was a southerner in his demeanor and style but you never felt uncomfortable in his presence. He came up through the ranks as an enlisted man and perhaps that’s why has more than open for some long overdue change.
Sure, careers were on the line with Ft. Carson ready to go Ballistic but that doesn’t necessarily explain everyone’s motives. People took sides and we definitely had people on our side. I was amazed at his interest and for that matter the interest shown by other Officers & Enlisted Personnel, SP4 William Rosendahl ,Colonel Hughes, Lt. Colonel Berrante, Lt. Colonel Mallory and not just a few Junior Officers (most of whom were Anti-War to the bone) whose names I’ve unfortunately forgotten. In fact Lt. Col. Mallory, a black officer sitting on the Council, told me verbatim, “I’ve been waiting for this moment a long time”. He had endured a lot of oppression in his career and wasn’t letting this chance escape him.
We were finally standing as one and fighting back, white & black, and we had the opposition, The “Good Old Boy” Network, on the run and ducking for cover, Part of the work of the “RHC” included going directly to the units and doing an inspection and meeting with the soldiers, listening to what thy had to say and then making recommendations and then taking some action. We just didn’t do a lot of talking and that’s what upset a lot of people who were opposed to the whole thing to begin with. On Several occasions the commanders of some units who didn’t appreciate our presence notified the division Sergeant Major who promptly sent the MP’s to detain me for Haircut Violations or anything else they could come up with. It didn’t take long to realize that the opposition was highly organized and ready and willing to act in its own interests. Gen. Smith had to write a letter of “free passage” that I had to present upon arrival at a unit just to keep out of jail and to his credit that’s what he did.
The “RHC” could go anywhere and talk to anybody and we did just that. How things would have turned out without his and others support we’ll never know but suffice it to say that we always thought their support was genuine and sincere. Now, since those times, things have changed, the councils are all gone, and what happened then has become a series of rumor, conjecture and fantasy. Hopefully we’ll be able to set some of the record straight. These are new days with some old and new challenges and perhaps some soldiers who visit this website will be inspired by what they read here and dare to stand up and be heard.
Sincerely,
Darnell S. Summers (Former Chairman of RHC)
Stop The War Brigade & Vietnam Veterans Against the War-AI (Germany)
Tel: 49/ (0) 177/ 481 6128
Email: mailto:stopthewarbgde@hotmail.com
Web: STWB http://angelfire.com/jazz/stwb
VVAWAI http://www.oz.net/~vvawai/index.html
Interview with Bob Wright, New York Times Reporter. . Left to right: 1. PFC H. Edwards 2. SP4 D. Summers(Chairman) 3. SP5 Crenshaw 4. SP4 M. Hutchison(Former RHC Chairman) 5. Bob Wright (N.Y.Times)
Left to right: 1. unknown 2. unknown 3. LT. COL P. Mallory 4. PFC H. Edwards
5. SP5 Crenshaw 6. SP4 D. Summers(Chairman) 7. SP5 W. Manning(Vice-Chairman) 8. SP5 Y. Pittman 9. unknown. 10 PVT. G. Sullivan Note: the council, which would travel from unit to unit, is meeting with a large group black soldiers who are voicing their outrage in one of the line units.
Left to right: 1. SP4 M. Hutchison(Former RHC Chairman) 2. SP4 C. White 3. PFC H. Edwards 4. SP5 W. Manning(Vice-Chairman) 5. SP4 D. Summers(Chairman)
6. Brig. Gen D. C. Smith
Left to right: 1. unknown 2. unknown 3. LT. COL. P. Mallory 4. PFC H. Edwards
5. SP5 Crenshaw 6. SP4 D. Summers(Chairman) 7. SP5 W. Manning(Vice-Chairman)
8. SP5 Y. Pittman
Before I left Ft. Carson forever a photographer from the “PIO”(Public Information Office) gave me the photos of the RHC meetings that appear on this web page. I’ll never forget what he said to me at the time, “ Hey Summers, maybe you’d like to have these photos and perhaps you’ll have some use for them.” He was right on both counts. General Smith’s photo speaks for itself.
The photo text reads:
“ To Darnell Summers, with respect and deep appreciation for your outstanding contributions to the Fort Carson Racial Harmony Council, with hope that we can continue to work for the brotherhood of man, and with all good wishes.
9 Dec 70, Brig General Dewitt C. Smith Jr. “
“I hope we can live up to the challenge.” Darnell S. Summers, July 22, 2003.
LINKS on the Fort Carson “Racial Harmony Council”
Note: These links are provided for information purposes insofar as they pertain to the “Racial Harmony Council” and its history.
Military Racial Policy - "Afros" and Black Power in Vietnam
Col. David R. Hughes - Chief of Staff, 5th Infantry Division, Ft. Carson 1970
Rudy Interviews Yusef Komunyakaa (Pulitzer Prize-Winning Poet)
Fort Carson Public Affairs Office
