Port Chicago Mutiny [Paperback]

Robert L. Allen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1993

During World War II, Port Chicago was a segregated naval munitions base on the outer shores of San Francisco Bay. Black seamen were required to load ammunition onto ships bound for the South Pacific under the watch of their white officers—an incredibly dangerous and physically challenging task. On July 17, 1944, an explosion rocked the base, killing 320 men—202 of whom were black ammunition loaders. In the ensuing weeks, white officers were given leave time and commended for heroic efforts, whereas 328 of the surviving black enlistees were sent to load ammunition on another ship. When they refused, fifty men were singled out and charged—and convicted—of mutiny. It was the largest mutiny trial in U.S. naval history. First published in 1989, The Port Chicago Mutiny is a thorough and riveting work of civil rights literature, and with a new preface and epilogue by the author emphasize the event’s relevance today. More than a mutiny trial, the incident raises questions about the powers of the military, about the prosecution of civil disobedience, and about the rights of the individual.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

One of the most egregious examples of racial discrimination and persecution in the U.S. military was the so-called mutiny at Port Chicago, Calif., in 1944. On July 17 at the naval ammunition depot there, an explosion rocked the area, killing 320 and injuring 390; most of the dead and injured were black Navy men who, in the segregated armed forces of the time, worked as stevedores loading explosives abroad ships, with no hope of transfer or ad vancement. After the blast, 258 enlisted men voiced either reluctance or refusal to return to their duties; 208 were court-martialed and 50 were found guilty of mutiny and given prison sentences of up to 15 years. Resurrecting the scandal, Allen ( Black Awakening in Capitalist America ) writes a gripping expose of a shocking injustice. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Allen sifts through the carnage of what he calls "the worst home-front disaster of World War II"--the July 17, 1944 explosion at the Navy's Port Chicago ammunition base just north of San Francisco that killed 320 men, 202 of whom were black ammunition loaders. In the aftermath, the 258 survivors refused to continue loading munitions, and 50 were charged with mutiny and court-martialed. Allen, a sociologist and journalist, uses interviews and analysis of the conditions and trials to defend the mutineers--all of whom were black. The case he builds indicts the nation and the segregated Navy for relegating blacks to loading duty without the proper training and safeguards. Scholars may cavil about the lack of reference notes and the expansive argument, but the clear and chilling story highly recommends itself for Afro-American, legal, and military collections.
- Thomas J. Davis, SUNY at Buffalo
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Amistad (September 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1567430104
• ISBN-13: 978-1567430103
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,899,093 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Port Chicago Mutiny, October 17, 2001

By 

no (Cucamonga, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Port Chicago Mutiny (Paperback)

This excellent book details the aftermath of the Port Chicago ammunition ship explosions during WW2, with particular emphasis on the "mutiny" of Black sailors detailed to handle the loading of ammunition ships. Those familiar with Port Chicago will find the book brings back details of the operations there, which had changed substantially in the years leading up to the Vietnam Era, and will provide interesting insights to the way Black sailors were treated. Their tragic end and the sacrifices of those who organized and participated in their work-stoppage made ammunition handling
safer for those who came after them, and as an ammunition ship sailor once assigned to Port Chicago, I'm included. A movie was made which closely follows this book's story.

8 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dry paper catches fire easy, June 15, 2000

By 

krit y hatton (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Port Chicago Mutiny (Paperback)

No don't burn this book-buy it and read it and become aware ofone of yet another sickening US military action. This time the framingof black sailors who wouldn't work the day after hundred of their buddies were blown to smitherines because of unsafe loading of a munitions ship.

The US Navy behavior was despicable.

It's a little dry, to remain aloof. But dry paper catches fire easy.

5.0 out of 5 stars The Port Chicago Munity, May 21, 2011

By 

Alfonza Wright Jr. - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Port Chicago Mutiny (Paperback)

I talked with the author many years ago and received an autograph copy of the original book when it was published before it became a movie