With a Black Platoon in Combat: A Year in Korea

by Lyle Rishell

The first year of the Korean Conflict was a dark and humiliating period for many of the troops who fought there. Against a backdrop of U.S. political indecision and reduced military capability,... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0890965269
• ISBN13: 9780890965269
• Release Date: April 1993
• Publisher: Texas A&M University Press
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.8" x 8.8"

Customer Reviews

A Comrade in Arms

I was shipped to Korea as a rifleman and assigned to the 24th Infantry Regiment's 2nd Battalion, G-Company, 1st Platoon, 1st Squad. where I was to serve from Dec.4 1950 until Sept. 1st, 1951. The regiment originally known as the Buffalo Soldiers, and can truely state that it was one of the most outstanding combat units in the Korean War.In my book WHAT'S A COMMIE EVER DONE TO BLACK PEOPLE?, I wrote of my experiences, it details the psychological effect of the war, on a 17-year-old kid, It also tells the story of a black man's fight in a racist United States army. A war where we black soldiers soon realized the bitter irony of our situation--supposedly fighting to protect the rights and freedom of an ethnic people, many of us had never heard of before; even as that freedom was denied us in our own country. My experience was a rude awakening to the realities, not only of life and death, but of politics. Writing this book was one of the most difficult decision of my life. But perhaps it along with books like, WITH A BLACK PLATOON IN COMBAT, will serve as an inspiration to other Black-veterans, to tell their stories, our history. Reflecting back now, at age 66, and realizing the advancements we Americans, of African decent have made, I feel very proud of my participation; and privilege to have served under warriors like Capt, Lyle Rishell; together we are sharing our experiences with the younger generation.. Yes! perhaps, if I had known then at the ages 17, what I know now, I too might've stayed home and remained in school (war is not like those in movies). But I didn't. I chose the road of adventure, The Creator spared me, perhaps to add this chapter, to the history of African-Americans in the making of this our great country.. Hopefully Capt, Rishell's book will impress upon the now generation, that the freedom and opportunities we now enjoy, many black men also fought and died for it. Freedom, indeed, was not Free.. PS; Even now, 49 years afterward, tears come to my eyes, when I recall comrades, Whites, Blacks, Reds & Yellows, that gave their very all..

War from an infratryman's point of view.

This is a no-nonsense, non-embellished account of one platoon leader's experience with the oft-maligned 24th Infantry Regiment in Korea.Rishell tells in a matter of fact tone the hardships, heroism, and sacrifice of men under the strain of combat. Despite the fact that he was a white officer in a predominately black regiment, race does not play a factor in his recollections, as it most likely did not in combat.He has written an important account about his platoon(2nd of Co. A) that should be read for the wealth of detail it contains about a soldier's life in Korea during a very difficult time.

Co. A, 1st Bn, 24th Infantry Regt, 25th Division, 1950-51.

Despite the title, race does not figure in the author's experiences. Then-Lieutenant Rishell and his men were far too busy trying to fend off hordes of North Korean and Chinese troops in a wildly inhospitable climate to sweat any such small stuff. Their story, with Colonel Rishell's thoughtful annotations to his original fragmentary notes, is basically the record of an infantry platoon fighting for their lives - hungry, cold, tired, and afraid, one and all. They were, in Rishell's first-hand opinion, no better and no worse than other units, which means they were pretty damned good, considering how green and poorly equipped they were. Rishell's memoir is a valuable addition to the record of the Korean War. No map is provided, an odd omission in a war so dominated by topography. (The "score" rating is a feature of the page. This reviewer does not "score" books.)