The Mass Lynching of Black Soldiers
- Donald V. Watkins
- 1 day ago
- 4 min read
By: Donald V. Watkins
Copyrighted and Published on December 6, 2025
An Editorial Opinion
On December 11, 1917, 13 black soldiers were hanged following racial violence in Houston. It was the largest mass execution of American soldiers in the history of the U.S. Army.
This tragic event has been chronicled by the Montgomery, Alabama-based Equal Justice Initiative.
By September 1918, a total of 110 black soldiers had been convicted and 19 had been hanged following military trials that were fundamentally unfair and racially biased.
What Led to the Mass Lynching?
In July 1917, the all-black 3rd Battalion of the 24th United States Infantry Regiment, a unit known as the Buffalo Soldiers, was stationed at Camp Logan, near Houston, to guard white soldiers preparing for deployment to Europe. From the beginning of their assignment at Camp Logan, the black soldiers were harassed and abused by Houston police.
Early on August 23, 1917, a well-respected corporal was brutally beaten and jailed by police. Police officers regularly beat black troops and arrested them on baseless charges; the August 23 assault was the latest in a string of police abuses that had pushed the black soldiers to their breaking point.
Seemingly under attack by local white authorities, more than 150 black soldiers armed themselves and left for Houston to confront the police about the persistent violence. They planned to stage a peaceful march to the police station as a demonstration against their mistreatment by police. However, just outside the city, the soldiers encountered a mob of armed white men. In the ensuing violence, four soldiers, four policemen, and 12 civilians were killed.
No white civilians were ever brought to trial for involvement in the violence.
How was Justice Denied to the Black Soldiers in their Military Trials?
The Army convicted 110 black soldiers of murder, mutiny, and other crimes in three mass trials where the soldiers were represented by just one officer who was not even a lawyer.
The all-white military court took just two days to convict the first 58 soldiers. Thirteen men were sentenced to death. They were denied any appeal and were hanged less than 24 hours later -- sparking negative public reactions and prompting the Army to ban future executions without review by the War Department and the president.
The second and third trials resulted in death sentences for an additional 16 soldiers. President Woodrow Wilson commuted 10 of those sentences, but the remaining six men were hanged.
NAACP advocacy and legal assistance later helped secure the early release of most of the 50 soldiers who were sentenced to life imprisonment.
In October 2020 and December 2021, the South Texas College of Law petitioned the Army requesting a review of the convictions. Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth, a Joe Biden-appointee, asked the Army Board for Correction of Military Records to investigate the cases.
After a careful review of each individual case, Board members found that “significant deficiencies permeated the cases,” according to a 2023 statement from the Army. The Board acknowledged that the proceedings were “fundamentally unfair” and unanimously recommended that all 110 convictions be set aside.
“After a thorough review, the Board has found that these Soldiers were wrongly treated because of their race and were not given fair trials,” said Christine Wormuth, who approved the board’s recommendation. “By setting aside their convictions and granting honorable discharges, the Army is acknowledging past mistakes and setting the record straight.”
The Army said that, to the extent possible, the soldiers’ military service will be characterized as “honorable" and the soldiers will be given proper gravestones recognizing their service and their descendants will become eligible for benefits.
Why this Case of Profound Injustice Matters Today?
Under Donald Trump-appointed Department of War Secretary Pete Hegseth, truth is no longer a valuable commodity in the U.S. military. Due process is optional and is applied on an arbitrary and caprious basis. Loyalty to the U.S. Constituion has been replace with personal loyalty to Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth.
The mistreatment of black soldiers, superior officers, and commanders, both past and present, is profound. Formal recognition bestowed upon black war heroes has been systemically erased from Pentagon archives, facilities, and premises, while the heroism of their white male peers has been meticulously preserved for public viewing, appreciation, and admiration.
Hegseth is a confirmed alcoholic. Pentagon insiders say he is still drinking.
Pete Hegseth has single-handedly returned the U.S. military to a place where racial prejudice against black soldiers once again reigns supreme. Any black soldier, superior officer, or commander can be subjected to a Pete Hegseth high-tech lynching on a whim and at any moment.
What is worse, Hegseth’s negative views toward blacks, women, and Native soldiers mirror those held by his boss -- Commander-in-Chief Donald Trump, a 5-times Vietnam War draft dodger, a man who openly disparages Gold Star families, and a grifter who uses the U.S. military to generate, grow, and protect wealth creation opportunities for the Trump family in conflict zones around the world.
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