November 3, 2012 – The Montford Point Marine Association (MPMA) is proud to be a thriving part of the “Marine Corps Family.” On the 25th day of June 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order No. 8802 establishing the fair employment practice that began to erase discrimination in the Armed Forces.
In 1942, President Roosevelt established a presidential directive giving African Americans an opportunity to be recruited into the Marine Corps. These African Americans, from all states, were not sent to the traditional boot camps of Parris Island, S.C. and San Diego, C.A. Instead, African American Marines were segregated – experiencing basic training at Montford Point, a facility in Camp Lejeune, N.C., between 1942 and 1949.
Such a proud day for the President and CEO, Laurie Sayles Artis as she joined the Women Marines Association National President, Dr. Betty Moseley Brown of the Women Marine Association (front, right) and the Washington, D.C. Chapter 1 President, Dr. Annette Taylor (front, left), and the President, Pat Hackbarth of the Montford Marine Association, (standing, right, 3rd) that have led the President and CEO to join forces in giving back to our fellow Marines, both active and veterans.
